Watch a Shakespeare play at New West's Queen’s Park this weekend

If you were asked to name five Shakespeare plays off the top of your head, Cymbeline probably wouldn't make the list.

Unlike Romeo and Juliet, or A Midsummer Night’s Dream, “it's [Cymbaline] one of Shakespeare’s lesser known and least produced works,” as mentioned on a Facebook post by Shadows and Dreams theatre company, which will be bringing the script alive at the Queen’s Park bandshell this weekend, and the next.

For the theatre group, the fact that the script is only dimly popular among people, plays to their advantage.

“When it’s an incredibly well-known play that people already know the story of, it's harder to kind of subvert people's expectations of what that's supposed to be, or do something different,” said Kerri Norris, a co-founder of the theatre group.

But if it's a lesser known gem like Cymbeline (or The Two Gentlemen of Verona that the group has performed previously) “you can kind of make it into whatever you want it to be for the audience. It gives you lots of freedom to do so.”

What's new with this year's Shakespeare production?

For this production, Norris and team decided to create a fairy-tale vibe. What would that entail? For one, actors will be dressed in flamboyant costumes — think flowy gowns, lace-heavy princess dresses, and intricately-designed capes. 

As with most fairy tales, the story of Cymbeline includes a princess who falls in love with a commoner, an evil step-mother who tries to poison people and conquer the kingdom, and more.

“And so, it lends itself to this whole kind of fairy-tale feel. It should be pretty fun to do,” said Norris, who plays a villain in the show.

The backdrop will be a DIY setting — Norris revealed that there are plans to have a big picture stuck on the wooden wall at the Bandshell that the audience can walk over to and colour before the show begins.

Unlike the plays performed in closed spaces where flash photography and babbling toddlers are sometimes frowned upon, this one happens in the middle of a park. “You don't have to sit and be quiet,” said Norris mater-of-factly.  

Previously, they have had kids walk onto the stage mid play; dogs chase them around; and audiences join in their dance performances — “So we're not surprised by anything that happens.” 

Last year, in fact, hard pressed for time, they had performed with the scripts in their hands, at a venue that was formerly a petting farm. “It was wild and crazy,” Norris recalled. 

Shakespeare's play is for all ages

It’s been 16 years since Norris and her theatre company began performing their annual Shakespeare production at the park — managing to pique children’s interest in what the playwright had to say.

“He writes about feelings. If you find the feelings he's trying to help convey with the characters, and you try to be true to that [when performing], I think people, even if they don't understand the exact language of the line, as in the Shakespearean verse, they can feel it too,” said Norris, who first read Shakespeare in Grade 6.

With every play, Norris and team try to physicalize the emotions of each character so that it’s clear to every kid watching when a particular character is mad, or feeling bad.

“A gateway for any kind of theatre is getting young kids emotionally involved in what they see up on the stage.”

It doesn’t matter whether they understand every single word, but if they get the underlying meaning, they are hooked, and want to come back, she said. 

Catch their first show at the Queen's Park Bandshell this weekend, and find out if you would want to go back. There will be four shows in total — On July 23, 24, 30 and 31. All the shows will take place at 2 p.m. No reservations required.