By Haley Costen
Staff Writer

The world of Shakespeare was combined with frosted tips, killer dance moves, and ’90s pop hits at Oberon on Monday night for “Sexyback: or what you will.”

The free show was part of Oberon’s New Work Series and was presented in part by Touch Performance Art in order to give viewers a first look at the new production.

“Sexyback” encompassed everything fans of Oberon’s weekly “Donkey Show” know and love: pop music, genderbending antics, sexy dance moves, and boozy sing-alongs with the audience.

However, while “Donkey Show” tells the story of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” to a ’70s disco soundtrack, “Sexyback” remixed Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night” with ’90s boy band hits.

Luckily for non-Shakespeare scholars, the plot is easy enough to follow.

The story follows Viola, who, after her brother Sebastian dies in a shipwreck, is forced to disguise herself as a man to get work as a page for Duke Orsino.

Orsino is in love with Olivia, who confusingly enough is mourning because her own brother just died and is no longer considering suitors. Unfortunately, Viola begins to fall for Orsino, but he only knows her as Cesario, his male page.

Things get complicated when Cesario (Viola in disguise) delivers a letter from Orsino to Olivia, and ends up making Olivia fall in love with her.

Meanwhile, Malvolio, Olivia’s steward, also likes Olivia, but is pranked into making a fool of himself in front of her by Maria, Sir Toby, and Andrew Aguecheek, members of Olivia’s household. He ends up in a madhouse, because apparently that’s how they did it back then.

When Viola’s brother Sebastian shows up alive, things get even more complicated. Andrew challenges him to a battle, thinking he’s Viola’s alter-ego; however, Olivia steps in and proposes she and Sebastian get married, also thinking he’s Cesario.

Weirdly enough, this all works out. The siblings are united, and when Viola admits she’s a woman, she and Orsino get together. Sebastian and Olivia are happy, and Maria and Toby even get together in the end. Hell, they were so in love they even released Malvolio.

Like many of Shakespeare’s comedies there is some confusion about who is who, and who’s in love with whom, but “Sexyback” handled it well, and the music translated seamlessly into the show.

Rather than a shipwreck, Sebastian and Viola’s accident occurs while fighting over the Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way,” and the show’s great opener—’N Sync’s “Pop” (a reasonable argument). Meanwhile, Viola transforms into Cesario to Justin Timberlake’s “Suit and Tie,” and Britney Spears fans rejoice—Malvolio goes mad to “Crazy.”

The show kept from exhausting boy band options by using a variety of songs by ’N Sync, Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, and Justin Timberlake, including SNL’s “Dick In A Box.”

Though Director Marrissa Roberts said in a talk after the show that the lighting and costumes were not complete, the cast’s puffy jackets and frosted tips were great for the pseudo ’N Sync members that played Sir Toby, Andrew, Orsino, and particularly Malvolio, who was a near double to Joey Fatone.

The show will run three more times in July before another 10 performances in the fall.