Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead - a High School Production

As I stated earlier, Jacob was in a production of "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead," by Tom Stoppard.  A seriously funny play dealing with the back story of two minor characters in Shakespeare's "Hamlet."  The play intertwines small scenes, word for word,  from "Hamlet" within it, so there are some scenes you might be familiar with if you've read the bard's tome.

After weeks of nights and weekend rehearsals, the kids performed on Wednesday through Friday, October 12-14, 2011.

 Jacob played Hamlet, a man falling deeper and deeper into madness.  When the play starts, Jacob's hair is pretty normal.  We came up with the idea of Jacob's hair getting messier and messier as the scenes progressed, to show Hamlet's descent into madness.

Nice hair

 The play is so darned witty and the language so fast-paced, that sometimes things get lost in the telling.  I had several people, young and old, as me "Do you know what the heck is going on?"    Yep.  Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are bumbling idiots who have no idea why they're in Denmark, why they were summoned or what they're supposed to be doing.  It's wicked fun.

Jacob as Hamlet and The Player, played by Leon D.

Alfred the Tragedian, played hysterically by Richard R.

The group worked hard and are hoping for high scores; they were being judged one evening in hopes of moving the production to a state-level competition.