The Comedy of Errors - Performance Analysis
The Comedy of Errors turns out to be precisely what the title promised. It is a play about magic and illusion in a faraway country. The Comedy of Errors shows how a series of confused identities eventually leads to chaos in a community, and just how deceiving appearances can be. The audience is witness to the madness that rapidly takes over suspicious minds, and finally, the much-awaited reunion of one family. It is a farcical comedy, a fantasy in a distant country, which simultaneously arouses in the audience some degree of sympathy and compassion for the characters. John Bell, the director of the play, uses various factors to illustrate this, including a number of material aspects of the production. I will discuss these further in the essay.Before watching the play I perceived it to be of a high quality, with talented actors, as it was being performed at the Sydney Opera House, in the "Playhouse". Knowing it was a Shakespearean comedy, I was doubtful of whether the language would be understandable. However, having seen previous productions by the Bell Shakespeare Company, I was sure this would not be the case. The Company has a reputation of contemporising Shakespeare's plays, in order to appeal to a younger, Australian aud
The stage is never completely empty at the change of scenes, as masked characters arrive with the partition-trolley. Such scenes enhance the comic nature of the play, while appealing to a younger audience. Everything on the stage was of Middle-Eastern appearance. One exit can be located within the cafe, while the other is situated adjacent to right of the cafe. No major changes are made to the set in the last few scenes, indicating a continuity of action, and keeping up the climactic pace of the performance. The audience is aware of everything that happens in the play, in contrast to the characters. The stage is lit brightly throughout the play. She uses a high pitch in her voice at a rapid pace, which allows her angry, frustrated tone to develop. The layout of the stage suggests openness and accessibility. Thus, this background set in a distant, strange town, where all their troubles emerge, is quite elementary to the narrative in the play. This raises the question of why the director uses three exits, with two of them adjacent to each other. They also appear mysteriously at the change of scenes, and later as witch doctors. Thus, from the outset, the idea of illusion is established as a major paradigm of the play. The existence of two sets of twins in the same town causes a number of confusions and mistakes about their identities, until the end, where the family is reunited and peace restored. They constantly receive beatings from their masters, and use the term "ass" frequently to describe themselves.
Common topics in this essay:
Comedy Errors,
Ross Skiffington,
Abbey Furthermore,
Antipholus Syracuse,
Adriana Luciana,
Furthermore Abbey,
Adriana Courtesan,
Furthermore Dromios,
Coke Dromios,
Moreover Adriana,
antipholus syracuse,
comedy errors,
masked characters,
play characters,
antipholus dromio,
throughout play,
example antipholus,
middle-eastern appearance,
change scenes,
bell shakespeare company,
play antipholus,
twin boys called,
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Acceptance Essays
