There Are No Famous Quotes In Cymbeline

"Cymbeline" - one of Shakespeare's lesser known plays. Actually, "Pericles" may be the only play lesser known than "Cymbeline".

Set in ancient Britain, when they were under Roman rule, the story revolves around King Cymbeline, his daughter Imogen, his second wife (the Evil Stepmother Queen!), her son Cloten, Imogen's lover Posthumous, some lost children of Cymbeline, a roguish Italian named Iachimo, a banished lord......your usual five-act Shakespeare bonanza of plot devices, disparate storylines, love, revenge, jealousy, battles, disguises, and a happy ending.

The design theme for the show was a fairytale, "Princess Bride" look - with a little Ancient Rome thrown in for good measure (there's a Roman General who shows up halfway through, and I decided to go with the classical Roman soldier tunic, tab belt and helmet for him, just to make things easy to follow).

I had most of the base costumes in my stock, and was able to pull several that I built years ago for "The Merchant of Venice"; but I created several hats, a really lovely, simple bodice for one of the women.

meet Headless Cloten II

Oh, and I had to dress a dummy. "Which one?" became the standard joke in the costume shop, not that we think actors are - not so bright. But when you have to teach a 50-year-old how to put on a shirt....(Most actors will admit to reverting to toddlerdom when it comes to putting on costumes; they forget how to tie their shoes, how to button their shirts, they pu a dress on backwards, etc.) 


Back to the dummy: Cloten, son of the Evil Queen, puts on Posthumous' outfit to fool Imogen, but instead runs into some rustic mountain folk (Cymbeline's kidnapped children, btw), and one of them beheads him. Yeah. And then Imogen finds the headless body, in Posthumous' clothes, and thinks her lover is dead. Tragic. Which meant I had to build a second tunic for the dummy. It's been bloodied and dirtied as well, by the t.d., and I hope to get a picture of the final "look" this weekend.

Fancy-schmancy king's robe

I had to do some repairs to Cymbeline's over-robe, and add additional trim to cover the repairs. He looks very regal.

I'm baa-ack!

Sorry. Sorry. Excuse me. Sorry.

Okay, I'm not really that sorry, I'm just that busy. I wasn't kidding about how time-consuming tech weeks can be. And I just finished tech week #2. And added another show to my work list for March! Whoa! Slow down there, sister.

But it's for a much bigger theater, and it'll definitely be a high-profile show in the Twin Cities; I really couldn't say no. To the theater or the paycheck. This is the life of a free-lance artist; we gotta take the work when it comes along.

Anyway - back to the creating part of my life. I don't have photos of everything I've done lately, because most of the items are show-related, and I was in a rush to get them done! And to the theater! And ready for the show!!!!!

#1 - I made a nametag for the lead character in "Slasher", for her waitress uniform (The Buster's t-shirt, from earlier).

#2 - I made a fabulous dinner for my daughters, my husband, and myself; the boy was at a friend's house, so it was a perfect night for tilapia. I roasted some aromatic vegetables in flavored olive oil, made a vinaigrette marinade with balsamic vinegar, white wine vinegar, olive oil, garlic, and herbs, put the fillets on the vegetables and covered the pan with foil. I also made jasmine rice to serve with the fish (the youngest was very happy for the "sticky rice"!). It was a lovely meal.

#3 - I made puffy sleeve shirts for the actors in "The Cmplt Works".
#4 - Then I made doublets to go over the puffy sleeve shirts
#5 - Finally, pumpkin pants! These guys are ready for the Ren Fest!!

#6 - I made a pattern for a tulip sleeve, to go in a costume for "The Pirates of Penzance" at St. Catherine University. Since I'm not designing this show, I have to make sure my work fits somebody else's vision. She liked it, and I'll be cutting out the dress (and sleeves!) on Monday.

Let's see, where does that get me to? Now I'm working on the set and the costumes for "Mousetrap", so: #8 - I designed the floor plan for the set, taped it out, and found somebody to build the set! The walls are up, the first layer of pain is on, and I'm trying to figure out what to do with the flooring.

#9 - There was another meal in here somewhere - Yes, ricotta and blueberry pancakes! Must have been Superbowl Sunday, just me and the kids were home, so I made a light supper. It was delish!

Update: I should probably give the recipe, huh?

1 1/4 cups pancake mix ( I used Bisquick Healthy Heart mix)
1 1/3 cups milk
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup blueberries

Mix together the pancake mix, milk, ricotta cheese, and egg. Fold in the blueberries. Let the batter rest while the griddle preheats. (I have an electric griddle, and I LOVE it! It's so easy to make pancakes, bacon, hamburgers, grilled cheese sandwiches....drool!) I usually set the griddle to 350 degrees; the batter is thinner than the usual American pancake batter, but not as thin as crepe batter. These were wonderful, with the contrasting tangy and sweet flavors.

Wow, I used a lot of exclamation points this time around. I have to emphasize how busy I am, and how amazing all this work is - mostly because I don't have the photos to prove it; and because I don't want to feel like I've failed less than two months into my year-long goal.

I'm doing things, I'm creating, I'm accomplishing so much - but most of it isn't visible quite yet. Stay tuned!