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In-Depth Information
Robin Hood
In 1975, Bill Morton, a fellow theatre MFA student, and I wrote an interactive play
based upon the tales of Robin Hood. I directed the play and staged it on the Ohio
State campus around Mirror Lake. The play began as the audience gathered beneath
one of the conveniently crenellated turrets of the Faculty Club. The Jester (played
by Bill, a sort of Everyman character) announced the play. The Minstrel Alan-a-Dale
began to strum her guitar and sing one of the many songs composed for the play as
other cast members welcomed the audience (mostly children) to “Sherwood Forest.”
Upon arriving, a little fellow about fi ve years old looked up and touched a leaf
on a low-hanging oak tree. “What's this?” I replied, “That's an oak leaf in Sherwood
Forest.” He reverently repeated my words and studied the leaf quite closely. I bet
that was the fi rst time he
really
looked
at an oak leaf.
Following the Minstrel, the audience came upon scenes in progress at various
venues. The fi rst was on a small bridge where Robin and Friar Tuck were engaged
in their notorious fi ght with staffs. Egged on by the other characters, the audience
soon learned that they, too, could make comments or cheer, and that the actors
paid attention to them, sometimes responding directly.
One day, we had a group of blind children in our audience. During a scene
where the Sheriff's men were sneaking up on Robin, these children's acute sense of
sound prompted them to interact with Robin more directly than most other kids.
“Someone's right behind you!” “I hear somebody sneaking around over there!” Robin
responded to their warnings and, making the choice to throw the choreography
Alan-a-Dale leads
the children into the
world of Robin Hood.
