(Sorry, but Lawrence Olivier’s Richard III was on TCM tonight, so I couldn’t resist.)
Hey, how about a new version of Richard III set at the famous defunct disco Studio 54? It would show how disco died and the famous dance club was overthrown by another form of music. He could open by saying: “Now is the winter of our discotheque…” And then we’d see how decadent everyone had become at Studio 54, and how Richard III conspired to take over. And then he could drown someone in a vat of pink champagne, and try to overthrow the “Dancing Queen”. And everyone he fails to kill could sing the Bee Gees song: “Stayin’ Alive”. It would be the ultimate fusion of theater and dance: Shakespeare and Disco! Who could ask for more? And of course, after he ultimately loses the struggle, the dance scene would be taken over by Prince. (<Hey, he just sounds right for taking over a royal lineage, doesn’t he?) And then, after that, the former disco Studio 54 becomes The Ritz, where many punk and metal bands play concerts. And so Richard III is vindicated after all, for having become disgusted with the excesses of disco, he tried to usher in a new scene where aggressive music would have a home, and every peasant music fan could get past the velvet rope and into the club. And it lives after him, despite his downfall.* Hail Richard III!
Oh, and in this play, Richard III’s back is bent because he’s always playing heavy guitars and carrying around guitar amps and such (Marshalls and Hiwatts and Oranges, naturally, since Richard III was a Brit.) And at the end he says: “Chords, chords, my kingdom for some chords!” because he loves hard rockin’ music like punk & metal, and he wanted to hear some crushing, crunchy guitar chords.
* Well, it did for a while…
(Actually, I really like disco a lot, despite being a punk and metal fan. Odd, huh?)
