If the truth were known . . .

It's the four hundredth anniversary of Shakespeare's death (and also his birthday!) today.  We will celebrate with a cake and I am reading a book called How Shakespeare Changed Everything by Stephen Marche.  Here is a passage in which the British journalist Bernard Levin lists the many phrases we use to this day that were coined by our birthday boy, Will:

If you cannot understand my argument, and declare "it's Greek to me," you are quoting Shakespeare; if you claim to be more sinned against than sinning, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you recall your salad days, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you act more in sorrow than in anger, if your wish is father to the thought, if your lost property has vanished into thin air, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you have ever refused to budge an inch or suffered from green-eyed jealousy, if you have played fast and loose, if you have been tongue-tied, a tower of strength, hoodwinked or in a pickle, if you have knitted your brows, made a virtue of necessity, insisted on fair play, slept not one wink, stood on ceremony, danced attendance (on your lord and master), laughed yourself into stitches, had short shrift, cold comfort or too much of a good thing, if you have seen better days or lived in a fool's paradise -- why, be that as it may, the more fool you, for it is a foregone conclusion that you are (as good luck would have it) quoting Shakespeare; if you think it is early days and clear out bag and baggage, if you think it is high time and that that is the long and short of it, if you believe that the game is up and that truth will out even if it involves your own flesh and blood, if you lie low till the crack of doom because you suspect foul play, if you have your teeth set on edge (at one fell swoop) without rhyme or reason, then -- to give the devil his due -- if the truth were known (for surely you have a tongue in your head) you are quoting Shakespeare; even if you bid me good riddance and send me packing, if you wish I was dead as a doornail, if you think I am an eyesore, a laughing stock, the devil incarnate, a stony-hearted villain, bloody-minded or a blinking idiot, then -- by Jove!  O Lord! Tut, tut! For goodness' sake! What the dickens! but me no buts -- it is all one to me, for you are quoting Shakespeare.

He coined lots of words, too -- traditional, eventful, eyeball, watchdog, softhearted, sanctimonious, deafening -- to name a few.

We closed the play, "Ten Years Later", on Thursday night, with a sold out crowd of eager theatre goers and the cast and crew did not disappoint.  What a great show, to David and everyone's credit, and I congratulate you all for your hard work, dedication and creative imaginations!  It is sad when things are over, and this play really caught the fleeting nature of live theatre, I think, so the regret is underlined for us, but there will be other shows and we will always carry this one in our hearts.

I was very sad to hear that one of my icons, Prince, died on Thursday.  His song, "Forever in my Life", was a song my husband and I thought of as "our song":

There comes a road in every man's journey,
A road that he's afraid to walk on his own.
I'm here to tell you I'm at that road
And I'd rather walk it with you than walk it alone.
You are my hero, you are my future;
When I am with you, I have no past
My one and only desire is to find some way in this doggone world
To make this feeling last.
I want to keep you for the rest of my life
All that's wrong in my world you can make right.

We saw him perform a couple of years ago and I am so glad we did.  It was a wonderful performance -- he and his band played for a couple of hours and played lots of Prince's hits and other people's songs, too, and it was so great to see him.  He was one of my husband's favourite artists.

Our professional day yesterday was a very educational experience.  We went out to the Musqueam Reserve and learned more about "First Peoples' Principles of Learning" (which are very close to the principles we use in drama, anyway).  The Musqueam people who shared their stories were so terrific and the presentation about residential schools was transformative -- it really made me understand how devastating that must have been.  I will talk a bit about it on Monday when we are back in the saddle at school.

Enjoy your weekends, everyone!