YE OLDE MADRIGAL FEASTE SPARKLES

FRUITLAND -- Guests were taken back to a 16th century castle, Dec. 7-9, at the Jackson High School Choral Department's sixth annual Ye Olde Madrigal Feaste.

The production featured more than 100 JHS students, who sang, acted, played period instruments and served a Medieval-style meal to guests.

"I was really pleased," said Jean Schweain, head of the Choral Department and director of the Madrigal Feaste. "It's been such a busy fall that it's been harder to get things learned. I thought it went really well, though."

As the entertaining program for the Feaste indicated, Renaissance England was the time of bards William Shakespeare and Ben Jonson and a time of strolling troubadours, rowdy living and madrigal singing. Madrigals were songs written for small groups, including several voice parts -- often sung without musical accompaniment. The madrigal was imported from Italy in the 16th century as an informal type of private entertainment at the castles and homes of the landed gentry.

The year's Feaste took part at the castle of King Louis, the Saint (Chris Shank) and Queen Isabelle (Erika Beasley). As usual, the Bavarian Halle was bedecked with the trappings of a Medieval castle and convincing costumes were painstakingly made for the huge cast was a gala evening, with fanfares announcing the court, a boar's head, a concert and other events of the night. Students performed music by Handel, Plae Cantiones, Wagner and more, with traditional Christmas carols from England, France, Spain, Germany and other countries.

The several-course mean included bread, cheese and fruits, with wassail for toasting. The main dish included green salad, Chicken Cordon Bleu, wild rice, green beans with almonds and more. The program also provided a "Book of Curtasye," with Medieval dining "Rules of Etyquett," such as "Guests myst hav nayles cleane or they wyll dysgust theyre table companyones," and "Guests myst never leave bones on the table; allways hyde them under theyre chairs."

The basis of the plot was a mother (Jennifer Watkins) reading a bedtime story to her daughter Catherine (Mandy Burlbaugh). The characters sprang to life from the pages of the book, including the royal court of Lord Phillip and Lady Erin O'Riley (Greg Schwab and Meredith Lape); Sir Ebeneezer and Lady Agatha Rouge (John Jackson and Deidre King); Duke Edward and Duchess Marge Cheshire (Jason Brown and Brittney Dickerson); Sir William and Lady Mariam Westmorland (Layne Beller and Lindsey Hobeck); Princess Samantha (Samantha Thurman); Prince Derry (Stuard Knowlan) and Lady Mariam's father (Tuffy Keenan).

The king and queen, of course, were putting on the Madrigal for the visiting nobles, as was the custom. The ensemble included court jesters Chester (Blake Burress) and Lester (Zach Rice) and the Knights of the Square Table (Chris Fields, Jonathan Parks, Ryan Stroder and Dustin Winkler), as well as servants, guards, pages, trumpeters, ladies in waiting, serving wenches and knaves and musicians. Also featured was juggler Ashley Johnson and acrobats Courtney Crowden and Layne Pombert. The JHS Handbell Choir also performed.

Schweain had only a handful of veterans to call upon from past madrigals. She was pleased with their mastery of the numerous songs and dialogue.

"It was such a young group," she said, "sort of a rebuilding year for us. It went fine, though. It started well on Thursday and by Saturday we had nearly a flawless production. I was so proud and they were proud, too. They felt like they accomplished what they wanted to accomplish."

That would be to provide a night of entertainment, while showcasing the Choral Department's considerable skills, and still passing on some knowledge and understanding of a significant period of history.

"It was good for them historically," Schweain said, "and it was good plain fun, too."