Emerald City and Shakespeareland

Week 72: Eugene, OR

Spring has returned. The Earth is like a child that knows poems.
--Rainer Maria Rilke

A group of us left Anchorage in the dead of night, taking an overnight flight to Portland, and from there, a bus to Eugene. Drifting in and out of sleep, I watched the dawn break over the passing Oregon landscape. Rays of sunshine breaking through cloud illuminated verdant hillsides, brilliant fields of green with sheep grazing, rich farmland, acres of wildflowers. It reminded me of the beautiful countrysides of Germany and Austria.
After the austere, dingy winter that had overstayed its welcome in Anchorage, Spring rose up at me in a riot of color and extravagant lushness. How very welcome it is. I have said often that we must seek out beauty wherever we can find it, but in Oregon it seems to simply reach out to you from all sides. Spring is here in full flower; trees bend with the weight of their blossoms, the grass is vibrant and studded with dandelions and daisies, the air is fresh and fragrant with the scent of rich, moist earth and honeysuckle.

Eugene is a charming small college town (University of Oregon is here) and something of a hippie enclave. It is nestled in a beautiful natural setting, and surrounded by lovely parks like Alton Baker Park, which lies right across from my hotel, and borders the rushing and crystalline Willamette River. It's no wonder such a green haven has been nicknamed "The Emerald City." Green thinking and environmental awareness are part of the lifestyle here, as are all forms of outdoor exercise, from running to biking. On Saturday the town hosts the oldest outdoor market in the country; grocery stores and farmer's markets burst with the freshest produce. There are funky shops and art galleries at the 5th Ave Market, as well as numerous excellent eateries. In short, Eugene is as lovely a place to spend a week as any I can remember visiting--I have the same feeling of well being and balance here that I had back in Greenville, SC last year. Places like this make you feel healthier and more relaxed. And fortunately, our week started with three whole days off in which I explored the area, wandering the woods and strolling along the river, taking pictures, watching the migrating geese float downstream with their little goslings in tow, or sitting by the rushing water under a shady tree reading Pablo Neruda. Folks, life is good.
And if that's not enough, there's the glorious Oregon coast 50 miles away. The rocky coastline rising above the Pacific is what I would imagine the coast of Ireland to be like. Green, craggy, majestic. Oregon is growing on me.

Back in January, in wintry South Bend, I concocted a plan to visit the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland while we are here in Eugene. I was working on learning to drive, and my intention was to reward the achievement of my license with a road trip to Ashland. I bought theatre tickets and requested a rare personal day. I also booked a room at a charming bed and breakfast, and wrote to the artistic staff of the Festival and requested an audition. They agreed to see me during my overnight visit this week. Let me try to explain what going to OSF and auditioning for them meant to me.

Oregon Shakespeare Festival is a Tony Award-winning regional theatre that is going into its 75th year of continuous operation; it is an American institution.
It is also only one of three Shakespeare Festivals in the world that work as a genuine repertory company (The Stratford Ontario Festival and The Royal Shakespeare Company are the others), presenting a full season of rotating productions in three incredible spaces. The Elizabethan Stage is a replica of an early Elizabethan playhouse for a stunning outdoor experience, the Bowmer Theatre is their arena style thrust stage space, and the New Theatre is a black box, in the round venue. It's a Shakespeare dork's dream! And the theatre is the main attraction in charming Ashland, a slice of real Americana here in the northwest. White picket fences, Craftsman style houses, perfect gardens. Funky antique shops and dynamite restaurants. And I love the campy names that businesses have adopted inspired by Shakespeare such as: Puck's Donuts, Juliet Hair Salon, All's Well Nature Foods, and my personal favorites--a music store called CD Or Not CD, and a storage company called As U Stor It. At the Black Sheep you can get a black and tan and a genuine Welsh rarebit or a Norfolk fish pie. I could go on and on about my little overnight jaunt to Ashland. I saw two shows, a violent modern dress "Macbeth" and the zany and completely delicious Commedia dell'Arte Farce, "The Servant of Two Masters." I snuck into the Elizabethan Theatre and watched, a bit jealously, a rehearsal for a scene in the upcoming "All's Well That Ends Well." I practiced my soliloquy for "Richard III" in nearby Lithia park, which is as close to the Forest of Arden as I have ever seen. At one point, I was speaking my speech, and a deer crossed my path and looked at me. Richard the third and a deer had a standoff in a woodland glen.




What can I say, folks? I love classical theatre and there are still many roles I would love to try my hand at in the Shakespeare canon. So, I was honored to audition for Oregon Shakespeare Festival while I was there. This would be akin to a ballet dancer auditioning for ABT, or an opera singer auditioning for the Met. By the way, I didn't get my license during the layoff, so I had to fly from Eugene to Medford, 20 miles from Ashland, and hire a car to drive me there. I swear, during my vacation next week, I will do my damnedest to pass that driving test! Grrr! So, back to Eugene. Our run at the Hult Center, a beautiful theatre, is going great, and the audiences here are vocal and enthusiastic. My dresser here is the lovely Gwen.
Gwen, as you might imagine, was once a model and also worked in the fashion industry before finding her way into costume design in Los Angeles and now here in Oregon. She's simply beautiful and a great dresser, such a sweetie. And now, my friends, I am heading home to New York for a week's vacation, while the company goes on to Spokane. So I will reconnect with you the week after from Denver, Colorado.