War and Resistance

For this production of the Two Gentlemen of Verona, the director has chosen to set the script during World War II. The locations names in the script will remain the same, namely Verona, Milan, and Mantua. However, the two gentlemen, Proteus and Valentine, will take on the role of Partisans, the Italian resistance movement during World War II. Both men will be young resistance fighters traveling to Milan to aid the cause. The Duke will secretly be a leader of the resistance. Thurio, his daughter's courter, will be a German officer, stationed in Milan. The Outlaws are a band of deserters from Mussolini's fascist army. Julia will be disguising herself as a man in order to be allowed into the resistance.

Because the show will be set in this unique background, I would like for you to watch the clips from the documentary Behind the Lines, linked below. This documentary gives history or the Italian resistance movment and how it opporated.

Behind the Lines

Schiesari, Nancy. "Behind the Lines." Behind The Lines: The OSS and the Italian Resistance in WWII. 2006. Web. 11 Mar. 2011. <http://www.ossinitaly.org/>.

Milan, Acultural Center

The city of Milan is the central focus of the show. As sucj it would behoove you to learn some of its history. Below is a link to a short history fo the city of Milan. Please take the time to read it entirely and, should you find it interesting, look around the rest of the site. Knowing the history of your setting is always key to a good production.

History of Milan

Citation added:
Giordana, Laura. "History of Milan." About Milan: Your Tourist Guide to Milan. Web. 11 Mar. 2011. <http://www.aboutmilan.com/history-of-milan.html>

Fasion Under Fascism

The monograph linked below contains invaluable research for the costuming of this production. I would like everyone to read it however, as it provides insight into why the cloths of the time period look like they do. PLease take the time to read atleast the introduction to this book as it will aid you in understanding why your costume is as it is.

Click free download at the below web page then wait 60 secs. You should then be able to download the file.

Fasion Under Facsism


Paulicelli, Eugenia. Fashion under Fascism: beyond the Black Shirt. Oxford: Berg, 2004. Print.

Location Is Key

Understanding where a play takes place is critical to understanding the play itself.  In the case of Two Gentlemen, the show revolves around 3 locations: Verona, Milan, and the forests on the outskirts or Mantua.  In order to help you to visualize the relative locations of each scene I have prepared a map of the area for you. On the map linked below, A represents Verona, B, Milan, and C, Mantua. I have included a directions indicating a potential walking path from location to location.

Verona and Milan are approximately 185 miles apart.This breaks down to 61 hours of walking time according to Google Maps. Assuming you walk 8 hours a day, this means it would be a 5 day trip from Verona to Milan. Bear in mind this time delay when considering events in the show.

 Map Of Verona and Milan


"Walking Directions Verona Italy to Milan Italy." Google Maps. Google, 2011. Web. 11 Mar. 2011. <http://maps.google.com>.

Shakespeare: "In the Begining There were 'Two Gentlemen of Verona'..."

Two Gentlemen of Verona is often cited as Shakespeare's first play written for the professional stage. It was likely written between 1590 and 1594. It is the second play in the First Folio of Shakespeare's work, but literary analysis has led modern scholars to the conclusion that it was his first major play. The writing of the show is less developed then his later works and does not yet contain the true "voice" of Shakespeare. The play also seems to borrow much of its story and style from other popular works at the time, such as Lyly's Midas, written in 1588.

The version commonly utilized today is that which is included in the First Folio, published in 1623. This is almost certainly not the version that first appeared to the public. Researchers believe it was transcribed by Ralph Crane from Shakespeare's foul papers, his original draft of the script. This leads to a slightly open ended version of the script as the foul papers were still just a draft. Despite this, Two Gentlemen of Verona is an excellent play with great comedic and historical value.


Davies, Anthony, and Michael Dobson. "Two Gentlemen of Verona, The." Oxford Reference Online. Oxford UP, 2001. Web. 11 Mar. 2011. <http://www.oxfordreference.com.ezp.lib.cwu.edu/views/ENTRY.html?entry=t117.e2920&srn=5&ssid=159916995#FIRSTHIT>.

Boat Building

The following video shows the ammount of time and effort that goes into building a boat. The video is a time lapse of 4 months of work to be build what is truthfully a tiny boat relative to the Ark.  Even a boat of this size takes an incedible amount of work. Allow your characters to realize the exactly how much work God is asking of Noah in the story.
Boat Time Lapse

Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding - Time Lapse. Youtube. Web. 8 Dec. 2010. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QeRt9PPy00&feature=related>.

Location, Location, Location

It is important to realize where this play takes place. The story of Noah occurs in the Middle East. While we dont know the exact locaton it can be assumed it lies somewhere in the fertile crescent, which can bee seen below.

 For our purposes the play will be set on the plains of Syria. Plains which would look something like the picture below, without any modern homes of course.

Photograph. Early World History. Web. 8 Dec. 2010. <http://www.public.iastate.edu/~cfford/fertile%20crescent.jpg>.

Syrian Plains. Photograph. Flickr. 25 Aug. 2006. Web. 8 Dec. 2010. <http://farm1.static.flickr.com/70/226457482_44d9e1b1c4.jpg>.