excuse me while my English-major self freaks out

[lirazel]

Sir Patrick Stewart is currently Macbeth-ing it up on my TV screen. He will never not be incredibly talented and ridiculously attractive. Also he is a feminist who speaks out against domestic violence. WHY IS HE SO GREAT? Picard is the greatest Trek captain forever and ever and ever, the end.

The lady playing Lady Macbeth has glorious cheekbones and has reminded me that I need to make a post about my ~thing for cheekbones sometime. She is very intense and awesome--she is getting into her lines, I am telling you. Also, her dress has just slipped down so far that I swear I just saw nipple. Is that allowed on PBS?

The production design is gorgeous--WWII-inspired and creepy as all get out and cool beyond words. The Weird Sisters as played by creepy nurses! EXCELLENCE! Basically, it's the coolest version of Macbeth ever. Sorry, James Marsters. Even if you ever get around to making yours, it will not be as cool as SIR PATRICK STEWART IN A WWII NIGHTMARE WORLD.

I am sad I will never be an actress for this one reason--I would love to do Shakespeare. HIS LANGUAGE, Y'ALL. How could it not be the most fun thing in the world to memorize and deliver? And there are such excellent lady parts! Portia or Beatrice or Desdemona or Lady Macbeth, y'all!

Comments

[marketchippie.livejournal.com]

Sorry, James Marsters.

Um. WHAT?

WHAAAT?

Also, that production sounds awesome sauce. For a moment, I thought I'd seen it, and then you started talking concept!win and I realised I was thinking of the McKellen/Dench one. Which is not my favorite Ian McKellan Shakespeare production (I actually do not like it at ALL, which is weird for the actors it has—I should watch what you're watching, because I love Macbeth way too hard); his Lear is. But not because of him. Because of this guy:



And Ian McKellen, but actually. EDMUND BAMFING IT UP. Macbeth is my second-favorite tragedy, but it comes in second to Lear, mostly because Regan, Goneril, Edmund, and in the second half Regan/Edmund/Goneril OT3 of inscrutable villainy. YES.

And I am here to Shakespeare spam it up already. How about that.

(BEATRICE IS THE BEST COMEDIC HEROINE, THOUGH. THE VERY BEST. YES.)

[eleusis-walks.livejournal.com]

imogen 4ever

beatrice is cool too tho

[marketchippie.livejournal.com]

LOL CYMBELINE

a very fond lol. i love problem plays.

[eleusis-walks.livejournal.com]

cymbeline OWNS

OWNS

that last scene is straight up a. ma. zing.

[marketchippie.livejournal.com]

i saw it live at a student shakespeare festival and it was the best thing ever. it catalyzed the audience like it was rocky fucking horror—this ridiculous crowd of shakespeare kids watching a play pretty much no one had ever read; there was booing and cheering and basically everyone was acting like a straight-up crazy groundling. most fun i've ever had as an audience participant. that play. ftw.

[eleusis-walks.livejournal.com]

i mean it's brilliant because it's straight up shakespeare going 'look how stupid my plays are, you guys' and reveling in self-parody.

when you get to the stage direction

ENTER JUPITER, DESCENDING ON AN EAGLE

you know you've hit paydirt

[marketchippie.livejournal.com]

exactly. which is why that happened. i mean, no one was prepared: it was like 90 straight minutes of IS THIS REAL LIFE? ARE THESE REAL WORDS? THIS IS REALLY HAPPENING ON THE STAGE FOR REALLY REAL. take excitable crowd. shake hard. madness ensues.

because that play? is the real mccoy. they didn't need to change a thing.

(aaah ha, the one stage direction that beats EXIT, PURSUED BY A BEAR.)

[eleusis-walks.livejournal.com]

it straight up has a character whose entire construction is 'i am an evil queen who likes to poison people to death'

what more could you want

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

I have not read Cymbeline (who has? besides you, obvs), but this makes me want to.

[eleusis-walks.livejournal.com]

It is great! I took a class on the problem plays. And then we actually read it again for my second Shakespeare class. I guess we had a Cymbeline-happy faculty.

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

You must! I don't know very many students who have read it. But I definitely want to check it out.

[eilowyn.livejournal.com]

Viola/Olivia femmeslash FTW! Cross-dressing! Twins! Cross-dressing twins! It's like Shakespeare WANTS us to write kinky PWP fic for him!

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

Hahaha! I totally didn't even think about you latching onto that but YES. JM is obsessed with Macbeth and has been wanting to make a film version for, like, ever, but I don't think it'll ever happen.

I was not thrilled by the McKellan/Dench production, either, despite, as you say, actor!win. But I couldn't get past the production values enough to actually watch it. But you should definitely, definitely check this one out. It's on Great Performances, for what it's worth. I think you'd be pretty crazy about it.

I haven't seen that Lear! I think the only one I've seen is the Ian Holm version. But now I'm definitely going to check that one out. EDMUND. YES.

(BEATRICE WINS AT EVERYTHING EVER.)

[marketchippie.livejournal.com]

I'm still in fascinated HE'S A THEATER BUFF, I UNDERSTAAAND mode: I JUST ENJOY SO MANY OF THE THINGS HE CHOOSES TO BE. It's a bloody revelation. I'm so glad you're an observant stan and know these things.

I was watching the McKellan/Dench when I was in the play, surrounded by the entire cast, and it was like a roomful of "...butno." Judi Dench, why so much less fascinating than I want you to be? Although young Roger Rees in a turtleneck was pretty awesome.

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

Such a theater boy. And yeah--the things you pick up being in this fandom. I know so much random trivia about that guy.

I know feel okay with the fact that I haven't watched that version. Ha! Turtlenecks!

[gryfndor-godess.livejournal.com]

Oh Patrick Stewart. *heart beats faster* Captain Picard was my first TV crush. I was four.

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

That is so adorable! I was about seven or so, I think, but I have distinct memories of watching it with my daddy and thinking Picard was THE BEST EVER.

[gryfndor-godess.livejournal.com]

He is. He really is.* My parents were TNG fans, so I grew up on it. They also met Patrick Stewart when my mom was pregnant with me, so it was definitely fated to be. :)

*When I think about the fact that JM auditioned for the part of Shinzon in "Nemesis" and that he and Patrick Stewart could have been on screen together, I just about die from the missed opportunity of sheer awesomeness/sexiness.

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

That is too, too great!

I KNOW. Nemesis was just bad. But I think JM could have done a lot to salvage it. I heard Brent Spiner really, really wanted JM to get the part. It's SUCH A SHAME he didn't, because OMG AWESOME/SEXINESS!

[gryfndor-godess.livejournal.com]

I was young enough when Nemesis came out that I didn't really judge its quality and was more like, "Squee! Another Star Trek movie!" In retrospect, Tom Hardy looked the part, but JM would have brought the character so much more depth/sexiness/EVERYTHING.

Ooh, I didn't know that about Brent Spiner. Gosh I love him. Clearly he has great taste.

[eilowyn.livejournal.com]

Oh Patrick Stewart. *heart beats faster* Captain Picard was my first TV crush. I was four.

This is the single most adorable thing I have read all week. And I saw a video of a two-year-old singing "Beat It" so you had some stiff competition.

[gryfndor-godess.livejournal.com]

Hee, thanks! :)

[aerintine.livejournal.com]

That sounds smashingly good. It's on PBS?

Patrick Stewart - SIGH. Oh, Captain Picard. How ILU sooooo.... *sings*

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

It's crazy intense and weird and creepy and good. And yup--it was a BBC production and Great Performances was showing it.

How can you not be in love with Picard? I mean seriously!

[blackfrancine.livejournal.com]

Good lord. Patrick. Stewart. That man. So hot. I will never forget seeing his SNL appearance from forever ago. I had no idea he was hot until I saw him being funny... and I think he may've taken off his shirt too.

I'm about to say something that's bound to get me kicked out of English majordom: I have a weird prejudice against Shakespearean plays set in very specific other-than-Elizabethan times. Something about it just distracts me from the play. It's gotten to the point where if the setting is too quirky I won't even go see it (I almost went to see a production of As You Like It a couple of months ago--then I found out it was done as 1930s noir--and I just... couldn't). I know. I'm the only person in the world with this issue, and my English degree is hereby revoked. I understand. But I couldn't live a lie any longer.

[angearia.livejournal.com]

Patrick Stewart. Picard. Shakespeare. GUH. *loves*

[aisalynn.livejournal.com]

Oh, Beatrice. I love Beatrice. Back when I was all into acting (drama club, community theater, open mike nights--stuff like that) it was pretty much my dream to play Beatrice at some point.

Still is, a bit. I mean, it would just be so much fun! :D

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

WHY IS HE SO GREAT? Picard is the greatest Trek captain forever and ever and ever, the end.

Hells to the yes.

[brunettepet.livejournal.com]

How did I miss this? I hope they do a re-broadcast. We are in stupid baseball playoff mode around here and my copious amounts of TViewing has been co-opted by the mister.

Good lord I love Sir Patrick Stewart and Shakespeare. Why isn't this on my TV right this minute?

[brunettepet.livejournal.com]

Phew, re-broadcast at 1 AM Friday.

[eldritchowl.livejournal.com]

patrick stewart: the mold from which the rest of guy-kind was taken. i am somewhat biased, though. my childhood was at least 46% star trek.
this is in my netflix queue! but i also share this queue with 29 other girls. so it may not come for a while.

oh man, i was in an ensemble dedicated to shakespeare last year and it was the best thing i've ever been part of, i swear.

(have you seen david tennant's hamlet?)