Twelfth Night

After a shipwreck, Viola finds herself in Illyria, posing as man for her own safety. Her presumed dead twin brother shows up some time letter – confusion ensues.

This series is part of a personal endeavour, in which I stage the plays I loved through illustrations, and have fun with meanings and interpretations.

Twelfth Night fascinated me as a child – I read it first in the Charles and Mary Lamb collection, and then I made it my mission to see as many iterations as possible. I was not a subtle child – I was there for the twins. While I understood how theater worked, I kept hoping to one day find the perfect cast, which would explain how everybody could so easily mistake one twin for the other and the woman for the man. Ultimately, what remains is a fascination with androgyny and social transgressions.

In this iteration, since the story happens in Illyria, the characters are wearing Albanian folk costumes. Oil pastels and paints on cardboard.

For more info on the process, check the blog post.