Fun handle on As You Like It!
THE famous lines, “all the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players”, will be heard in Malaysia come month-end with the performance of Shakespeare’s AsYouLikeIt! A cycling bunch of British women actors, called the HandleBards, are ready to perform this hilarious tale of two lovers becoming entangled in a beguiling game of love, lust and mistaken identity. “Riotous amounts of energy, a fair old whack of chaos, and a great deal of laughter!” says one performer, Charlotte Driessler, on what the audience can expect with this show.
The HandleBards are a four-strong female actor troupe from England, who carry with them when on tour all of the necessary set, props and costumes to perform energetic, charmingly chaotic and environmentally sustainable Shakespeare plays across the world.
Audiences from England and Belgium to India and Singapore have reportedly enjoyed the HandleBards’ highly visual and very accessible style of Shakespeare.
This is the troupe’s fourth visit to Malaysia since 2013, after performing A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Much Ado About Nothing, followed by Romeo & Juliet and now AsYouLikeIt! , presented by Gardner & Wife Theatre, in association with The Applause Society of Kuala Lumpur.
Says Lucy Green: “Elle (Eleanor) Dillon Reams was in Malaysia for Romeo & Juliet
last year, but this is our first time for the rest of us.”
The Malaysia newbies of Green, Driessler and Jessica Hern are all set to try eating durian. Says Reams: “Penang is stunning and the markets in Kuala Lumpur are great. Safe to say eating durian was an interesting experience last year... I’ll make sure the other girls try it this time and we’ll see what they think!”
On replacements should anyone fall ill, Reams says: “Our company manager and the founder of the company, Paul Moss, has to step in. This happened for one show last year when one of the actors got food poisoning in Yangon — thankfully Paul has performed in previous HandleBards shows so we think he’ll be able to pull it off!”
The troupe usually performs outdoors, what with bicycles and all, but Hern says: “It’s always nice to come indoors after a summer of outdoor shows — it means we can add more nuanced comedy to the show that would otherwise be lost in the outdoors. And we also don’t need to worry about the rain!”
On this international tour, Penang and Kuala Lumpur are this troupe’s first stop. Says Green: “Last autumn we performed in Bangalore and Mumbai which was amazing. By far the loudest laughter and kindest applause we have received so far. But I’m sure Malaysia can be just as loud, right?”
AsYouLIkeIt! revolves around Rosalind, the daughter of a banished duke, who falls in love with Orlando at a wrestling match. Her usurping uncle, jealous of her popularity banishes her from court. Disguised as a boy, she leaves with her cousin Celia and the jester Touchstone to seek out her father in the Forest of Arden. Here she meets Orlando again and, under the guise of a young man, Ganymede, counsels him in the art of love and wooing.
While the teaching of Shakespeare in local public schools is not explicit in the curriculum, Driessler says: “The great thing about Shakespeare’s plays is that you don’t need to understand the language to appreciate the lyricism and poetry of the text.
“The stories are timeless and universal, they are about love and loss which is something everyone can relate to.
“The HandleBards shows are very physical and so even if you don’t understand a word you’ll have a great time!”
nstent@nst.com.my