In The News: An odd yet fitting take on 'The Tempest'

Written by: Seth Gordon, Newberg Graphic 

Newberg students have applied concepts from M.C. Escher's artwork to guide this spring's Shakespeare play

Although it had some interesting possibilities, when senior Camryn Shulz pitched an idea for the metaphor the Newberg High School theater troupe could use for its upcoming production of Shakespeare's "The Tempest," she knew it might sound a little weird, so she asked for some patience as she explained it.

She was right that M.C. Escher's 'The Tempest'" seems odd at first, but fellow student directors Tiffany Harrold and Sam Sinicki did give her a chance, and lucky for her (and Newberg audiences), they thought it was fitting in large part because it's strange.

"I love this play because it's weird," Sinicki said. "It's one of the weirdest Shakespeare plays out there and then, on top of that, let's give it a weird metaphor: M.C. Escher. It feels like to me the most out there and also the most our generation."

At the heart of the metaphor is Escher's work with "crazy staircases" that seemingly violate the normal rules of gravity and/or three-dimensional space, like "Ascending and Descending" and "Relativity."

All three felt that sense of logic-bending reality applied well to the plot, which features a protagonist, Prospero, who has magical powers, but only while on a mysterious island, where he has been exiled for 12 years after being usurped from his throne as the Duke of Milan and left for dead. Played by Tess Hartley, Prospero causes those who wronged him to shipwreck on the island so that he can go about tormenting and manipulating them, with the help the spirit Ariel (Blake Balmaseda), in the name of justice.

The metaphor also comes through in the set design, as the stage will incorporate several stairs for characters to enter and exit, as well as in the costuming and marketing for the show.

"Some really cool stuff has come out of it, but I feel like it's probably the most abstract metaphor we've ever done," Shulz said. "It will be cool to see the audience's take on it."

Staging has been one of the major challenges of the production, as they will be performing "in the round" on a small set with seating on all four sides.

Projecting their voices and getting the blocking down have been points of emphasis, but Matt Goodbaudy, who plays Sebastian, said that viewing a performance of "Henry V" on a three-sided stage at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival earlier this year was helpful preparation.

"I could always tell what it looked like for people on the other side and there was an image that looked good no matter which side you played it," Goodbaudy said. "That's what I have to keep in mind that every individual audience member will see a different image and it just has to look good for everybody."

The other major challenge has been the schedule, as the troupe's focus was for a long time divided between this show and the revival of "The Addams Family" musical at the State Thespian Conference on April 9. Rehearsal time has also been extremely limited, as both band and choir had league competitions last week before both left for California Friday as part of the music program's semi-regular trip to Disneyland.

"'Addams' cut into our schedule so much that we are terrified for 'Tempest,'" Balmaseda said. "But we're all working hard and I think we're going to pull it together."

Tickets for the shows this weekend, as well as April 26-28, are $8 for adults and $6 for students and seniors. For more information, call 503-554-5305.