Miranda’s Quill

Miranda’s Quill is a prequel and a sequel to William Shakespeare’s The Tempest.  Set in the world of Shakespeare’s play, it is about countering colonialism and young people finding their authentic voice. Quill brings something fresh and exciting, both for people who have never seen The Tempest and for those who are intimately familiar with it.  Where The Tempest was the story of an old man’s last acts before retirement–Prospero’s and potentially Shakespeare’s story–Miranda’s Quill is the story of new beginnings and the rebellions of youth.    

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Synopsis:

Miranda’s Quill is a prequel and a sequel to William Shakespeare’s, The Tempest. It recontextualizes and comments on the original work while not changing a word of the original text.  It is set in the world of The Tempest and uses Tempest’s characters.  Quill also includes some characters from other Shakespeare plays.

 

The first act is the “prequel.”  In it, a younger Miranda, Caliban and Ariel are smothered and protected by the forces around them as they grow: a protective mother’s love, the expectations of court, the rules of the fey.  All three begin to push on these boundaries when tragedy strikes.  Prospero and Miranda are banished from their homeland.  Prospero, too proud to accept defeat, sets off to conquer an island kingdom for himself.  Caliban’s mother, Sycorax, sensing Prospero’s approach, catches and binds the innocent Ariel to protect her son.  Prospero and Sycorax fight for control of the island but in the end Prospero is too strong and Sycorax is killed.  He then takes in the newly orphaned Caliban and the newly freed Ariel and raises them alongside Miranda. 

 

The three grow together as friends, almost siblings. They learn what they can from the strict, and often cruel, Prospero.  But one day when Miranda and Caliban are sixteen-years-old, Prospero sees them share a kiss.  He is driven mad with anger and banishes Caliban.  Caliban however, thrives in the wilderness; he speaks to the spirits of the island and to his mother’s shade. When Prospero is convinced to bring Caliban back, the young man is full of anger and recrimination; he calls Prospero a liar and a hypocrite.  Prospero twists him and binds him and orders Miranda never to speak to him again.  But, it’s no use and the two remain friends. Prospero hatches a new plan and summons a great tempest. 

 

Act one is the story of disillusionment.  It is the moment that young people realize that their society, their world, even their parents aren’t as perfect or as good as they once believed.  It is a story full of intense passions and dramatic musical moments. 

 

In the middle of the play, right before intermission, is a brief retelling of,The Tempest in song. As it falls between the prequel and the sequel, we call it the “midquel.” 

 

The second act, the sequel, opens right as The Tempest ends.  Miranda sails off with her new fiance, Caliban wakes after his ordeal with the clowns, and Ariel returns to the court of the fairies. Each of them are, in a way, free of Prospero, but each of them are still bound by his legacy and his choices. One by one the young people reclaim their own parts of their ‘father’s’ magic: Caliban, by returning to his roots and rediscovering the self worth that Prospero tried to bury, Ariel, by wit and trickery, enough to outsmart the fairies, and Miranda, who finally embraces her power as her father’s daughter and heir, while rejecting the way he wielded his power. They find their way back to the island and agree that together they will start a new story.  A better, more hopeful one than what had come before.  One that is truly their own. 

 

Casting:

        Miranda:  She is a teenage girl, just starting to defiantly feel her independence. As the play begins, Miranda’s entire experience of the world of people is restricted to her father, Ariel, and Caliban.  (Big singing role).

        Caliban: He is orphaned and raised  as Miranda’s brother by Prospero.  The sorcerer’s insistence that Caliban let Prospero define him is a source of anger and negative self image. He is not the menacing, lecherous brute that Shakespeare portrays. (Big singing role).

        Ariel:  A member of the fairy court, Ariel has been bound to service by Prospero’s magic.  Although Ariel would prefer to be free of the magic imprisonment, they love humanity and want to dwell on Earth with humans. Ariel is not gendered and should present as young. (Big singing role).

        Prospero:  Betrayed and left to die by his brother, Prospero escapes the court with his only daughter and his magic book.  He set out to build a new life as a single dad: by taking an island from the indigenous inhabitants.  He uses his magic to control nature and spiritual beings and attempts to control his children.  (Big singing role in Act I but mostly absent in Act II).

 

There are 3 choruses.  If doing the play with the minimum or close to the minimum chorus numbers, some parts can be eliminated and lines or actions can be re-asigned. Nobles, more fairies or more island spirits can be added if a large cast is wanted.

 

Milaneses Nobles (Milanos):

        Ferdinand:  The King’s handsome and shallow son.  He is Miranda’s first infatuation and represents the ultimate, “good marriage" to Prospero.  Not a solo singing role.  

        Miranda’s Mom: She is a ghost who returns to help Miranda figure it out. (1 solo sung line)

        Stefano: Comic buffoon/drunken boor.  Same as The Tempest.  (No solo singing)

        Trinculo: Weak, unintelligent loser.  Same as The Tempest.  (No solo singing)

        Gonzalo:  Honest, kind-hearted nobleman. Same as The Tempest.  (No solo singing)

        Alonso:  King of Naples, Ferdinand’s father.  Same as The Tempest.  (No solo singing)

        Antonio*: Prospero’s evil, sneaky brother.  Same as The Tempest.  (No solo singing)

        Bosin*:  Boatswain–chief deck officer in storm.  Same as The Tempest.  (No solo singing)

        Sebastian*: Alonso’s brother, Antonia’s sidekick. Same as The Tempest.  (No solo singing)

 

Fairies:

        Puck:  It turns out that Puck (Yes, from Midsummer’s Night Dream) is Ariel’s cousin and another member of the fairy court.  Puck worries about Ariel getting in trouble and looks out for them.  Important part, significant solo singing.  A smaller, younger actor works.  

        Titania:  Queen of the fairies.  Still a little angry with Oberon about the “donkey incident.” The character is noble and impressive.  She has singing solos.  

        Oberon:  King of the fairies.  Oberon is magically powerful, mischievous and a little ruthless (remember the donkey.)   No sung solos.

        Cobweb, Moss, Mustard Seed* and Bitter Blossom*:  These are members of the fairy court, mentioned in Midsummer.  They are quick, graceful and seem to be lighter than air.  Their number can expand or contract based on the size of the cast.  

 

Island Spirits:

        Sycorax: A powerful Taino sorcerer, she is defeated and killed by Prospero as he arrives to take the Island.  While she is Prospero’s match in power, she dies because he takes advantage of her distraction when she tries to protect Caliban. Sycorax shows up from time to time as a supportive mom/ghost.  She sings a song.   

        Coki (frog), Colibri (hummingbird), Jicotea (turtle), Iguana*, Uguaca* (bird), Mime* (little fly and Cucubano* (lightning bug):  These are spirit beings that are the personification of different things in the island world.  While the fairies are of the air and in the spirit, the nature spirits are the spiritual aspect of the Earth.  These costumes can reflect the character’s quality and should represent the colours of Caribbean nature.  Their movements are less flowing and more rhythmic.  

        *These characters can be eliminated in a smaller cast production.  There is a walk on part for Hamlet’s “ghost father,”  which a chorus member can double.

 

Production Notes:

         The costumes for the three groups must be distinctive and very different from each other in both colour and form. Most of the action takes place on the Island.  Settings include:  Prospero’s boat, Prospero’s cave/cloister, the Milanese court, the fairy court, the king’s boat, and Sycorax’s tree.  If there are children, it works to have smaller people as the fairies and the island spirits, to contrast with the humans, Sycorax, Titania and Oberon.