Casey, your account of Shakespeare's Birthday droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven upon the place beneath.
Mike On Fri, Apr 24, 2026 at 7:10 PM Madge Darlington via Winedale-l < [email protected]> wrote: > Living the dream, Casey! Happy for you. Your students are very lucky to > have you. > > Best, > Madge > > On Fri, Apr 24, 2026 at 11:44 AM Lynn McGuire via Winedale-l < > [email protected]> wrote: > >> What a busy day, Casey! Yet, so full of productive joy! I would have >> loved the sonnets by the lake and the scenes in the evening . What a lucky >> position you have- so proud of you!! Thanks for sharing; it put a smile on >> my face!😘 >> Sent from my iPhone >> >> On Apr 24, 2026, at 11:19 AM, Casey Caldwell <[email protected]> >> wrote: >> >> >> Hi, all, >> >> I had a busy day on April 23rd, the day we traditionally celebrate as >> Shakespeare's birthday, and I found myself thinking about our Winedale >> family a lot throughout. In these dark times, I thought it might be nice to >> hear about it. >> >> I started my day teaching from Ian McEwan's *What We Can Know, *a >> (post-)post-apocalyptic novel that, at its heart, is about the role >> literature and literature professors can play after the world has >> collapsed. There are many allusions to Shakespeare in the novel and if >> you've not read it, I highly recommend you do. Yesterday, we focused on the >> novel's depiction of future college students' lack of interest in history >> and whether they saw themselves in these students—most said that in high >> school they found rote memorization boring but in college they were >> becoming more interested in history as a conversation and contested >> subject. A hopeful note! >> >> Next, I hosted a Shakespeare Sonnet Festival by the lake on our campus. >> Many students came out to read and discuss Shakespeare's sonnets on the >> grass by the lake. The day was beautiful, sunny and warm. If you're >> familiar with the weather in the Midwest, you know April (but also May) is >> the cruelest month, so these truly spring days must be cherished. I broke >> the ice by reading sonnet 98 >> <https://www.folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/shakespeares-sonnets/read/98/?q=April,%20winter#line-98.1>; >> I >> noted that I'm happily married to a wife that was nearby, so the spring day >> was actually a spring day for me, but that I had spent many wintery Aprils >> in my earlier life. >> >> After, my Shakespeare course met to watch the Joel Coen film adaptation >> of * Macbeth *(with Denzel Washington and Francis McDormand). We read >> *Macbeth >> * a couple weeks ago and next week they'll be performing short dialogs >> from the play. The students really like the two lead performances, the >> creative choice with Kathryn Hunter as the witch(es), and what I called >> Coen's creation of a "Super Ross" whose motives seemed to transcended the >> world of the play. >> >> After a quick breather and snack bar, I went in to rehearsal for the >> English Players, a student group I direct that I have re-oriented around >> Winedale's learning through performance practices. We'll be putting on two >> scenes from *The Tempest *(a play I selected because we'll be taking >> students in the fall to the Stratford Festival in Ontario and it will be >> one of the performances they'll see). Last night we were playing with 3.2, >> the scene in which the drunken clowns brag about how much they can drink, >> plot the murder of Prospero, and rhapsodize about the isle being full of >> noises. We had good fun trying out different versions of Stephano's beating >> on Trinculo and thinking about how they advanced the story the story in >> different ways. Right now, she's flicking Trinculo on the nose in the >> belief that this is * very *intimidating. I remembered warmly David >> Ziegler's inimitable and drunken Borachio not wanting any colors colored in >> our 2015 reunion *Much Ado*. >> >> I then had just enough time to walk-jog over to an auditorium in the >> student union where I was hosting a movie night. I was showing students the >> documentary, *Grand Theft Hamlet >> <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OloHiBOMPm8>, *which follows two >> British actors during lockdown in 2021 attempting to put on a production of >> Hamlet in Grand Theft Auto Online. It's a funny and surprisingly touching >> look into two actors seeking to continue their art and find human >> connection during a time of isolation. An ensemble builds up around them in >> an inspiring way. The students loved it (plus the $200 worth of pizza and >> soda I supplied; I'd have included a keg of Shiner if the college would >> have let me; as an adjunct, I have my own version of the Sword of Damocles >> I must be ever-mindful of). >> >> Finally (and this may have been my favorite part of the day), I walked >> back across campus to the arts building for a staged reading of *Macbeth*. >> A student in my Shakespeare course told a friend with whom he shares strong >> Scottish lineage that we were reading *Macbeth *and they decided to do a >> reading of the play, just the two of them. Word of mouth spread, however, >> and this spontaneous event blossomed into fourteen students and two >> professors, homemade costumes, wooden swords, sound cues including a >> screeching owl, and a couple kilts. They improvised and improved all of >> this themselves in a truly ensemble spirit (with two Peter Quinces to guide >> the overall process). The pure spirit of play in the room would have been >> immediately recognizable for all of you. It was vivifying. I had no idea >> this was happening until my student told me about it a week or so ago; it >> was truly student created and led, I was merely a contingent factor. >> >> On my hour-long drive home last night, I was tearing up from the complex >> mix of emotions and exhaustion. This last event affected me the most. >> Thoughts swirled of the production of *Twelfth Night *my Winedale >> classmates and I put on after our 2003 summer and of James Loehlin >> attending our *Midsummer *the same day he'd had back surgery; of Doc and >> the first students originating Winedale in the same spirit of play and >> exploration and how the practical origins of the circle created a lasting >> ritual; of my children asleep at home with my wife who is also a >> Shakespearean and how I'm about the same age my dearly-departed father was >> when he came out to Winedale in 2003 and finally understood the life I'd >> chosen (Doc, he was a Vietnam vet and the bootcamp structure helped with >> that a lot!); and of just the simple joy I could see in the students' faces >> as they experienced *Macbeth *for the first time last night. >> >> As I write this, my daughter, Viola, is engaging her imagination with >> Play-Doh, creating something she is calling a "boody puppy," while our real >> puppy, Sebastian, dances about her feet. >> >> In these frightening days, some of the kids are alright. Thought you'd >> like to know. >> >> Taking pains to be vigitant, >> Casey >> >> >> >> >> -- >> Be vigitant, I beseech you! >> --- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "Shakespeare at Winedale Email List" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To view this discussion visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/shakespeare-at-winedale-email-list/CAAzejW-NH5sBF4XyUc%3D6jJm6E%2BN6UB6o98FNE_rtGELK2msJAg%40mail.gmail.com >> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/shakespeare-at-winedale-email-list/CAAzejW-NH5sBF4XyUc%3D6jJm6E%2BN6UB6o98FNE_rtGELK2msJAg%40mail.gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >> . >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Winedale-l mailing list -- [email protected] >> To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] >> >> This message is from an external sender. Learn more about why this >> << >> >> matters at >> https://ut.service-now.com/sp?id=kb_article&number=KB0011401 << >> > > > -- > *Madge Darlington, M.F.A.* > [email protected] > (512) 627-6038 > > *Assistant Professor of Instruction* > The University of Texas at Austin > Department of Theatre and Dance <https://theatredance.utexas.edu/> > > *Co-founder and Co-producing Artistic Director* > Rude Mechs <https://rudemechs.com/> > _______________________________________________ > Winedale-l mailing list -- [email protected] > To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] >
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