“A Commedia of Errors” bound for Scotland

Bridget Tobin
November 17, 2009
Filed under Arts & Entertainment, Top Stories

The ‘Iolani Dramatic Players performed the much anticipated fall play, A Commedia of Errors, on November 5-7. This year’s play is unique in that the actors will be bringing their talent to Scotland this coming summer for the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Throughout the year, students have been doing fundraisers in order to offset the hefty cost of bringing the production all the way to Europe. Luckily, ‘Iolani students, parents, and teachers were able to see the play’s debut before it is performed at the festival.

It would have been great to have a good knowledge of Shakespeare’s plays before going to see the fall production. A Commedia of Errors isn’t one of the bard’s more popular plays, so it wasn’t surprising that some audience members were confused during some parts of the performance. Before watching, it was almost vital to have read the summary in the program. The play is about two sets of twins, all of whom were separated from their counterparts and have no idea that the other exists. As the play progresses, both sets of twins go through misunderstandings which cause trouble for the other set of twins.

There were various parts of the performance that were unexpectedly funny. A specific example: it was definitely surprising to see a male student dressed in women’s clothing; padding included. The elaborate costumes brought something special to the play. The set and costumes had obviously been time consuming to make, but turned out to be one of the most notable aspects of the performance. The most impressive part of the whole performance was, of course, the acting. Many don’t realize what a challenge it is to read Shakespeare, but to memorize it and perform for an audience is certainly no easy task. But, despite all of that, the actors delivered their lines with ease and incorporated the quirky traits of their characters into their stellar performance. The play, true to its name, was comedic, and enjoyable to watch.