Elements of Staging in Hentry IV
The elements of staging in Shakespeare's Hentry IV, Part 1 are critically important to the action, theme, and quality of the performance. Elements such as costume, blocking, casting, and even the physical attributes of the stage are, of course, important considerations in the production of a play. But other, less apparent factors contribute to the success of the production as well. For instance, an underlying theme(rebellion, in the case of Henry IV, Part 1) must be, whenever possible, incorporated into the scene. Also the number and complexity of props must also be considered with regard to the financial success of the production. These elements as well as others, such as delivery and movement, must be addressed and accounted for effectively. All of these factors will be considered in this analysis of staging for Henry IV, Part 1, act II, scene iv, lines 394- 476. Since this scene transpires in a tavern it is necessary to maintain the simulacrum while still leaving room on stage for the 'play extempore'. To do this efficaciously it would be wise to keep the props to a minimum so that nothing is in competition with Hal and Falstaff for the true audiences attention, as well as for financial considerations. To create the appearance of a tavern one simply needs four tables, each accompanied by three or four chairs; at least ten or eleven are necessary for this scene. One of these chairs will later serve as a prop for Hal and Falstaff when they use it as a throne. Three of the tables should be approximately four or five feet in diameter and one table slightly larger, perhaps six feet in diameter. This will be the table at which Hal and Falstaff converse in the beginning of the scene. The size of this table will accentuate the action by drawing the audience's attention to it. The only other props that are necessary are drinking mugs and a tray on which they are served by Francis. The two doors at the rear of the stage will both be used. One will be used as the entrance to the tavern and the other will function as an entrance to the other rooms of the tavern. Using the second door as a passage to another room eliminates the need to have any sort of bar on stage; the drinks can come from the 'other room', thereby eliminating the need to move a bar on and off the stage. The three small tables will be placed at the rear of the stage about seven feet apart and four or five feet from it and on the left or right side of the stage. The result of this arrangement is a simple scene that will readily suffice as a tavern and in addition provides an undistracted acting space for Hal and Falstaff. In this play costuming and casting offer a tremendous opportunity to capitalize on theme and to illustrate the disposition of each character and his relation to the others. The Prince's costume is to reflect his nobility, though unpolished. Hal would be best portrayed as a young, handsome, well-spoken prince since he is a venerated historical character. Hal, as should the rest of his entourage(excluding Falstaff and Bardolph) should be of average size and weight so that they don't weaken the liklihood of retreat in the robbery scene. Prince Hal should be well-groomed and fairly well dressed though not excessively so. It is important to remember that they have all just been out in the night fighting and must therefore be somewhat begrimed. But although his clothes are dirty, Hal's clothes should be of a bright color. In act I, scene 2 Falstaff admits that he, "goes by the moon and the seven stars, and not by Phoebus,"(767). The sun and its brightness are symbols of royalty and represent the king and law and order. It is fitting then, that Hal does wear bright clothing to symbolize this. Hal, along with the rest of his associates will carry a sword at his side. Falstaff's costume and casting can be equally well-planned. Falstaff follows the moon, which is representative of rebellion and a threat to law and order. It is suitable then, for Falstaff's armor to be dark. Additionally, it should be dirty and include blood stains the he earlier applied. It must be of high quality to complement his own value and caliber. Falstaff should be cast so that his physical ugliness is mirrored by his moral repugnancy; he should be a heavy, white-bearded, old man with a red face and nose to imply that he is a heavy drinker. His speech ideally will not match that of Hal's; it will be bombastic with less attention to enunciation and his laugh should be loud and jolly to reflect his jocularity. Poins, like Falstaff, does not entirely follow Phoebus either, and so his clothes should also be darkened and dirty. Poins will be portrayed as a sophisticated, cunning, and attractive young man. It has been suggested that he is of a genteel family and so will be cast as such, but with the suspicious visage of a crook. Because of the apparent aristocracy in Poins' lineage it is important that though dirty, his clothes are of quality to import this fact. Gadshill, the one who devised the plot to rob the travelers, is the most intelligent of the remainging characters in Hal's group. He should be portrayed as one with a shrewd and crafty facial expression, but otherwise no remarkable features. Bardolph, Falstaff's parasitic servant, should be played by somebody small, querulous, and unrestful. Peto should be portrayed as a common man with little observance of manners or attention to his appearance. The characters of Gadshill, Peto, and Bardolph have flexibility in regard to their costumes, though ideally they should dirty and perhaps even heavily worn. These characters are not of the same class as the others and therfore, would not wear the same qulity garments. Francis' presence and association with Hal demonstrates the young prince's ability to relate with the lower class(demonstrating in turn, a fine quality that will make him shine as a king). But largely, Francis and the hostess serve as adornment to the scene and are insignificant in comparison with the other characters. Both should be dressed in accordance with their positions at the tavern. The extras, two or three, should be dressed normally without any outstanding features to draw attention to themselves and away from the central actors. It is important though, that theses extras be well-dressed. The scene takes place at the Boar's Head Tavern in Eastchap, London. London was the largest city in Europe at the time and was filled with extravagant shops and stylish people. It is likely then, that the patrons of this tavern are people of class and consequently, well-dressed. Expression, gesture, and delivery require careful consideration to maximize the effect on the audience. For instance, Hal plays the king's part with more alacrity than when playing the part of himself to demonstrate his desire to someday be king. When Falstaff is on the 'throne' there are gestures and styles of delivery that will illustrate his zeal as well. In lines 402 through 407, when Falstaff is questioning Hal, he could make minor gestures to emphasize his enthusiasm. Falstaff, as king inquires, "If then thou be son to me, here lies the point: why, being son to me, art thou so pointed at? Shall the blessed sun of heaven prove a micher and eat blackberries? A question not to be asked. Shall the son of England prove a thief and take purses? A question to be asked,"(782). This dialogue could be made more effective if Falstaff sat attentively on his 'throne', perhaps leaning slightly forward and speaking in a condescending manner. When the two players switch and Hal is to play the part of king, Falstaff should slowly raise himself from his throne whole Hal eagerly takes it over. This sort of movement would illustrate Hal's eagerness to be king, and Falstaff's indolence. Once on the throne, Hal should speak more dramaturgically than previously. The pseudo-attack on Falstaff is not entirely without premise so Hal's speech should approach a tone of sincerity, while remaining far from acrimonious. In Falstaff's response to 'King' Hal, he should again speak dramatically, with a defensive tone and many hand gestures. Hal is a more confident and effective speaker since he is not the one truly on the defensive in this scene. He relies less on hand gestures and performs as king with vivacity. Prince Hal's final line of the 'play extempore' is, "I do, I will"(783). When saying this the prince should turn and face the front of the stage, saying it to the audience with a stern countenance. This line is significant enough to note because it foreshadows Hal's intentions of reform. It is also important that the knock at the door occurs directly after this line so that nobody on stage would have the opportunity to question his meaning by this statement. The audience in the tavern must be involved in the action but not as much as Hal's friends. They should laugh at Hal's attack on Falstaff and again at Falstaff's melodramatic defense, but not so loudly that they inhibit the important pace of the dialogue by overwhelming the speakers with laughter. The extras should appear to be less focused on the action than Hal's friends, occasionally taking a drink from their mugs. Prince Hal's friends should listen more attentively, none stopping to take a drink. They should appear to be focused on the action before them and consequently, should respond more to Hal's slanderous, sarcastic remarks as well as to Falstaff's than the extras. But again, it is important that their responses do not drown the main action of the scene or inhibit the pace of the dialogue by their laughter. The positioning of the props has been addressed, but the positioning of the actors on the stage, blocking, is equally important. Prince Hal, when playing himself, should pace back and forth at the front of the acting space provided on the stage, not directly facing either Falstaff or the true audience. The 'king' will be seated on his 'throne' which is facing the front of the stage. Falstaff's and Hal's friends and the extras should be, of course, seated at their tables and should remain there until it is necessary that they get up(for instance, when Bardolph gets up to respond to the knock at the door). Francis should be standing near the exit to the other rooms perhaps hoding an empty tray. This would makie it appear as if he had some task to tend to but was procrastinating so that he could watch the play before him. This affords a believable excuse for him not to be shuffling around the stage and distracting the main action. The Hostess also should be nearby watching. It is not crucial to the success of the scence, but she should be placed slightly closer to action since she engages in dialogue with Falstaff immediately before he begins his role as King and she cannot be moving around too much once the play extempore begins. She would be best placed at the right or left side of the stage behind Hal and Falstaff's table. The stage interpretation provided here is one that will sufficiently depict each character as set forth by the previous scenes and will remain consistent with the action that follows. There is flexibility, of course, as to how the actors respond to the audience in things like inflection of voice and volume. A very involved audience that is laughing at the slanderous attacks, for example, would most likely encourage the actors to speak louder with greater inflection of voice at the eligible points of dialogue. In this respect, each performance would involve slight changes that are beyond the realm of the director's influence.
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