BOE prompt: collaborative piece
\nShakespeare In The Buff
\nBy Kate Chamberlin and Donna Grahmann
\n\u201cThere is flattery in friendship.\u201d (Henry V).
\nThey considered each other as friends and shared a love of reading recorded books from the National Library Service, NLS, yet, they\u2019d never met in the flesh. As fellow authors in the same writing group, Donna\u2019s and Kate\u2019s friendship began in 2010. Throughout 2013, either Donna, as secretary, or Kate, as editor, reached for the phone to collaborate with each other on almost a daily basis and applaud, praise, or fret, about details of their writing group\u2019s soon to be published anthology, Behind Our Eyes: A Second Look.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a way to kill a wife with kindness.\u201d (The Taming of the Shrew).
\n\u201cYes,\u201d David echoed back, as Donna presented him with their opportunity to fly to Colorado and meet Martha Harmon Pardee, her favorite talking book narrator of over 2,888 books for NLS.<\/p>\n
Martha, her e-friend of several years, had planned to meet with them for a brunch at The Buff Restaurant, prior to Martha\u2019s 12:15 PM curtain call for the Shakespeare play, \u201cHenry V.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI love you with so much of my heart that none is left to protest.\u201d (Much Ado About Nothing).
\nCredit card points for the flights, hotel points for the room, and discounted car rental fees, were instantly activated to lock down reservations, as Donna heard the yes reply. Like Tigger on too much caffeine, Donna bounced with joy to share their anniversary trip news with the Chamberlin\u2019s from up-state New York.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, Dear Gussie,\u201d said Kate. \u201cWe can\u2019t pass up the opportunity to meet each other and Martha Harmon Pardee, our favorite talking book narrator, too!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWoo-hoo, pack your bags and let\u2019s go to Boulder,\u201d exclaimed Donna.<\/p>\n
“Men of few words are the best men.” (Henry V).
\nAs a little girl, if Kate felt sad, happy, or hurt, her Pappy, a Rutgers University Shakespearian educator, would have a quote from Shakespeare to fit the situation. Though, reading the manuscripts in black and white print or listening to the recordings put her to sleep, Kate wondered if she\u2019d been able to read the original 1620 Shakespeare folios, printed in different colored inks for each character\u2019s lines, would the plays have come alive for her?<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be, or not to be: that is the question.” (Hamlet).
\nKate and her husband, Dave, began their trek from Rochester, NY to Boulder, Colorado with a very early morning flight, yet, due to delays, missed connections, and a variety of other snafus, didn\u2019t arrive at the new Hyatt Hotel until late evening.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll hell shall stir for this.\u201d (Henry V).
\n\u201cBut, I just showered and am ready for bed,\u201d said David as Donna hung up from Kate\u2019s late arrival call.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s okay, babe, I won\u2019t be too long. You can meet them tomorrow morning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rounding the hallway corner in the Hyatt-Boulder hotel, Cruiser guided Donna to the elevator door. As Donna searched the walls to locate the elusive buttons, she heard something familiar. With excitement, she held her breath as she waited to meet the friends behind the voices that she\u2019d known for five years. Dave, Kate, and her guide dog, Tulip Grace, turned the corner and then, the tail-wags and greetings began. After Dave aided with the elusive button location on the elevator\u2019s door frame, Donna pushed the down button and reminded herself to trust her dog. The party glided down and stepped out into the hotel lounge.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf music be the food of love, play on…\u201d (Twelfth Night).
\nSteam rose from the morning\u2019s first cups of coffee, as Dave, Kate, and Tulip Grace, met David in the hotel\u2019s breakfast nook.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday\u2019s the day! I\u2019m so excited that we finally get to meet Martha,\u201d said Donna, as she savored the coffee\u2019s aroma.<\/p>\n
\u201cHold that thought. You may think different, once we go hiking in the mountains,\u201d chuckled David.<\/p>\n
\u201cI count myself in nothing else so happy, as in a soul remembering my good friends.\u201d (Richard II).
\n\u201cEat in The Buff ? I dare you,\u201d said David, as Donna, Kate, and Dave, awaited Martha\u2019s arrival in front of the restaurant.<\/p>\n
\u201cDonna, I\u2019m here,\u201d said Martha, as they hugged like two lost friends.<\/p>\n
\u201cWow, it\u2019s so nice to finally meet you in person. This is my husband David, and my dear friends, Kate and Dave Chamberlin.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTable for Chamberlin,\u201d announced the hostess, as the party of five navigated through the crowd to their table.<\/p>\n
As Martha began to read the menu out loud, Donna grinned in thought, \u201cHmmm, should I ask her to read it as Roarke, the Irish billionaire from the (In Death) series?\u201d<\/p>\n
Their August 9, 2015 Sunday brunch in The Buff restaurant with Martha, started the friends Shakespeare experience with plenty of lively conversation and delicious food in a friendly ambiance and clear Colorado air.<\/p>\n
After two hours of wonderful conversation and food, Martha\u2019s 12:15 curtain call beckoned and brunch ended in a flurry of hugs.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter my costume change, I\u2019ll meet y\u2019all out front,\u201d said Martha, with another hug goodbye to Donna and Kate.<\/p>\n
Minutes later, Donna reached for her iPhone, as Siri announced two emails from Martha that warned of two events in \u201cHenry V\u201d that might disturb Cruiser and Tulip Grace.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut, for my own part, it was Greek to me.\u201d (Julius Caesar).
\nNavigating through the sold out crowd in the Colorado University theater, the four friends found their front row seats. With the stage only 15 feet away, Kate and Donna wrestled with not trying the Braille method to explore the actor\u2019s costumes as they stood in front of them to say their lines, before continuing onto the stage. When the gift from the King of France to Henry V was opened, Kate thought that Tulip Grace might try to get some of the tennis balls, but she was well behaved. Donna flinched during the loud cannon fire, but Cruiser remained asleep, until all the tennis balls bounced across the stage. With no escaping tennis balls to fetch, Cruiser\u2019s head lowered with a resounding sigh.<\/p>\n
Among the various roles Martha played in \u201cHenry V\u201d were a soldier\u2019s bawdy wife and Katharine\u2019s gentle woman\u2019s hand-maid, Alice. Laughter swelled throughout the audience, as Alice tried to teach French Katharine the English names of body parts.<\/p>\n
\u201cBoy, that fight scene was loud; it was hard to sleep through or follow,\u201d David said with a cocked eyebrow and grin, while they waited for Martha after the show.<\/p>\n
Beaming with smiles, Donna and Kate posed with Martha for several photos, which they followed up with a final round of goodbye hugs before the next show.<\/p>\n
\u201cBreak a leg!\u201d said Kate, as Martha turned to leave.<\/p>\n
\u201cAbsolutely, and thank you!\u201d replied Martha.<\/p>\n
“A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!” (King Richard III).
\n\u201cSorry, baby, but one Shakespeare play is enough for me. I\u2019ll go hiking while you, Kate, and Dave, go to the next show. Afterwards, we can all meet for supper.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cruiser and Donna followed Kate, Tulip Grace, and Dave through the sidewalk maze and reached the CU Amphitheater to attend Much Ado About Nothing.<\/p>\n
Donna, with Cruiser tucked under her legs, sat in an aisle seat. Tulip tucked in under Kate\u2019s seat and Dave narrated the action and facial expressions from the seat left of Kate.<\/p>\n
“In my mind’s eye.” (Hamlet).
\nAs with all Shakespeare plays, scenery is kept to a minimum and presented \u201cin the round, while actors invite the audience to fill-in with their own imaginations. At times, unwitting audience members were brought into the action and dialogue. As was the case when an actor, during \u201cMuch Ado,\u201d stopped next to Donna and Kate to indicate they were virtuous women\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you, my lord,\u201d hung on the tip of Donna\u2019s tongue, as she and Kate smiled at the actor.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe deep of night is crept upon our talk and nature must obey necessity.\u201d (Julius Caesar).
\nDrink glasses clinked around the BJ\u2019s Brewhouse table in cheers, as the four toasted their friendship and reminisced about their quick, but awesome, Colorado anniversary adventure. Meeting each other for the first time and sharing live Shakespeare performances with Martha, a consummate professional, will be their shared and treasured memory.<\/p>\n
“Good Night, Good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow.” (Romeo and Juliet).<\/p>\n
Up-date Note: as of September, 2015, Martha has recorderd 3127 books.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
BOE prompt: collaborative piece Shakespeare In The Buff By Kate Chamberlin and Donna Grahmann \u201cThere is flattery in friendship.\u201d (Henry V). They considered each other as friends and shared a love of reading recorded books from the National Library Service, NLS, yet, they\u2019d never met in the flesh. As fellow authors in the same writing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-925","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/925","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=925"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/925\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":932,"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/925\/revisions\/932"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=925"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=925"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=925"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}