by Deanie Vallone
Humble Beginnings
The Goof. The Scholar. The Overzealous
Actor. How these three archetypes reshaped William Shakespeare’s works has
become the stuff of legend. It was 1981 when Daniel Singer created a reduced HAMLET
for a thirty-minute slot at the California Renaissance Faire. He cast the show
with four actors, including Jess Borgeson as Hamlet and Barbara Reinertson
playing the female roles. However, a stage accident soon put Reinertson in a
cast and out of the show. Singer turned to Adam Long, an actor who had given a “bizarre
and wonderful performance” during auditions, to fill Reinertson’s roles. A few
years later their fourth member left and, once more, Long stepped up, taking
over his parts as well. Three actors playing four parts. Male actors playing
female roles. In this simplicity the troupe discovered their comic genius.
Singer
recalls their surprising popularity. Their half-hour performance drew standing
ovations, and one friend suggested they take the act to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, a breeding ground for many now-famous plays. Learning that hour-long,
one-act shows did best, they expanded their act into THE COMPLETE WORKS OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE (ABRIDGED). By the third day in Edinburgh they had sold out
the entire run of their show. Shortly after they brought their success to
America, where they secured a booking agent and began touring. “We loved going
on the road and fine-tuning the show,” Singer recalls. “We were never satisfied
with the jokes.” They adapted their script personally for each city they
visited, making sure to touch on local landmarks and history.
In
1991 Singer left for a full-time job with Disney, and Reed Martin joined the
troupe. They officially became the Reduced Shakespeare Company (or the “other”
RSC, not to be confused with the Royal Shakespeare Company) and made this work
their full-time, paying jobs. But why stop there? The troupe (now, two years later, with Austin
Tichenor in place of Borgeson) went on to develop THE COMPLETE HISTORY OF AMERICA (ABRIDGED), followed in another two years by their controversial THE BIBLE: THE COMPLETE WORD OF GOD (ABRIDGED). The latter show made headlines this
year when Northern Ireland banned a performance of it for blasphemy, then later
revoked the ban. No one was surprised when tickets sold out rapidly after the
ban was lifted.
Other
“reduced” plays include THE ULTIMATE CHRISTMAS SHOW (ABRIDGED), THE COMPLETE WORLD OF SPORTS (ABRIDGED), and their newest addition, THE COMPLETE HISTORY OF COMEDY (ABRIDGED). The new shows, performing all over the globe, required an
expanded rather than reduced cast and crew, and new actors and designers have
since joined the company. Throughout Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor have
remained writers and directors behind the chaotic genius.
Behind the Magic
Tichenor and Martin represent the
new face of the RSC. Working as independent contractors whose plays are then
produced by the RSC, they have written three new shows in the past five years,
and it is unlikely they will stop anytime soon. They first collaborated on HISTORY OF AMERICA and most recently finished up COMEDY in 2013. Writing as a team can
sometimes be tricky, but Tichenor and Martin quickly give each other credit,
noting the strengths that each brings to the table. Tichenor is particularly
fond of “funny costumes,” or “ridiculous outfits” as Martin refers to them.
Martin, on the other hand, creates most of the melodies used in the shows. Both
agree that their motto is “We’ll figure it out in rehearsal!” Since the two
also work as directors (and sometimes actors!) on their shows, the scripts go
through multiple drafts during the course of the rehearsal process. Tichenor
says, “There are things that happen where like a phrase or an idea gets thrown
out that’s just a line of dialogue, and then we realize in writing and then
often in the rehearsing of it, oh, that can actually be a running character
motif.” In a more reduced way, Martin agrees: “You gotta get it up on its feet,
see what happens!”
Their
conversations and research oftentimes leads to inside jokes and comments that
bloom into comedic gags used throughout the shows. But both writers are loath
to let you think that their shows are just comic gags strung together. “I
direct as if I’m directing a real play and not a comedy,” Tichenor says, “because
I’m always saying to the actors, ‘Keep it real, keep it real’ because if it’s
not real, then it’s just a series of jokes.” Keeping “the heart” of the show in
the forefront has remained an essential element.
Revision is another essential
part of the RSC process. Working shows with live audiences has aided the
writers in developing the script, and since no audience reacts the same way to
the show, every night offers its own revised version. For Tichenor and Martin
personally, approaching their work as writers, directors, and actors allows
them to bring lots of experience, expertise, and viewpoints to the table.
Jess Winfield, one of the
original creators/writers along with Long and Singer, talks about how necessary
it is to keep the material fresh. “We always treated it like a rock ‘n’ roll
set. We’d come in and decide if there was a new song we wanted to put in;
things like the audience participation section were born. It was a matter of, ‘Hey,
why don’t we try doing this?’ Not exactly improv but...” While some purists may
balk at the idea of revising any successful theatrical production—if it isn’t
broken, why fix it?—Winfield reminds us, “Shakespeare himself did it! […] Rewrites
and revisions and tweaks in all of them.” Always aware of their collaborative
roots, the script’s notes give actors and directors the freedom to rework bits
that may seem out-of-date or just do not seem to work with the particular cast.
The script, Tichenor says, is more of a “blueprint, a framework, a jumping off
point.” Winfield agrees, “That’s what it always was for us.”
(abridged) AND [revised]?
Milwaukee Chamber Theatre is
bringing audiences the abridged (as usual) and revised (something new) version
of the script. The revised script comes from about 2007 as the RSC considered
the use of modern technology (the internet did not exist when they first wrote
the script!), more topical references (scrapping the comments about the Reagan
administration, for one), better transitions, and audience participation.
Tichenor notes that these mostly “small, little changes” are only “maddening”
because “God help me, I have to be a better actor.” More introspective, actor
Matt Rippy notes, “I like that we’ve been challenged to think again and
actually listen.”
“Shakespeare is eternal,” Singer says. “We
chose the greatest subject to lampoon.” Looking back on his legacy, Singer
calls himself one “proud papa.” And no doubt the original “papa,” The Bard,
would be proud as well. MCT certainly
is—join us November 19-December 14, 2014, for our own celebration and skewering
of the King of English lit!
References
Martin, Reed. Austin Tichenor. “Martin & Tichenor,” The Reduced Shakespeare Company Podcast, 2011.
Reduced Shakespeare Company, Web. 20 October 2014.
Rippy, Matt. “What’s Really Changed,” The Reduced Shakespeare Company Podcast, 2009.
Singer, Daniel. “The RSC Founder,” The Reduced Shakespeare Company Podcast, 2008.
Tichenor, Austin. “Reduced Origins,” The Reduced Shakespeare Company Podcast, 2014.
Tichenor, Austin. “What’s Really Changed,” The Reduced Shakespeare Company Podcast, 2009.Winfield, Jess. “Shakespeare (abridged) [revised],” The Reduced Shakespeare Company Podcast, 2008.
