JEFF KORBELIK / GZO | Posted: Thursday, July 6, 2006 7:00 pm
The first time the Crooked Codpiece Company tackled the high energy “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged)” the actors were 24, 25 and 29 years old.
Now, with two of the actors in their 30s and the third a “young” 42, the trio is saying the latest production may be their last.
“We’re always saying that we’re retiring the show,” said Tom Crew, who is nursing a sore knee twisted during a recent rehearsal. “It’s a physical show, and we may be getting too old for it.”
But age is relative, according to Crew, and he and fellow castmates Patrick Lambrecht and Brad Boesen are raring to put the comedy on stage in the open-air Swan Theatre in Wyuka Cemetery.
“The Complete Works” begins a 12-performance run Thursday as part of the Flatwater Shakespeare Company’s 2006 Summer Shakespeare Festival.
The festival, which began last month with The Bard’s “Comedy of Errors,” concludes with “Romeo and Juliet” in September.
Penned by Jess Borgeson, Adam Long and Daniel Singer, “The Complete Works” is a comedy featuring Shakespeare’s 37 plays and 154 sonnets performed in 90 minutes.
The wacky sendup is presented in a style reminiscent of Mel Brooks, Monty Python and the Three Stooges with tons of slapstick, wordplay, physical humor, sight gags and audience participation.
Crew noted patrons don’t need to be well-versed in Shakespeare to enjoy the show. But those who are familiar with his works “will find it even funnier,” he said.
“The premise is three bumbling actors who think they are very talented, but are incredibly inept,” Crew said. “That’s the humor of it.”
The Crooked Codpiece Company first performed the work in 1993 and restaged it in 2001. This time around, the memorization has come back a bit faster than the physical stuff.
“Still, I tell you what, it’s so much fun to do,” Crew said. “It’s a delight, and we’ve even added a few more bits.”
Reach Jeff Korbelik at 473-7213 or jkorbelik@journalstar.com.
If you go
What: “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged),” Crooked Codpiece Company
Where: The Swan, Wyuka Cemetery, 3600 O St.
When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday through July 16, July 20-23 and 27-30
Tickets: $18, $12 senior citizens and students; 473-2895 or www.crookedcodpiece.com