Botanic Tournament : Main Bracket !

Round 4 Poll DDD

Viola is the genus for violets (and their Latin name)

(Fern and violets)

Some Musketeer portrait type dealios.

Viola/Cesario from Twelfth Night

Reasoning: Okay, I know this is probably obscure but you're going to have to bear with me. Nobody was doing it like Violacesario. He goes to fantastic lengths to justify disguising himself as a man in order to get a job and he's such a natural he convinces every local royal and several court members almost without trying. His unrestrained transgenderism causes him to end up in a love triangle the likes of which are hitherto undreamt of. A major theme of the whole story is his internal conflict caused by several close friends having conflicting ideas of who he is as a person and by god if that isn't the most transgender thing you've heard today I don't know what else it could be.

Violacesario has the nb swag which can be categorised as 'sexy mf who makes everyone around them question their identity' whereas the witches from Macbeth have the nb swag that strikes fear into the hearts of all mortals they encounter. Both are equally valid.

🃏 ⤷ Twelfth Night Incorrect Quotes #67

Orsino: Viola and I are no longer dating. Viola: That’s a horrible way of telling people we’re married.

Happy Twelfth Night!

Here are some Viola/Cesarios to celebrate! I've rambled a bit about the play and these different versions below~

Although it may not seem particularly festive to modern audience, the title of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night actually references the twelfth night of Christmas (marking the coming Epiphany), with some scholars theorising that it was first performed on the 6th January 1601 for Queen Elizabeth's Twelfth Night celebrations. Christmas in the Elizabethan period was associated with revels, misrule and inversion of the social order - where servants were the masters for the day and children could be crowned mock-bishops. Therefore, the play's deconstruction of social roles, particularly gender roles, would have come across as very christmassy to Elizabethan audiences.

Johnny Flynn and Anita-Joy Uwajeh's perform as Viola/Cesario in my two favourite performances of Twelfth Night: the 2012 and the 2017 Globe performances! I think they both showcase polar opposite styles of adapting the play and how they can both shine: the 2012 production is more traditional in that it reproduces much of the original performance context (Elizabethan setting, all-male cast etc) but is very watchable and honestly hilarious. Mark Rylance as Olivia especially is a highlight - he is so very elegant but is also able to make Olivia on par with the other characters in terms of comedy, despite her usually more serious role. You might recognise Johnny Flynn as Mr Knightley in Emma (2020) but he also slays hard as Viola! The 2017 production, on the other hand, showcases the strengths of modernisations of Shakespeare - I actually saw this one in person in 2017 as I was doing Twelfth Night for A-level at the time, and it was just unforgettable! The setting is shifted to 1970s Scotland and imho translates a lot of the original elements in ways that would resonate in a similar way for contemporary audiences- with songs, dance numbers and some hilarious added dialogue/quips. Even the comic characters (Sir Toby Belch and co) who are often hard to translate for modern audiences were hilarious and I found myself excited to see them come on stage. A huge stand-out is Le Gateau Chocolat as Feste, who has an incredible voice. Having a drag performer play Feste is honestly a great modern analogy as she's a performer who takes tips, is able to question social norms with her art in ways that allow her to be the most insightful character, and is also inkeeping with the play's exploration of gender. Of course, Anita- Joy Uwajeh was absolutely fantastic as Viola too. You can watch recordings of both productions on the Globe-player if you're interested!

I couldn't find anywhere to watch the 2009 Shakespeare in the Park production of Twelfth Night starring Anne Hathaway as Viola/Cesario but honestly I just wanted to draw her anyway <3 In the last few years a promo shot from this production became a really popular 'draw your OT3' meme which I myself have indulged in - it'd be cool if there was a way for more people to watch this given the resurgence of interest!

I read Twelfth Night recently, and I didn’t at all enjoy Orsino’s pursuit of Olivia in spite of her mourning, but I’ve come up with an interpretation which I think works for me.

Duke Orsino as a gay man, trying to correctly perform heterosexuality.

His actions in courting Olivia aren’t right, but they’re driven by a desperation to present himself as a straight man. Plenty of men want to marry Olivia, so he thinks she’s the right direction to direct an attraction that doesn’t actually exist. He keeps courting her after she swears off all contact with men for seven years - because if he’s publicly courting a woman who won’t have anything to do with him, then he won’t have anyone questioning why he hasn’t settled down with a woman. That’s seven years of breathing space for him.

“If music be the food of love, play on” becomes Orsino trying to perform heterosexual infatuation in front of his court.

And then Cesario comes to court, and he’s a very attractive twink.

The rest of the play happens, and when it comes for Orsino to say he’ll “see [Viola] in [her] women’s weeds” he sounds... disappointed. He fell in love with a man, but that man is going to have to start presenting as woman. He feels he should be happy - he’s somehow fallen in love with a woman, he’s done what society expects of him - but he’s not. And Viola looks disappointed too.

Cut to the end of the play when Viola walks onstage in women’s clothing, both Viola and Orsino shake their heads in unison, Viola walks off again, to return in men’s clothes to their mutual delight.

Viola vs. Jessie & James (Round 3)

And before you vote, let's learn about our competitors!

Viola/Cesario

disguises herself as a man in order to work for the duke (goes by Cesario)

basically the whole play is just gender shenanigans ensuing

it’s great actually, I’m a little biased cause this is my favorite Shakespeare play (probably for obvious reasons)

plus with the added bonus of only men being actors at the time which results in more gender shenanigans

basically the og of all og's

come on just look at her though

Jessie & James

the og 90's gender norm crushing duo

I literally cannot count how many times in their disguises James has worn the dress/more feminine outfit, while Jessie’s worn the suit/more masculine outfit

their gender is just whatever fits the other best

come on just look at them though

First promo image I ever did for Cesario

Webtoon

they are having FUN and are being HAPPY, doomed tendancies be damned.

daedalus/prospero belongs to @azure-dragonsinger

An impromptu sword that the stranger had seemingly pulled from his own body. 

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Just a thing feat. these guys.

New umas announced from the event live!

Rhein Kraft, Air Messiah, Daring Heart and Cesario have been uma-ified.

(in that case, cesario is special week's child)

wait a minute...

cesario is the first horse girl is from the carrot club? that means...

EFFORIA WILL HAVE HIS HORSE GIRL FORM IN POSSIBLE WAY!?!?!?!?!?!??!?!?!?!?

hold on...

HE IS GRANDSON OF CESARIO AND SPECIAL WEEK?!??!?!?!?!?!

fellas...

FELLAS!!!! 

i relate to Olivia from twelfth night on a spiritual because I too would see a smart attractive androgynous-looking person saying shit like 'halloo your name to the reverberate hills' and fall instantly in love before accidentally marrying their equally attractive identical twin who just happens to be in town. she is my bisexual disaster icon and I love her forever.

🃏 ⤷ Twelfth Night Incorrect Quotes #64

Olivia: Do you ever get pre-annoyed? Like you already know someone is going to piss you off? Cesario: What? No, I— Orsino: *enters room* Olivia: *jaw clenches*