Thoughts on 12th Night

"Twelfth Night" was a fun read and much easier to comprehend than "Fairy Queen." I found all of the "gender-bending" very interesting and relevant to what we see today. Transexuality, cross-dressing, homosexuality, etc. apparently have been around for a long time. Shakespeare though, handles all these topics in a somewhat light-hearted, comedic way. It lacks the graphic realism that we see today in stories with these themes, which is a good thing, (the lack thereof, that is). I would love to see this play enacted sometime, (or view the movie).
"Twelfth Night" reminds me of a movie from the 1980's, "Tootsie" with Dustin Hoffman and Jessica Lange. Dustin Hoffman's character is an unemployed actor who dresses up as woman to land a job on a soap opera. He falls in love with Jessica Lange's character, (also an actress on the show), and she finds herself falling in love with a "woman", causing her a great deal of distress. Olivia in Twelfth Night does not seem to be the least bit distressed that she was in love with a woman. I guess this is because she always thought Cesario was a man and then she moved right on over to Sebastian.
Anyway, "Tootsie" is also a very funny comedy, full of engaging characters and sub-plots; including some serious moments. I think William Shakespeare would have enjoyed this film; heck, he probably would have written it. Rent it sometime, it will make you laugh.