Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead

Act 3 takes place on board ship. Rosencrantz vanishes by simply stepping behind a black leg, leaving Guildenstern alone at center stage. Or it could be the other way around; they always allowed an air of confusion to hang around them. It may be that the second vanish didn't work right, because director Dina took the lights down to a spot and then a blackout for Guildenstern (or Rosencrantz).

Because the show didn't make full use of the illusion as built, I can show you how it was supposed to work. Smitty would make a slow cross on his last speech, finishing as he moved behind the mast and didn't emerge again. The view above shows the upstage side of the mast, big enough for Smitty to hide in. For him and a close friend, in fact.

The thumbnail on the "production home" page shows the stage weight that kept the mast from rocking. Funny story about the stage weight. Funny but a little long.

Sept. 21, Year 3
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