As You Like It (Part One) – led by Patrick McBride

TL;DR: All brothers hate each other for some reason. Rosalind dresses up as a boy and convinces her crush to hit on her while she’s a boy. Everyone is married by a Greek god.

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A bit more about the play: Rosalind and her cousin escape into the forest and find Orlando, Rosalind’s love. Disguised as a boy shepherd, Rosalind has Orlando woo her under the guise of “curing” him of his love for Rosalind. Rosalind reveals she is a girl and marries Orlando during a group wedding at the end of the play.

There will be a ZOOM link to join the reading, available on the Online Event page or in your “My Tickets” section.

Patrick McBride has worked as a professional actor at numerous Shakespeare festivals and theatres around the country, the last two years touring with Intrepid in their Shakespeare education tour, and playing the fool for the San Diego Shakespeare Society’s stage reading of King Lear. He has taught Shakespeare classes for kids and adults at the Old Globe, the Shakespeare theater in Washington DC, Intrepid, and for Luminary Arts.

“My passion for Shakespeare focuses on how to play it and how to say it. When I direct one of his plays I assert that Shakespeare is directing from the grave, we simply need to find and follow the clues in the text that enable us to unlock how to best bring it to life on the stage. I will therefore discuss the language, the characters, the plot, the staging, the spectacle and the theme of As You Like It as if those participating in the open reading were the cast of the play and we were attempting our first read through.” – Patrick McBride

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FAQ

Q: Do I have to read?

A: You are welcome to show up and just watch. We suspect, however, that it will look like too much fun for you to resist for long. A lot of newcomers don’t want to read initially but when they see how fun it is, they join in! But there is no pressure at all if you just want to watch and we have regular attendees who have never read.

Q: Can I act as a specific character or be in a particular scene?

A: That may be possible. Each evening has an assigned director who has planned what scenes to cover. If you are really anxious to act in a specific scene, talk to the director at the start and see what can be arranged. No guarantees, but if the scene is being done that night, it might be possible. All scenes are cast that night right before they are read, so usually, everyone who wants to act has the chance to do at least a small role.

Q: Who can participate?

A: Everyone! They are free and open to the public.

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Hilarious TL;DR [“too long, didn’t read”] notes and summaries from the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Photo Credits: AYLI: Shakespeare in the Park (The Public Theater), 2012, Joan Marcus