It’s the final weekend of the New Victory Theatre’s family friendly production of Shakespeare’s As You Like It and we think you should take this opportunity to introduce your kids to the Bard.
For the final weekend of As You Like It at the New Victory Theatre on 42nd Street, I urge you to take advantage of this joyful new production to introduce your Generation Texters to the joys of comedic Shakespearean romance without the safety net of updated rhetoric (although it has been trimmed judiciously in terms of length and racy double entendre – including the epilogue).
But that only helps ensure that kids as young as eight will be able to both get it and get into it without too much coaching. The dialogue is also helped along by Dan Rothenberg’s savvy direction and a brilliantly cast group of 20- and 30-something actors who do a dandy job of bringing home the rebellious/precocious/smitten young love theme to their target audience: everyone.
Even jaded me, who has see this particular Shakespeare more than any other of his plays (and was first runner up for the breeches role of Rosalind in college), was charmed by the 1920s costumes and use of turn-of-the-19th-century Victrolas that even managed to seem relevant in the Forest of Arden where most of the play’s escapades unfold.
There are only four more performances, so reserve your tickets now! As You Like It is showing at the New Vic, 209 W. 42nd St., Times Square, Manhattan. Friday, March 8 at 7pm, Saturday, March 9 at 2pm and 7pm, and Sunday, March 10 at 3pm.
