Cubby House Theatre answer five questions that inspired their Melbourne Fringe show, “Second Best Bed “.
Can you introduce yourselves, who is a part of the ensemble and who do you each play?
We’re Cubby House Theatre, and we’re putting on our first musical at the Melbourne Fringe, ‘Second Best Bed’! The musical was written, directed and co-produced by Mae McCubbin, co-produced and costume designed by Ezri Cranston, with Jackson Plail as our prop designer and Tyson Garner as our technical designer and operator. As we are an independent show, everyone involved also makes up the cast. Ezri plays our leading lady Anne Hathaway, Jackson portrays the “great” William Shakespeare and Witch 2, Lachlan Whatman plays the mischievous Puck and Witch 1, and Mae portrays the grieving Ophelia and Witch 3.
What inspired you to tell Anne Hathaway’s story through ‘Second Best Bed’?
Anne Hathaway’s story has always been stuck in the shadow of Willam Shakespeare’s; we know so much about the most famous writer in history, yet basically nothing about his wife. One of the only recorded mentions of Anne Hathaway anywhere in any of Shakespeare’s writing is in his will which, in a seemingly last-minute addition, reads “Item I gyve unto my wife my second best bed with the furniture.” This is almost all we know about Anne Hathaway. We consistently put aside women’s stories in favour of men’s, why not write one about the most overlooked woman in history?
The musical takes Anne through the five stages of grief. How did you translate that emotional journey into a theatrical and musical experience?
I wanted to give Anne a guide through each of the stages of grief, with each being represented by a different character from Shakespeare’s cannon. Some of Shakespeare’s characters naturally felt like embodiments of these stages e.g. Ophelia (Hamlet) Depression. We got particularly creative with Denial being represented by the reanimated Shakespeare himself. I also played around a lot with the styles of each character’s song to portray what stage they are in i.e. “You Know I Do!” (Shakespeare’s song) is bouncy and light- still in denial.
You bring Shakespeare characters Puck, the three witches and Ophelia into Anne’s story. What was it like reimagining these characters in a new context?
I took many liberties when it came to developing the characters for our story. They all still play similar roles as they did in their original stories, with Puck still being an agent of chaos, but instead of playing the messenger, he plays an active role in trying to make Anne mad. Ophelia is the only one who still only speaks in iambic pentameter, showing how, unlike the others, she is still trapped in her story. The Three Witches take the boldest departure from their source material, becoming more ‘The Three Stooges’, speaking in unison (or at least trying to).
Second Best Bed explores feminism, identity and breaking free from relationships that hold us back. What do you hope audiences take away from Anne’s journey?
I hope that audiences take away the message that “you are more than the man you love”. Sometimes all it takes to realise you’re in a less than ideal relationship is to see one play out on stage in front of you. We hope we can encourage those who need it to grow the confidence to make those scary decisions. Your relationship does not define you, and even more so, it’s never too late to make a change.
You can see the Second Best Bed play for Melbourne Fringe Festival at The Motley Bauhaus (Cabaret Stage) from the 5th to the 10th. Tickets are on sale now
This has been an I Don’t Blame You Media interview.
