Friday evening, AlBadger picked me up after he got off work here at UGH and we trekked to his place, so he could pick up a few things before we started north. We made it as far as Williams, California, when we decided to stop for the night. The first motel we tried was sold out, so we ended up at another. As Al discovered the next morning at the filling station, it was the first day of duck season, so all the hunters were out in force.
Next morning, we continued our drive to Ashland and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. A couple of months prior, we had each purchased tickets to three shows: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Coriolanus, and The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabbler, a newish play written by Jeff Whitty (of Avenue Q fame). The AMND was spectacular, with incredible costumes and good acting and staging; the Coriolanus had strong performances, but the lead actor was not charismatic if athletic, so it was difficult to understand why people would have followed him; finally, the tFAoHG was both a riotous comedy and conjured up tears toward the end.
The conceit of Further Adventures is that all fictional characters live in a netherworld where only the memory of living keeps them alive. Once people forget about a character, it dies. Hedda Gabbler, being one of Ibsen’s most beloved characters, is pretty much immortal. But she’s tired of being unhappy, and sets about trying to change her story.
So, joined by Gone With The Wind’s Mammy, Hedda sets out on a journey to The Furnace, the source of all creativity. Along the way she encounters all sorts of other fictional characters, and they help her along the way.
I don’t want to give too much of the story away, but the play is both funny and touching, explores our attachment to myth and fable, archetypes and stereotypes, as well as our own sense of identity. The play is definitely adult in nature, with very strong language and themes.
Once we got to Ashland, we checked in to the motel, then saw Midsummer. It was a beautiful production with strong performances. The fairies, in particular, were all screaming queens, which was hysterical to say the least. The costumes were gorgeous and magical, and the lighting and other technical aspects were superb, too.
Once it was over, we had a quick nap, then went to have dinner at a mediocre but overpriced sushi place, and then on to Coriolanus. This play could have been so much more than it was, especially with the political seasion in which we currently find ourselves, but the lack of charisma of the lead actor made it difficult to really get into the story. Off to bed we schlepped.
Next morning, we went to get some breakfast, did some online stuff, wandered around downtown a bit, grabbed a quick sandwich, and then headed in to the Further Adventures of Hedda Gabbler. You’ve already read my thought above, so no need to rehash them.
At this point, Al wanted to try to find some Free Media Exchange event that was taking place, and we searched for it fruitlessly until we found the poster advertising it again, and then with the help of the iPhone’s map application, we found it. While he went inside, I listened to the radio to a show about a buddhist theorist’s view of money. Now I have to find this guy’s book and read more.
The drive home took longer than we thought, and we didn’t get back into San Francisco until around 23:00. Sleep came fairly quickly.
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