Recognising this link between the stage and student life is young Dunedin director Ava Brown.
She is bringing a bold new perspective to Shakespeare with her show Twelfth Night: LGBTQ+ Teenage Edition as part of the Dunedin Fringe Festival.
Brown has reimagined William Shakespeare’s romantic comedy Twelfth Night, or What You Will as a teenage drama.
The production began as a theatre project during Brown’s last year at Logan Park High School.
"The assignment was to just take one scene from a play and then make it however you want."
Utilising a cast of year 11 students, about two years younger than Brown, she selected entertaining scenes that resembled a stereotypical high school teen movie.
"Like Viola walking in on the first day of school, and it’s like, ‘whoa, what kind of place is this?"’
As well as using modern prose, Brown found connections in the play to school experiences such as bullying.
"There is a famous scene, the Malvolio love letter scene, where it is like they are playing a prank on him.
"It is like bullying in high school."
Gender challenges were also explored, such as hiding your sexuality.
In Shakespeare’s play, Viola disguises herself as a man before revealing her true identity at the end of the play.
In Brown’s version, Viola reveals herself as bisexual.
"Viola breaks out and is like, ‘I can’t do this any more, I can’t live like this, I’m a bisexual, I’m a girl’."
Brown is also bisexual and while themes of gender identity are explored, they are approached in a lighthearted way.
"The performance doesn’t take itself very seriously."
For the Dunedin Fringe Festival, Brown has expanded the play while still using a teenage cast.
The aim is to provide all the entertainment of an original Shakespeare production.
"It’s very theatrical.
"There is some singing and dancing ... it is a very comedic play."
This year, Brown is beginning a bachelor of arts degree at the University of Otago, focusing on film and theatre.
"I have a lot of ideas and stuff; I was always good at creative writing, media studies, any other creative things.
"I’ve just always wanted to be a film director or a theatre director."
Details
Twelfth Night: LGBTQ+
Teenage Edition
Dunedin Fringe Festival
Friday, March 14 and Sunday,
March 16
Both shows start at 5pm
Logan Park Auditorium
Visit dunedinfringe.nz for tickets
