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| www.stlawrenceshakespeare.ca |
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| Ian Farthing, Artistic Director, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival |
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| Lucia Frangione, International Award Winning Playwright |
As part of the War of 1812
Celebrations, Ontario Visited is
excited to share some “SCOOP” about their upcoming performance “MAID for a MUSKET”, a brand new
comedy by Lucia Frangione, Original
music by Melissa Morris. Ian Farthing,
Artistic Director of the St.
Lawrence Shakespeare Festival has kindly introduced us to Ms.
Lucia Frangione, internationally produced award winning playwright and
actor. Together with Ian’s input, we continue …
Forget the History Lesson …
Merging Historical Characters into a
Fiction Story …without it being just another “HISTORY LESSON”
Ian Farthing, Artistic Director, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival, is also an accomplished Director/Actor/Singer/Performer. He is also “witty” “cleaver”, kind, generous and thoughtful! I was fortunate to have Ian’s input with the next question for Lucia Frangione. Ian asks Ms. Frangione … “How does one tell a story clearly without it becoming a “history lesson?”
Lucia replies …“This is always the danger. I love history and it’s easy to get engrossed in details I find utterly fascinating but they don’t move the plot forward. For instance, the whole history of the Glengarry Light Infantry and the Macdonells…a whole trilogy of plays right there. The trick is to touch on it enough to pay tribute without getting too histrionic. Same with the historical characters. I am writing a fiction, an outrageous fiction, based very loosely on some historic events and people. I want to include the names of people who were around in order to honor them and to give the audience a little historical tidbit of interest. But if I get too precious with them and turn them into saints, that’s a strange sort of disrespect in and of itself. And let’s face it, perfect people are boring. I don’t know the dark side of Red George and Bishop Macdonell. History books don’t like to share that. So, I have lovingly and respectfully rendered them but I’ve invented a little rivalry all in good fun. This way they are human.”
Ian Farthing, Artistic Director, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival, is also an accomplished Director/Actor/Singer/Performer. He is also “witty” “cleaver”, kind, generous and thoughtful! I was fortunate to have Ian’s input with the next question for Lucia Frangione. Ian asks Ms. Frangione … “How does one tell a story clearly without it becoming a “history lesson?”
Lucia replies …“This is always the danger. I love history and it’s easy to get engrossed in details I find utterly fascinating but they don’t move the plot forward. For instance, the whole history of the Glengarry Light Infantry and the Macdonells…a whole trilogy of plays right there. The trick is to touch on it enough to pay tribute without getting too histrionic. Same with the historical characters. I am writing a fiction, an outrageous fiction, based very loosely on some historic events and people. I want to include the names of people who were around in order to honor them and to give the audience a little historical tidbit of interest. But if I get too precious with them and turn them into saints, that’s a strange sort of disrespect in and of itself. And let’s face it, perfect people are boring. I don’t know the dark side of Red George and Bishop Macdonell. History books don’t like to share that. So, I have lovingly and respectfully rendered them but I’ve invented a little rivalry all in good fun. This way they are human.”
Stay tuned for more exciting “SCOOP”
from Lucia Frangione and Ian Farthing, St. Lawrence Shakespeare
Festival! Check out their website for the details (www.stlawrenceshakespeare.ca),
plan on a fun, and great, memorable time!
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