Shakespeare Coaching
First Folio Technique
After working first in the "traditional" approach to Shakespeare, I was introduced to the Cue Script, or "First Folio Unrehearsed" technique in my first season with the New England Shakespeare Festival. This technique was first re-discovered and championed by Patrick Tucker, Director of the Original Shakespeare Company, vice-chairman of the Artistic Directorate of the International Shakespeare Globe Centre and whose credits include productions by the RSC, Drama Studio London, and the Globe Theatre London. (For more information on Mr. Tucker and the OSC, see his book "Secrets of Acting Shakespeare: The Original Approach").
The basis of this technique is the First Folio of 1623, which preserves the text of the plays in a form as close to what Shakespeare wrote as we can get. In the intervening centuries, scholars and editors have re-structured and re-punctuated the text from a literary/poetic standpoint; but in doing so they have stripped the text of critical clues to the actor. In extreme instances these well-meaning editors have totally changed the meaning of lines. Modern editions of the plays have upwards of 1000 editorial changes when compared to the First Folio text.
Shakespeare WROTE FOR ACTORS - and using this technique makes that abundantly clear. The original punctuation, the "archaic" spellings and "arbitrary" capitalizations, the directions in the lines themselves - all of these are acting clues. They serve to lift the veil of confusion around Shakespeare and make his works easier to perform, as well as more accessible to the audience.
Actors who have studied this technique with me have gone on to programs such as the MFA in Acting Program at NYU'S Tisch School of the Arts, Boston University's BFA in Acting Program, and have been cast by theatres such as The Publick Theatre (Boston, MA), The Shakespeare Theatre Company (Washington DC), and the Public Theatre/New York Shakespeare Festival (New York, NY). I guarantee that this technique will make a profound difference in the way you do Shakespeare.
For information on coaching, rates, or to schedule a session, call me at (617) 489-6929 or e-mail me at kim@kimcarrell.com.
