Stratford Shakespeare Festival: The Plays

While at Stratford this year, I saw two plays: The Two Gentlemen of Verona and The Tempest. Two Gents was the first of the two; it was a matinee show at the Studio Theatre. The Studio is a small theatre, and even at the last row I could clearly see all the actors. I've not read Two Gents, so seeing the play was my first experience with it. The play itself is supposed to be one of Shakespeare's earlier plays, which is obvious due to a plot hole one could drive a semi-truck through. But it was acted very well. All of the actors did a great job, especially those playing Launce and Speed. I really liked the setting as well; it was set in a 1920s vaudeville period, which worked perfectly with the play. It was certainly very enjoyable.
In the evening I saw The Tempest. I knew it would be amazing because Christopher Plummer was playing Prospero, but wow. It was an experience. Everyone was fantastic. Christopher Plummer made me cry with his final monologue. His rapport with Ariel was fabulous. Even more minor characters like Trinculo were hilarious. The actor playing Caliban also did a great job. What made it even better was that I was in the very front row of the Festival Theatre, so I could see all of the subtleties that one would miss further back. It was definitely the best performance of The Tempest I've ever seen. Again, the costuming was beautiful, and the staging fantastic. The complexities of the stage movements were really cool. I'm so thrilled I was able to be so close, especially to see someone as truly talented as Christopher Plummer.
Overall, it was fantastic to see both plays. I wish I could have seen A Winter's Tale and As You Like It, but couldn't afford it. I heard that Twelfth Night will be playing next year; hopefully I will make it back to see it. And hopefully I'll be in the front row again!