Hello, my name is Sherill Turner and  I’m a member of this year’s Acting Company.  Today is Monday, which is our day off – this generally means that the laundry rooms are occupied and the supermarkets of Santa Cruz do very good business, as members of the company catch up on ‘life stuff!’

It’s incredible to think that six weeks ago today, we were all wearing our name badges, while enjoying the lovely picnic provided by the Friends of Shakespeare Santa Cruz.  We’ve been on an amazing journey since the first day and we still have four weeks to go!  I am very lucky to be acting in Love’s Labor’s Lost and Othello in the Glen this summer.  It’s such an inspiring space, it’s like another character has joined the plays!

Sherill as Maria in "Love's Labor's Lost."

We started rehearsals with a table read and discussion.  The next four weeks were spent going between the two rooms, where we explored the text and got the stories on their feet.   It’s wonderful to be in a company, where people not only arrive every day willing to work hard, but also to contribute to the fun and joy of a creative ensemble.  It’s been just as common to hear laughter in the Othello room, as it has to be moved by a touching moment in the LLL room, and this atmosphere has lead to two productions that I’m proud to be a part of .

The schedule of the last two weeks has highlighted the delights and challenges of working in a repertory system.  We left Othello for over a week to tech, preview and open Love’s, and then left the court of Navarre to return to Venice, Cyprus and Iago’s heinous schemes!  It’s wonderful seeing how moments are remembered, rediscovered and refined on Michael Ganio’s set, which looks and feels like it’s sprung from the ground in the Glen.

I’ve never seen a stage production of Love’s Labor’s Lost, as it is done so rarely, so it’s been really exciting to explore.  My friend who came to see it on opening night said she knew exactly what was going on, and she’d never seen it before either!  It’s thrilling to be involved in a production of Othello where the brutality of love, jealousy and betrayal really are visceral in every moment.  I don’t feel that’s too much of a spoiler for the audience, but do recommend a blanket for the cold, and a tissue for the tears!

Yesterday consisted of a sunny afternoon matinée of Love’s Labor’s Lost and a dress run of Othello in the evening.  This is my first year with Shakespeare Santa Cruz and my first Summer in California; as I sat backstage, listening to the final scenes of Othello as the mist filled the Glen, I thought, yep, just another day in the office!