The Bard's lost play comes to life

KENT BLECHYNDEN/ The Dominion Post

LET THE INTRIGUE BEGIN: Paul Waggott in Victoria University's staging of The History of Cardenio.

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Victoria University theatre students are about to make history becoming the first actors in the world to perform William Shakespeare's "lost" play, The History of Cardenio, in nearly 400 years.

The play, based on the character Cardenio in Miguel de Cervantes' Don Quixote, was written with fellow playwright John Fletcher and staged twice in 1613, three years before Shakespeare's death.

No complete version of the original play exists but much of the text was included in a 1727 adaptation, Double Falsehood, by Shakespeare editor Lewis Theobald, who added new scenes and dialogue.

The version to be performed tonight for the public in Wellington is a reconstruction by Florida State University's Professor Gary Taylor, a leading Shakespeare scholar, who has overseen rehearsals at Victoria University.

Mr Taylor said his reconstruction, a 20-year project, was based on the 1727 adaptation, but with Theobald's contributions removed and some additions of his own. Mr Taylor had chosen Victoria University to stage the first full production, partly because of the knowledge the play's director theatre Professor David Carnegie had of the staging practices in Shakespeare's time.

Mr Taylor said it was unclear who played which parts and how they were interpreted when The History of Cardenio first opened in 1613, so it was a new experience for everyone involved, including several Shakespeare, Fletcher and Cervantes scholars from overseas, who would see the play during a three-day Cardenio seminar at the university from Friday.

He said the play had "compelling poetry," and a moving mix of tragedy and comedy.

"I would be astonished if people didn't find something here that they thought was truly funny and funny in ways they hadn't expected."

THE PLAY'S THE THING

What's it about? It's based on the Cardenio and Lucinda from Don Quixote. Cardenio is the Ragged Knight, who haunts the mountains of southern Spain, after being driven mad by the loss of Lucinda.

Who was John Fletcher? A Jacobean playwright, so prolific and influential that during his lifetime he was considered better than Shakespeare, with whom he also collaborated on Henry VIII and The Two Noble Kinsmen.

Are there other lost Shakespeare plays? If you want to become famous and very rich, discover a copy of Love's Labour's Won. All that scholars know about this Shakespeare play is the title and that it was written in 1598.

* The History of Cardenio is performed at Studio 77, 77 Fairlie Tce, Kelburn, tonight till Saturday, 7.30pm. Professor Gary Taylor will give a public lecture at the 101 Maclaurin Lecture Theatre, Kelburn Pde, Friday, 5.40pm.

- © Fairfax NZ News

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