Reduced Shakespeare

Here was the scene upon entering Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center on the campus of the University of Northern Iowa, in Cedar Falls, last night.....(what a mouthful). It was exciting; this was my first time attending a nighttime performance here. In past years, when my kids were in grade school, I several times accompanied school groups attending plays here during the daytime hours.

(These photos loaded in reverse order last night.......is that a new Blogger feature??)
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It was pretty cool seeing this high-ceilinged vestibule all lit up. I'm wondering what those things are hanging there by the windows........they glittered colorfully, whether from reflections or their own light, I'm don't know.
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Even the floor was fascinating in its own way:


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If you click the GBPAC link above you'll see a much better photo of the interior of the performance hall. The ceiling is very high.......great acoustics........no microphones needed.

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Click the photo below to enlarge the view of the poster showing the ad for
The Reduced Shakespeare Company show performing here tonight: "The Complete History of America: Abridged". Ahem. The following warning was printed in the program: This show is a high-speed, roller-coaster type condensation of the entire history of America and is not recommended for people with heart ailments, back problems, History degrees, inner ear disorders, and/or people inclined to motion sickness. The Reduced Shakespeare Company cannot be held responsible for expectant mothers. (Any resemblance to historical fact is strictly coincidental.)


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Oh, what a hoot! Fast-paced, entertaining and biting was the entire three-man show, helping us envision the flip-sides of historical events and personalities. The opening scene showed Amerigo Vespucci in his Italian map shop, with his wife chiding him for scrawling his name, "Amerigo", on each new-found landmass! From there, the show cartwheeled its way up America's timeline of the past 500 years. Once or twice, I almost thought it a bit too outrageous.......like when they re-enacted Lincoln's assassination.......but, you'd have seen me laughing, despite it all.

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I'm never good at remembering jokes and punchlines, but will try for a few tidbits:

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We witnessed the consternation of George Washington trying to deal with the "minute" men who were showing up to be Minutemen soldiers. Can you guess what the guys looked like?

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The "Shot Heard Round the World" ended up being a large bullet which traveled up the timeline through most of the evening. That same bullet struck Abraham Lincoln and later, others.

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Did you know you can rearrange the letters of Spiro Agnew's name to form a rather obscene little imperative sentence? You will have to figure that one out for yourself.
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At various points, "The Conspiracy Guy" would show up, keeping us updated on conspiracy theories. Have you ever heard of the cult of devil-worshippers in the Ozarks who were dyslexic and sold their souls to "Santa"?!

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We were treated to appearances by John McCain and Barack Obama. Mr. Obama had very large ears. Mr. McCain was asked the politically pertinent question: "Briefs......or boxers?" His reply was, "Hmm.......briefs or boxers........DEPENDS!"

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Anyhow, you get the picture. It was an evening of equal-opportunity digs and jabs. No event or personage was above or below being included in the fun. On their website, I see The Reduced Shakespeare Company's repertoire of abridgements includes All the Great Books, Western Civilization: The Complete Musical, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, and (yikes) The Bible: The Complete Word of God.

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Aside from the show, it was especially enjoyable to spend some time with my old friend who's always been like a sister. We grew up on neighboring farms.......(her old homestead was destroyed in the tornado last May) and spent many hours bicycling together and getting into innocent teenage trouble. She has a demanding career in the business office of our local community college; she told me most of her workdays are 7:30 a.m. to after 8 p.m. On weekends she has another job which she enjoys so much she continues in it just for fun! She laments, though, her lack of time to get things done at home and in her yard, and with her kids. I admire people who work hard in careers.......I missed the boat along the way in that department, though.

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The Reduced Shakespeare Company tried to remind us that "history is written by the winners" and that every historical event has a flip-side and other factors going on around it. Similarly, there were dominoes which fell a certain way leading to my attendance at this show. Sadly, tragic circumstances were involved, including a murder. First of all, the two tickets used by my friend and I tonight were won by another mutual good friend of ours. She won them in a radio call-in contest. She and her husband were planning to attend the show. Then a few days ago there was a tragic double-murder along a rural highway north of Marshalltown. One of the victims was a good friend of my friend's son......they had played football together in college and had been roommates. The funeral home visitation turned out to be taking place on the same night as the the Reduced Shakespeare show, that being the reason the tickets were handed over to my other good friend. Thus, while we sat there in Cedar Falls, laughing over this inane performance, my other friend was grieving with friends and family at a rural church several miles away. Of course, we know that's how life is........disparities everywhere, injustices, imbalances.......that's how it is.

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Sorry to suddenly dive into heavy subject matter. Life is like that, though, isn't it. Lightness and heaviness interplays all around us constantly.



(I still don't know what this thing is.) [Update: Someone kindly provided the answer in a link in an anonymous comment on this post. These are Prismatic Pyramids! Obviously, I hadn't fully explored the GBPAC website. Thank you, Anonymous!]


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Before the show there was a straw poll being taken in the vestibule.......polling for the presidential election. They announced the results at the end of the evening's performance. In an effort to not budge in and influence your political inclinations, I will not tell you who won. This poll took place in a college town, where most people are centrist to liberal, I would guess......if that sheds any light.

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Happy day to you!

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[P.S. - Forgot to mention this: After the show, I stopped in at HyVee to get a few groceries. At one point, I steered my cart into the chips and snacks aisle, and guess what!! There stood the three Reduced Shakespeare performers!! They were buying snacks......perhaps for the trip to Glen Ellyn, Illinois, their next destination. Anyhow, I had a chance to tell them I enjoyed their show very much, and I blurted out that I don't know how they can memorize all that stuff so well. They just smiled and said, "Thank you".]
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