HowlRound: In late October 2017, Off the Rails, Randy Reinholz’s new adaptation of Measure for Measure, closed its world premiere run at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF). Described by OSF as “Blazing Saddles meets Shakespeare,” it is part comedy, part musical, part drama, and part Shakespeare. Reinholz (Choctaw) has incorporated Shakespeare’s plot and dialogue into and alongside of his own. Off the Rails tells a truthful and sometimes painful story about Native Americans during the time that “kill the Indian and save the man” was touted as wisdom. Reinholz wraps his troubling tale in the innocence of young love and a raucous, raunchy comedy.
1 comment:
“Off the Rails” seems like a fascinating adaptation of Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure. I love how this show is centered around the storylines of Native Americans and provides a seemingly accurate portrayal of the trials and prejudices they faced during the time period. I can’t think of many plays that incorporate the experiences of Native Americans, as they have been a group so silenced by history. It was especially interesting to read that while this particular play closely follows the plot of Measure for Measure, it is not simply a straightforward adaptation of the original play. It doesn’t blanket the stories of its Native American characters in a Wild West retelling but instead offers the audience members a familiar way to look at the experiences of a people that they might not understand otherwise in a different lens. Although the article stated that some audience members did not quite understand the multi-layered concepts of the play, others experienced the production in its entirety and left with a different understanding of the stories of Native Americans in this country.
Post a Comment