William Shakespeare s Twelfth Night - 1729 Words

In William Shakespeare’s comedy play Twelfth Night, a love triangle between the characters Viola dressed as Cesario, Orsino the Duke, and Olivia runs rampant throughout the storyline. This conflict comes to a head in Act 5 Scene 1 lines (in my copy) 109 through 147. This is the first, and only, time during the play that the audience sees all three characters, Viola, Orsino, and Olivia, together. In this climaxing scene, it is apparent that Orsino is distraught with more than friendly feelings for his manservant Cesario, and that Olivia is in love not with Cesario, but with Viola under male clothing. I will be describing this scene as a stage production rather than a screen production. With this in mind, setting for this scene would be†¦show more content†¦This change in lighting, now in Act 5, would provide to the audience a sense that the play is coming to its end. This scene would be efficient in this setting because it would bring the story full circle. In the scen e previously described, Olivia first realizes her love for Viola, and Viola expresses her own love for Orsino. For this triangle of confusion to end in the same place it began would be representative of tying up loose ends. A foyer setting for this scene would also make sense because many people enter and exit throughout the scene, and a foyer is a place where people come and go. However, setting is not the only technical issue that is important during a production. Along with setting, costuming is also, if not equally, important as it will show the characters’ differing personalities, rankings, and expectations for what may transpire. Viola, of course posing as the male Cesario, would be wearing time-appropriate informal clothes. I will not pretend to know exactly what this would entail, but I would have Viola be dressed in darker colored pants and stockings with a matching shirt, but with little to no detail on the clothing. The clothes should also be a size or two too big, as most times women cannot fill out men’s clothing. Additionally, the simplicity of her clothes would demonstrate her lower ranking in comparison to Orsino. Her hair also would be short, but in a ponytail to display her femininity underneath her