Essay: Shakespeare's Ongoing Relevance
“What is the big deal about Shakespeare?” This question is central to Steph DeFerie’s play, I Hate Shakespeare! The show centers around this question as it follows an audience member who is confused by Shakespeare’s writing, as well as an actor in a production of Hamlet who tries to convince her that Shakespeare is, indeed, “relevant.” This production was put on by Christian Youth Theater Indy in January and February of 2020 in the Cat Theater in Carmel, Indiana. As one may guess based on the title, the play is not at all afraid to poke fun at the great Bard. However, its playful, irreverent tone both thinly covers a true love for Shakespeare’s writing and fittingly honors his impact on the world. The idea behind this self-aware show is that many people do not like Shakespeare, often because they simply do not understand him. I Hate Shakespeare! wants to help these people learn to love him, and it undertakes this mission with a humorous approach inspired by Shakespeare himself.
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This play’s main tension starts in the first scene. It opens with Hamlet onstage reciting his famous Act Three soliloquy as an “audience member” in the front row starts booing. Hamlet valiantly tries to continue, but finally calls the audience member, titled “Unhappy Person” in the program, onstage to talk to him. Flustered by the interruption, he asks why she is so upset by the performance. She explains that she just does not understand what the big deal about Shakespeare is. On cue, a group of girls in red cheerleading outfits jumps out and chants, “N-O-T-H-I-N-G. That’s what Shakespeare means to me!” To try to prove her wrong, Hamlet then shows the Unhappy Person a series of sketch-like scenes in an attempt to demonstrate how engaging and relevant Shakespeare’s plays are.
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One of the most significant scenes of this play involves an effort to translate Shakespeare’s words into modern-day English. The disgruntled audience member complains that the language choices of the famous writer prevent modern audiences from understanding what he means. Subsequently, she is shown a line-by-line translation of Juliet’s balcony scene, with one actress in a gown following the original lines from Romeo and Juliet while a modern teenage girl echoes these lines in terms that are more relatable to today’s youth. Traditional Juliet ponders the meaning of Romeo’s name, asking, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose / By any other word would smell as sweet” (Romeo and Juliet 2.2.45-46). Meanwhile, Modern Juliet argues, “Only you and your dad care about your name, but the name really doesn’t make a difference. Like if I had named my dog Arfy instead of Gandalf, it wouldn’t be a big deal.” Hamlet points out to the Unhappy Person that language evolves drastically over time, telling her, “Shakespeare probably wouldn’t understand much of what you’re saying, either.” This sets the tone for the way I Hate Shakespeare! puts famous scenes into terms more immediately accessible to the audience.
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Despite the acknowledgement that it is difficult to understand, the show does value and praise Shakespeare’s language. One sketch, set up like an advertisement, focuses on a weak-willed, stuttering, and soft-spoken boy. His girlfriend leaves him for “a man with a strong vocabulary.” The narrator steps in to offer the unfortunate fellow a product that would always give him the right words: Shakespeare in a Can. After the boy drinks from the can, the actors back up and the scene replays. Boldly telling his bully, “Thou art a paunchy fool,” the hero peppers his conversation with witty insults that make his enemy flee and that win the heart of his girlfriend once again. Receiving the inspiration of Shakespeare’s language makes him seem more intelligent and confident to everyone around him. This transformation reflects the power of language.
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This play’s attempts at education are balanced and infused with humor. One segment is led by a supposed British literary historian who references a portrait and invites the audience to learn a little about William Shakespeare. However, she quickly acknowledges that, while it is known that he was married to Anne Hathaway, there are many questions that remain about his life. These questions quickly speed into the realm of the outrageous, evolving from “Were all his plays really written by him?” to “Does he still walk the earth like the living dead?” to “Did he spread the plague with rat slaves?” and “We have no photographs with him and Queen Elizabeth I together; were they the same person?!” Lights go out as another person onstage finally exclaims, “Wait, I don’t think you are a proper literary historian at all!” The exaggerated wackiness of that series of questions invites the audience to see the humor in some of the actual literary discourse surrounding these classic plays.
The most unique aspect of I Hate Shakespeare! is its determination to break the fourth wall. One of the main characters is, after all, supposed to be just an audience member who is expressing what all the rest of the audience wants to complain about. Throughout the show, at particularly dramatic moments, a cast member would pull out a cue card inviting the audience’s reaction, such as “GASP!” Even the lobby at Christian Youth Theater’s performance was decorated to invite audience involvement in parody. A paper picture of Shakespeare stood against one wall, with markers and a sign inviting people to doodle on his face. Shakespearean-themed Mad Libs and quill pens were sold along with the customary candy and snacks at the concession stand. Iconic quotes from his plays were printed and hung on the doors and walls. All in all, these details made it a truly immersive experience.
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Beyond explicitly breaking the fourth wall, the show itself is essentially audience centered. Much of the appeal of I Hate Shakespeare! comes from its encouragement of audience interaction, from vocally responding to cues during the performance to physically poking fun by adding some graffiti to the portrait in the lobby to, most importantly, connecting with the ideas discussed. The show is based on the idea that many people secretly dislike Shakespeare and would welcome the chance to make fun of him, even if he does not truly deserve it. It seems to tap into a sort of resentment that people have for being required to study works in school that they find boring. Since Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language, expressing a dislike for him can be considered taboo. People who do dislike his writing are not necessarily proud of this feeling, so stating this aversion as bluntly as this show does conveys some humor just due to the shock value. The title both surprises people and draws their attention with its bold claim that, “I hate Shakespeare!” Something about plainly stating a truth few explicitly acknowledge like this is unifying.
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Significantly, this technique of using humor to talk about controversial things was frequently used by none other than Shakespeare himself. Approaching a topic with a sense of awareness of its comedy makes it more manageable. For example, this is seen in The Taming of the Shrew when Petruchio announces, “Antonio, my father, is deceased, / And I have thrust myself into this maze, / Happily to wive and thrive, as best I may” (1.2.56-57). A little later, he adds, “I come to wive it wealthily in Padua; / If wealthily, then happily in Padua” (1.2.76-77). In other words, because his father has died, he is looking for a wife with money. While people of the time tended to see women as bargaining chips and consider marriage more of an economic contract than a romantic agreement between two individuals, that was not something that was generally said out loud. However, Shakespeare makes it quite explicit here. Part of the reason why The Taming of the Shrew is considered funny is because of how openly it states things that were not outright discussed. People find it amusing to see their beliefs expressed so bluntly and unapologetically. As it turns out, I Hate Shakespeare!’s use of parody and outrageous humor is merely following the example of the source material it claims to hate.
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I Hate Shakespeare!’s use of this type of comedy proves that it is, indeed, powerful. Abigail Drake, a teenage cast member who has been involved with Christian Youth Theater for three years, shared that she was fascinated by “how appreciative people are when Shakespeare is presented in the context of comedy or acting instead of in school. Many of the cast members hated reading his work in school but loved acting it. It helped them go from reading to actually interacting with it.” Many of the cast members, all in the age range of eleven to eighteen years old, started the production with a negative opinion of Shakespeare. However, preparing the show helped them realize that they had knowledge they had not even realized they possessed. According to Abigail, some would offer an insight on a scene and then realize that it came from something they had studied in school but had since forgotten. Even those who already had an appreciation for Shakespeare had a changed perspective on how to approach talking about him and his works with other people. Abigail explained, “I initially thought that the skit format sounded a little weird, but it’s been interesting to see how comedy made it easier to talk about; it makes things less daunting. When talking with people about my latest show, they often had some reaction to the name of this play, which started a conversation. After the show, adults were telling us, ‘It’s so great to revisit stories we hadn’t read or thought about for a long time in such a fun way.’” Utilizing parody and humor makes the experience interactive not only for the people acting but also for the audience watching. As Abigail summarized, “Everyone is immersed in it and is able to participate.”
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I Hate Shakespeare! provides a unique perspective by making a well-known and sometimes intimidating topic more approachable. Its candid use of humor connects it with the audience. In particular, the details of Christian Youth Theater’s production made it an even more immersive experience. Even though the play fearlessly claims to hate Shakespeare, beneath all the jokes there is a true admiration for the Bard. While it may draw reluctant readers of Shakespeare in with its goofy and blunt comedy, those who are familiar with his writing and humor can see how it truly honors his example in these very elements. The final scene shows a transformation in outlook as the three cheerleaders return and exclaim, “We love Shakespeare, yes we do! We love Shakespeare! How ‘bout you?” By the time it reaches its end, I Hate Shakespeare! has shifted from asking, “What’s the big deal about Shakespeare?” to making its understanding of Shakespeare known and encouraging the audience to share this deep appreciation.
Works Cited
DeFerie, Steph. I Hate Shakespeare! Directed by Levi Burke, 1 Feb 2020, The Cat Theatre, Carmel. Performance.
Drake, Abigail. Personal interview. 2 Feb 2020.
Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet. New York, Folger Shakespeare Library, 2011.
Shakespeare, William. The Taming of the Shrew. New York, Folger Shakespeare Library, 2014.