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Printer-Friendly ModePlayers offer crash course in complete works of Shakespeare
September 21, 2009 —
Friends, students, faculty, lend your ears; The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) starts Friday at the Bay City Players Community Theatre.
The theater ensemble will present all 37 of Shakespeare’s plays in 97 fastpaced minutes.
The precipitous adventure, told in 17th-century prose, incorporates scenes from The Bard’s resume into a variety of costumes, themes and sounds.
Appearing in the play are SVSU students David Milka II, a theater sophomore, and theater senior Marty Hofelich.
Along with Delta College sophomore Evan Werner, the three are informally referred to as “the Three Stooges doing Shakespeare.”
All veterans of the acting guild, each student is deeply involved in theater, spanning from adolescence to now.
Each sought out involvement with the play because of his fondness for Shakespeare, as well as the performing arts.
Director Caitlin Berry, a 30-year veteran of acting in Bay City says she was eager to play a role in the production.
“When I saw they were doing this show, I knew I wanted to be a part of it,” Berry said. “So I am directing it.”
Milka said he was so eager to land a role in the production that he made the 30-minute commute between Bay City and Saginaw so he could audition for the play.
The play is designed to incorporate the audience into the plot, ensuring not one of the 97 minutes is dull.
“We bring a lot of ourselves into the characters,” said Hofelich. The combination of audience participation and improvisation of each character keeps all on their toes.
Working behind the scenes and making sure everything comes together is another Cardinal, technical director and set designer Jerry Dennis.
Though Shakespeare’s work dates back several hundred years, the production’s structure creates the feeling of another era, according to Dennis.
“The play resembles a classic comedy from the 1940’s.”