I saw the Sunday Matinee, and had a great time. It's an odd thing to sit and watch Shakespeare with a group of people who, from what I could gather, don't usually attend thetare. And that is the brilliant thing about Upstart's venture. It brings theatre to those who usually don't participate.

It was my first viewing of Othello, having never read it, and not knowing the story. I went away knowing more than when I arrived, and happy to have had the experience.

This isn't a review, just a "Well done" to all involved, and thanks for a beautiful night by the lake in Ellenbrook.

www.meltheco.org.au

Garreth

Well Done!

There can be no truer test than the 'teenager on bike test.' I am too far away to ever have the chance to see your production, but what you have said sounds true to me, so again: well done!

Noel

I am very much looking forward to seeing the show this Friday!

....and so's my better half. She's o'seas and I'm on stage in something else. A big "Break a Leg" to Eddie and the rest of the cast. Stowers as Othello? Could theatre get better than that? Wishing everyone associated with the show all the best for the rest of the season

I saw Othello on its final night with an audience of around 200.This is the second production Upstart have provided free to the public at Ellenbrook, both plays were of a very high quality and were extremely well received by the audience.
I believe that "Shakespeare on the Lake" is something very special that is going to get bigger each year.This group of highly talented people seem to have a knack for making Shakespeare highly accessable and a lot of fun for everyone, without compromising it in any way. I can think of no better ambassadors for both Shakespeare and amateur theatre in general than this dedicated company.
Congratulations and thank you to all involved.

To rehearse, plan, design, etc a show for months, for a season of three or four performances, with 100% bump-in and bump-out for each show, takes a lot of commitment on everybody’s part; if the production is a bowdlerisation of Shakespeare’s Othello, to ‘make it relevant’(to whom? - kindergarteners?), with lines shouted on a stage only slightly smaller than Subi Oval,with music-hall and burlesque acts thrown in, it is a wasted commitment and, for this member of the audience, a waste of time – that is, up until interval. God knows what happened after the break, but I certainly do not. I do know, however, that Shakespeare thought he was writing a tragedy.

FLIPMAC

I, along with my partner who is an avid Shakespeare fan, also saw the show its final night. We were both generally impressed by the quality of both the venue and the actors (along with the great costumes and effective minimal set) however my partner did have one particular complaint about the young lass playing Desdemona. She kept noticing her focus shifting rapidly from place to place and not remaining constant, and found it very distracting from her performance particularly in her final dramatic death scene. I only started to notice this after it was pointed out to me but generally found her to be giving a well rounded performance (and what a beautiful voice she had). Just thought I should put that note in but that aside, really great job guys!

A Bowdlerisation is an expurgated or censored version. I didn,t notice any cuts to the script in Othello the night I went.It stayed true to the scipt and in my opinion retained all the drama, suspense,tragedy and pathos inherant to the play.It was also a lot of fun, which is what most audiences to free outdoor theatre are looking for.In fact Othello is so melodramatic I find it difficult to take seriously.
Cameron Clarke's commedia del arte like treatment of Roderigo
was for me one of the highlights of the show and quite appropriate.And who says Iago shouldnt have a warped manic sense of humour.In fact this treatment of Iago provides a motive for his actions,mental instability.
But my opinion is irrelevant,it was the audience reaction that was the proof of the pudding.Gareth as Iago did indeed have them in the palm of his hand through five or six soliloquys and received strong applause each time.Cameron Clarke had them laughing out loud.Eddie Stowers and Dean McAskil[Othello and Brabantio] had us rivetted with the sheer magnitude of their stage prescence.The whole cast and musicians contibuted to a most enjoyable night out
Most importantly,at the end of the day almost all of the large audience were still there and were showing all the signs of having had a very good time.Most of these people
were not regular theatre goers.Many of them may well become so thanks to the efforts of Upstart and that's got to be a good thing.