A Winter's Tale

By the title of my post "A Winter's Tale" your probably thinking why the post "A Winter's Tale" in the middle of summer... unless perhaps you a devoted Shakespeare fan. That's right Shakespeare. There was a crew of Darren, some Bible Study friends and I that went to see "A Winter's Tale" at the Ampitheatre at Hawrelak Park on Tuesday. It was an excellent play... excellent characters... and excellent company. For those of you who are new to Shakespeare "A Winter's Tale" is about the Hermione (already pregnant) who has an affair, this angers the Leontes and he has her arrested. The daughter is born, abandoned and adopted by a shepherd. Hermoine comes before a jury to prove her "guilty" or "not guilty" and an oracle is read. The Leontes rejects the oracle angering the gods and Hermoine and Maximillus are struck dead. The shepherd's daughter (Perdita) grows up and falls in love with the Polixene's son, Florizel. The King rejects his son's love for the shepherdess viewing it as inappropriate for the heir to the throne. At harvest festival hosted by the old shepherd, Polixenes intervenes into the impending marriage of his son and the shepherdess. Autoclycus, a thief and vagabond attends the harvest festival to pick pockets and sell trinkets. Florizel and Perdita are welcomed into the court of Leontes. Polixenes soon enters his court and the truth is revealed that Perdita is the long lost daughter of Leontes. Hermoine has stayed in hiding for 16 years until the safe return of her daughter. A life like statue of Hermoine was created and during its presentation it comes to life. And it appears that she falls in love with the King again. This is a short version of the play... if my version of the play intrigues you... then you will have to go see it for yourself!