Arden of Faversham for Red Bull

Last Monday I had the chance to take part in a reading of an obscure Elizabethan domestic tragedy called Arden of Faversham.  The play was part of the Revelation Reading series for Red Bull Theater, at the Lucille Lortel in New York City.  Written in 1592 and published anonymously, it depicts the murder of Thomas Arden by his wife Alice and her lover.  After numerous failed attempts, they finally get the job done with the help of a few villians: Black Will and Shakebag.  I played a painter named Clarke, who promised to make a poisoned crucifix that would kill anyone who looked at it.  How do I explain that it doesn't kill me while I'm making it?  Well, I wear glasses and put rhubarb up my nose (seriously, that's said in iambic pentameter).  Part tragedy, part comedy, part melodrama - it was certainly fun.