Interview: Selena Mykenzie Gordon (Miranda) And Jordan Williams (Ferdinand) of WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE'S THE TEMPEST with The Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre

If you are looking for romance....magic....adventure....William Shakespeare’S THE TEMPEST is the show for you. Beginning June 15, at the newly built Windgate Center for Fine & Performing Arts on the University of Central Arkansas campus, this tale will sweep you away on a grand adventure sure to awaken your inner storms that crave a resolution.  

With this being one of the more controversial Shakespeare plays, I decided it was best to have a couple of the main characters lead me through it. For those that know me, y’all know I can get a little carried away in the theatrical magic, so when I first saw Selena Mykenzie Gordon (Miranda) and Jordan Williams (Ferdinand) as I entered the Windgate, all I could say was how beautiful they are. Wow! They got my starry-heart eyes right away. It’s as if they were taken straight from the story and brought to real life just for me. I loved it.  

BWW: I know nothing about THE TEMPEST. I hate to admit it, but my Shakespeare knowledge is little past Romeo and Juliet. So, tell me about your play.  

Selena Mykenzie Gordon: THE TEMPEST is about love, it's about redemption, and particularly with me and Ferdinand, I am kept away on an island for a very long time, so I don't get to see many people other than my father and another man who isn't really much to me. So, I come across this one right here (Ferdinand/Jordan Williams) and just become enamored by him, and it's kind of a first love at first sight kind of thing. 

Jordan Williams: Yeah, certainly. Ferdinand is grieving over the loss of his father, but in our version it’s his mother since Alonzo is cast as Alonza, and she's played by female. So, I'm grieving my father's loss, and I find myself in a storm, alone, and Miranda comes and basically delivers happiness to me. 

SMG: Yes, and my father does want us to be together, but he tests him a little bit. He puts him to work and sees if he’s worthy or not.  

BWW: So, this is a romance, not a tragedy? 

SMG: There's a lot to it. There's our romance, but then there is some tragedy, like I said. There's a lot of people who are learning to forgive and trying to balance whether or not they have redeemable qualities. 

JW: Yes, There’s love, betrayal, all of it.. everything you need. 

BWW: So, what made you want to do this? 

SMG: I think, personally, it's just the people you know. The theater community is such a small world. I’ve already worked with some of the actors already, and Chad Bradford (Managing Director) is just an amazing person. I've gotten to work with him many times, so when he told me about the show, I was like ‘absolutely I want in on that.’ So, luckily, I auditioned and got the role, so we are just happy to be here. 

JW: Same. I auditioned, and she was actually my audition partner. That was the first day we met. We both got the role, so it turned out well. I worked for Arkansas Shakespeare theater festival last year, and when they had another one coming up this year, it was no question that I wanted to participate. It's a great time every time. 

BWW: Cool, so what's the process of getting into your character? 

SMG: So, the first week was all table work. That is where we go through the script, we talk about everything, and we ask questions. We work on getting the vocab right and really just dive into why our characters feel the way they do, what their motivations are, what do they want, and what do they do to get what they want.  

JW: We're just trying to make this story our own and really figure out how to make it align with who we are as people and what we wanna tell to the audience that's here in Conway. We’re figuring that out.  

BWW: Ok, so are we modernizing this, or are we sticking to a more traditional story? 

SMG: I think we're sticking to the essence of the story. We have changed the gender of some of the characters, but I think it stays pretty aligned with what the story is and what Shakespeare intended. 

BWW: Well, that’s super cool.  

SMG: Thank you  

BWW: So, what made you guys really want to be actors? Why are you here? 

SMG: I think for me personally, I was singing before I did anything else. I just enjoyed being on a stage, and when I got to high school and I started doing theater, I was like ‘Oh my gosh I can sing and dance and act and just get to have so much fun with this imaginary like quality and getting to be all these different characters.’ I just instantly fell in love with it, the art and getting to express myself in all of these different ways.  

JW: The collaborative aspect as well, I mean, is great. I like meeting people like Mykenzie and yourself. Theater is really a family business in a way, where you kind of have to work with people, be good to people and be a good person, because ultimately I'm interested in service and servicing the audience with stories that have already been written. I like connecting with the playwright and then with the people I am trying to engage. The whole process is a blessing to be able to tell stories.   

SMG: We really get to connect with the pieces and the authors and the stories.  

BWW: Do you prefer Shakespeare, or....? 

SMG: I love it all. I do love Shakespeare. He's definitely a little more complicated than other playwrights. 

BWW: I think that you either love it or you hate it. 

SMG: Exactly, yeah. 

BWW: And it depends on the piece, because there's some that you think that it’s great, and then there are some where you are like ‘I lost three hours of my life that I’m not getting back.’ 

JW: Right, exactly.  

SMG: I think it definitely depends on the way the story is being told, but Chad was my first director for Shakespeare, and it was my first Shakespeare show ever, and ever since then, I was like ‘I can get into this.’  

JW: I love the challenge. It is very intimidating, but it also is just rhythm and cadence. Shakespeare really did write some incredible work, and though I'm not the most Shakespeare researched fanatic, I can say that the plays that I have read of Shakespeare is that he really did encapsulate things that we have all experienced, regardless of gender, age, and race.   

SMG: Yeah, and these characters aren't like black and white. They're very complex, and they've got a lot within them, so to get to bring that out is really beautiful.  

BWW: Alright. For people who don't know a lot about Shakespeare, why should they come see THE TEMPEST? 

SMG: I think they should just come see THE TEMPEST, because it's a beautiful story. It's magical, but also THE TEMPEST shows the complexity of human beings. They will watch someone go from one way, have life changing discoveries, and come out a changed person. I think Shakespeare shows that really beautifully, so if you haven't seen Shakespeare before, I think that would be a reason to come to the show. 

JW: Can I just second that?  

BWW: Great! Enough about Shakespeare. Where are y’all from? 

SMG: I'm from Fort Smith, AR. 

JW: I’m from Los Angeles originally. 

BWW: I’ve been to both places. 

SMG: nnniiiiiiiccccceeeee.... 

BWW: What brought you to Arkansas? 

JW: I got my undergrad in Mississippi and then Graduate School at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, so that's what connected me to the festival here in Conway. 

BWW: Is this your home now? 

JW: One of them...Fayetteville. 

BWW: Have you done anything at TheatreSquared. 

JW: Yep...understudy. 

BWW: That’s a beautiful building! 

JW: Yes! 

SMG: That’s where I just finished working before this show. 

BWW: What did you do? 

SMG: I was education apprentice for a year. 

BWW: Cool 

SMG: Yeah, so he just graduated, and I'm actually an incoming graduate, so I’m about to go back to school. 

BWW: Well good luck to you guys. It was lovely to meet you.  

SMG: Thank you so much. We can’t wait for you to see it.  

For more information about their shows, visit their website at arkshakes.com. 

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