Shakespeare on the Square

On 19 October 2024, members of Blue Mountain Christian University’s English Club came together for a fun and insightful trip to Collierville, Tennessee to see Shout-Out Shakespeare’s annual performance at the town square. The evening started off with a delicious meal at Cafe Piazza, the staple restaurant for the club’s pre-viewing gathering. After a feast on Italian cuisine and dessert, the center stage Shakespeare event took place. This year, the Tennessee Shakespeare Company put on The Comedy of Errors for the public to see, at no cost to the excited crowd of viewers. The English Club members were in for a grand treat, both returning students and staff and new students as well.

A mixup of twins and twins, The Comedy of Errors was an amusing watch for the group. During this performance, the acting cast progressed through multiple stages of silly interactions. One set of twins originates from the town and the other set from another town, and the townspeople cannot help but confuse the four characters in their overall interactions with each other. One misconception leads to another, and before the English Club knew it, all of the necessary clarifications came to light and certain characters reunited at long last. During a train passing, two students got interacted with and told that their “train dance” was well done. Across the duration of the play, the actors and actresses engaged with the audience sitting before them. This play was one to commit to memory.

Courtney Coulter is a returning student to the Shout-Out Shakespeare trip that the English Club annually takes. When asked about how she felt pertaining to The Comedy of Errors, she said that “[She] really enjoyed watching The Comedy of Errors. It was very interactive.” She continued about her experience at this year’s trip, reminiscing on her time spent during university. She left a very sentimental thought to share, which said that “[She] was excited to return to the Shakespeare play this year, but [that she] was also sad that it was [her] last.” That feeling resonated within multiple seniors who attended. Unlike Courtney, this experience was Clara Green’s first trip to see Shakespeare be performed at Collierville’s town square. She is a junior at BMCU who transferred just this semester. Clara “loved it”, sharing that “it was hilarious, and [she] loved how the cast interacted with the audience, especially Lauren and Baleigh!” She enjoyed the show thoroughly, and she came back to campus with many great memories to look back on later in her life.

If you are interested in Shakespeare or even just getting off of campus for a fun night out, the English Club tends to go in the fall once a year. It is a great experience to be able to behold, and the actors inject their fullest passion and energy into their roles. Courtney recommends it because “it is so fun to watch [and she believes] that anyone would enjoy the plays put on.” Clara also recommends it, telling me that “[she] would, [and she] already [has]!”