加勒比海出自莎士比亚笔下?

Mr. DOUGLAS: Well, there were four characters who pass information in the play that really in these financial times and for other reasons didn't merit hiring four different actors. So the dialogue became an amalgam into one character. And the DJ idea comes from the Caribbean Carnival. During that parade, which most of us got to go to in June before we started rehearsing, every float had an amazing sound system with a DJ pumping contemporary Caribbean music. And there it was. It was authentic to D.C. and I put it right into the play.

CONAN: And the play is also full of music, funk, reggae, all of it thoroughly modern. We have a clip here from the song called "Pump Me Up" by Trouble Funk.

(Soundbite of song, "Pump Me Up")

TROUBLE FUNK (R&B/Funk Band): Pump, pump, pump, pump me up. Like a man with the (unintelligible), we're going to jump. I'm DJ Funk and I can pass the test, get down (unintelligible) from the east to west. (Unintelligible). It's DJ Funk with the master beat�

CONAN: And speaking of setting it in D.C., that is a typical D.C. style called go-go.

Mr. DOUGLAS: Yeah. And that song was the entrance into the masked ball, which happens fairly early in the play.

CONAN: With the setting, the music, the language, how do you think this production has faired in making Shakespeare more accessible? Was that one of your goals?

Mr. DOUGLAS: My goal is to make sure that it's honest, truthful and authentic. And if it - that then translates into being more accessible, that - I know there's a great interest in that and I'm thrilled. And many people have told me they thought this was very accessible. But again, I was constantly on the lookout for the exact parallels, as I understand them, to Shakespeare's intentions.

CONAN: As you listened to the performers, some of them, particularly the women in the cast, do adopt the Caribbean accents. Some of them, especially the men, do not.

Mr. DOUGLAS: Well, it breaks down more specifically than that. What I began to realize with Beatrice and Benedict, and - I see that, I put the T at the end, Benedick.

CONAN: Mm-hmm.

Mr. DOUGLAS: �that they are heavily influenced by those around them as evidenced by the two duping scenes in the play, where they are told believing that they're not noticed that one loves the other, and that completely shifts their drive. So I felt, well, let's take that one step further. And they're absolutely influenced by the Caribbean culture that I've infused into this play, and that they're one generation removed. And so I understand more why they're so willing to trust and go with blind faith as opposed to if they were inherently understanding of the culture more.

CONAN: So this didn't bother you that it was not consistent throughout?

Mr. DOUGLAS: No. And actually the Caribbean dialect really further helped Shakespeare's language to sing. Shakespeare's language inherently is musical. And what I understood about Caribbean culture is that English is received from the British. So there's this innate understanding and connection to Shakespeare's English and putting it in that modern and cultural vernacular, again, it expanded meaning. And what it also does is it makes the audience's ear listen in a different.

CONAN: Yeah.

Mr. DOUGLAS: So even those who know �Much Ado� inside and out was able to have a different experience and not just, you know, following along in the script, if those do that.

CONAN: Well, we know a certain 15-year-old who went with his parents to the show last night. And they planned to walk out after the first act because they had some other things to do. But he said, no, no, no, no, we're staying.

(Soundbite of laughter)

Mr. DOUGLAS: That's wonderful.

CONAN: That might make you feel pretty good.

Mr. DOUGLAS: Yeah.

CONAN: As you - as the play has gone on through its run - and it's almost over, I hate to say - but have you learned anything?

Mr. DOUGLAS: Well, I've learned many things, but for me personally the most profound thing is my style as a director is shifting. I have such reverence for the writing of Shakespeare. And as the play, the production was progressing, I was getting concerned that I was perhaps pulling Shakespeare down to realize a contemporary idea. But I couldn't tell. And there were times where I wanted to give an actor a note but I honestly couldn't tell if it was something to work on or if something new was happening. And it was too early to know. And so I chose to put my pen down for a couple of preview performances to see what would happen, and I'm so glad I followed that instinct�

CONAN: Mm-hmm.

Mr. DOUGLAS: �particularly with the characters of Beatrice and Benedick. And those actors are Rachel Leslie and Howard D. Overshown, who are extraordinary in this production.

CONAN: And Beatrice, you have to say, is just one of the best parts in Shakespeare.

Mr. DOUGLAS: Absolutely.

CONAN: Yeah. You had to think for a moment, though, that this is reinterpreting Shakespeare. Well, it's like that old line from the Bonzo Dog Band: Jazz, Disgusting - Delicious Hot, Disgusting Cold - it can be great, it can be a complete disaster, too.

Mr. DOUGLAS: Mm-hmm. Yes, it can be. I don't think this one is.

CONAN: No, I understand. But there had to have been that moment, say, oh, I don't know.

Mr. DOUGLAS: There were lots of little I-don't-know moments, but never one that, you know, made me want to leave the profession or anything like that.

(Soundbite of laughter)

Mr. DOUGLAS: I've had those in the past.

CONAN: Yes. Haven't we all, in every profession? We want to get some listeners in on the conversation with their favorite or least favorite adaptation of Shakespeare. 800-989-8255. Email us: talk@NPR.org. Lisa is on the line, calling from Princeton.

LISA (Caller): Hi there. Our family-favorite adaptation of (unintelligible) - I'm sorry, �Much Ado About Nothing� is actually �Much Apu About Nothing� from �The Simpsons.�

CONAN: �The Simpsons.�

LISA: And we were wondering if you took any inspiration from that production for yours.

Mr. DOUGLAS: I love �The Simpsons� but I have not seen that episode, so I have to say no.

(Soundbite of laughter)

CONAN: We'll see if we can get you a DVD. Now that�

Mr. DOUGLAS: Thank you.

CONAN: Okay.

LISA: Thank you very much. Bye-bye.

CONAN: Thanks for the call, Lisa. Let's see if we can go next to - this is Reba(ph). Reba with us from Lawrence, Kansas.

REBA (Caller): Hi. My favorite Shakespeare play of all is �A Midsummer Night's Dream.� And when I was in college, my university had acquired the Max Reinhardt archives.

CONAN: Mm-hmm.

REBA: And apparently when he came - first came to the United States they set him loose on the movie lot and said, cast who you want. So, Mickey Rooney he cast as Puck and I remember Arthur Treacher was the Wall.

(Soundbite of laughter)