with Geoff Hoyle as Will Kemp
and
Deborah Doyle as Queen Elizabeth
|
|
December 12, 13, 14 and 19, 20, 21
at Oakland's Scottish Rite Theater on Lake Merritt
THE CHRISTMAS REVELS, a theatrical celebration of the Winter Solstice that crosses ethnic and religious
boundaries, played at Oakland's Scottish Rite Theater for ten performances, December 12-21.
the 2003 Revels visited
the colorful Renaissance world of Queen Elizabeth the First. It followed Will Kemp
(Geoff Hoyle), the irreverent and brilliantly talented comedian from Shakespeare's company, as he Morris Danced from London to Norwich
to win a wager and meets up with the Queen's progress! On his journey, he encountered townsfolk and tavern
keepers, courtiers and comics, singers and storytellers, all set against a background of magnificent Elizabethan
music, dance and drama. In Norwich, the Court Masque was preparing the Persephone and Demetre Myth for the Queen when Will Kemp arrives. The merry prankster
was drafted to play Hades and, of course, brings down
the house.
Will Kemp was a colleague of Shakespeare, fellow shareholder in the Globe
Theatre, Europe's most famous comic actor and Morris Dancer extraordinary. It is
likely that several of Shakespeare's clown roles were written specifically for
Kemp. In 1599, in a sort of 16th Century publicity stunt, he set off to dance
all the way from London to Norwich. In spite of primitive roads and winter
weather, he achieved the feat in just nine days* and wrote a book about the
event (A
Nine Days Wonder)
which gave us the phrase "a nine days wonder." (*Well, nine days worth of
traveling and dancing, with some long stops in-between!)
In this new California Revels production, Will
Kemp was portrayed by the Bay Area's
own Master of Revelry and favorite Fool, Geoff Hoyle. He
was joined by
Deborah Doyle (of California
Renaissance Faires) as Queen Elizabeth I, Robert
Weinapple, fiddler
Shira Kammen, as well as top Morris
and Renaissance dancers. Rounding out the cast was an innovative chorus of over
80 singers, dancers, actors and children, along with the Brass West Ensemble,
the Golden Ring Morris Men, and the Solstice Singers. Together they brought
to life Kemp's "Nine Days Wonder" under the direction of Revels'
director,
David Parr and
music director,
Fred Goff. Audiences also enjoyed the traditional Revels favorites, including the
ever-popular audience-participation ‘Lord of the Dance' at the end of the first
act.
Director's Notes
View 2003 Christmas Revels Rehearsal Photos
The California Revels gratefully acknowledges the support of The British Consulate-General of San Francisco, VisitBritain, Virgin Atlantic and the East Bay Express for the 2003 Christmas Revels.
For background information on Queen Elizabeth I and Will Kemp, visit our cultural resources page.
To find out more about the origin and extent of Revels, visit the National Revels website
