Scene Magazine
Take time, turn back, tune in: All the world’s a radio dial. Golden agers read Shakespeare. Youth theater members provide sound effects. Audiences lend an attentive ear.
If your imagination isn’t cooperating, take a cue this weekend from the Willoughby Fine Arts Association. In conjunction with the Great Lakes Theatre Festival’s “Total Willpower” program, the Association will present an old-fashioned, radio-style performance of William Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor. Not to fear, the 19 starring senior citizens won’t be shoehorned into a radio booth; the production will play out onstage to enable the viewing audience to sample the way it was.
“We’re looking to give seniors a feel for the way they used to listen to theater, to give them a behind-the-scenes look at the way it came about,” says Effie Tsengas, public relations director for the Fine Arts Association. “Youth theater students will be onstage along with the cast, doing sound effects, just as they would as if they were in the studio.”
Geriatric interest in the “radio play” is higher than the price of gasoline. “It’s a cute idea, but at auditions I was blown away at how charming it’s going to be,” says director Donald Squires. Of 60 trying out, a few are in their 80s. “About five were seasoned veterans,” says Squires. “The rest haven’t been in anything like this since high school. They’re just lovin’ it. They’re all so thankful to be a part of it. It’s so refreshing.”
Could Windsor help to revive the radio-play genre? “Quite possibly,” says Tsengas. “It’s been well received so far, with the response to the auditions, comments by actors and other theaters, and ticket sales. It’s something a little more unique to our participation in Total Willpower.”
The premise of “Total Willpower” – the brainchild of the Great Lakes Theater Festival – is simple but ambitious: to ensure that from January to August, every word written by Shakespeare is spoken aloud, via stage production or film screening – in 31 northern Ohio community theaters and cinemas.
Staging a radio play of the Bard’s work draws rave reviews from Squires, hired by the Willoughby group for his Shakespearean specialization. “Shakespeare is meant to be seen, not read,” says Squires. “I guess my powers as director come out more and more, line by line, word by word, every nuance. They have to know what they want, how to get it, and know what they’re talking about.” In other words, how to take time, turn back and tune in. – Jeff Woodard
The Merry Wives of Windsor radio play will be performed at 8 p.m. July 7 and 8, and at 3 p.m. July 9 in the Corning Theatre, The Fine Arts Association, 38660 Mentor Ave., in Willoughby. Tickets, $10 in advance and at the door, can be reserved by calling 440-951-6637.