By MICHAEL BOYLAN
mboylan@thecitizennews.com

The scene is the Globe Theater in London. The year is 1642. The Puritans are threatening to tear down all of the theaters on charges of blasphemy and members of the theater company, which has performed all of William Shakespeare's plays, are trying to decide which piece by the Bard will be their last.

That is the premise behind Fayette County High School's production of “London, 1642,” written by FCHS drama director James Wagoner and of course, William Shakespeare. The project was intended to inspire students to learn the heritage of Shakespeare and how to prepare for a Shakespearean production. The play will be produced almost exactly like a Globe Theater production, with the exception that females will play female roles instead of men.

There are 29 actors, each with a lead role in one of the excerpts from 11 plays being performed. The chosen scenes should give the audience the whole story of each work. “The actors had to learn about performing works of Shakespeare,” said Wagoner. “They had to learn the context of the material, the style, and the iambic pentameter. It's been a lot of fun and has been going very well.”

Six works will be performed each night and each night promises a different show. Scenes from the following will be performed: “Henry VIII,” “Hamlet,” “The Merchant of Venice,” “Othello,” “Twelfth Night,” “The Taming of the Shrew,” “The Tempest,” “Much Ado About Nothing,” “Measure by Measure,” “Romeo and Juliet” and “MacBeth.” There may be some changes in the order of each night.

The school has been working together on this project. The award-winning Fayette County Select Chorus will perform songs from the Renaissance before the show, and all 1,600 English students at FCHS will see the play Tuesday. The drama department has been working on the production since Christmas. The school entered the state drama competition in the fall and took home awards for the best actor, Josh Kirby, and became the third ranked drama department in the state.

The production values for “London, 1642” are very high. “We rented professional costumes for the actors,” said Wagoner. “I wanted them to have the full experience of a Shakespearean production. We're not going cheap.”

The Friends of the Fayette County Public Library have also pitched in on the production. They will have a display in the lobby about Shakespeare and his works and will be selling mugs with his likeness to celebrate his birthday and to raise money for resources and collections for the Library.

“London, 1642” will be presented May 3-6 at 7 p.m. at Sams Auditorium in Fayetteville. Admission is $5 for students and senior citizens and $7 for adults.

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