ANTONIO Then tell me, whither were I best to send him?
PANTINO I think your lordship is not ignorant
How his companion, youthful Valentine,
Attends the Emperor in his royal court.
ANTONIO I know it well.
PANTINO ’Twere good, I think, your lordship sent him thither.
There shall he practise tilts and tournaments,
Hear sweet discourse, converse with noblemen,
And be in eye of every exercise
Worthy his youth and nobleness of birth. (1.3.24-33)
So, given that we agree that Proteus should be sent off on his OE* forthwith, whither were I best to send him? Where should he go? I think your lordship is not ignorant—and neither is the audience, most likely, as it quickly becomes clear what’s being set up—how his companion, youthful Valentine—best buddies, they are—well, he attends the Emperor in his royal court. Emperor is slightly odd; some productions emend to Duke from the start (because Valentine is definitely in Milan, ruled by a Duke, rather than in the Emperor’s territory), but it’s harder to scan. Ah yes, says Antonio, I know it well—perhaps with the implication, and I haven’t heard the last of it. It’s obvious, then, continues Pantino: ’twere good, I think, your lordship sent him thither. Proteus can go and join his mate Valentine in Milan! And there shall he practise tilts and tournaments—show off his chivalric prowess jousting in the tiltyard—hear sweet discourse, converse with noblemen—he’ll be able to sit in on high-level meetings, network massively (and, less anachronistically, he’ll learn how to hold his own in conversation with the elite, how to express himself well, how to speak on elevated topics). And he will be in eye of every exercise worthy his youth and nobleness of birth. He’ll see and be seen in all the right places, and see everything that he needs to see that’s fitting for one of his age and social station. What are you waiting for?
*The usual abbreviation for Overseas Experience, historically essential to young New Zealanders. The classic version involved working in a pub in Earls Court; its more contemporary version means a job in a City law firm to pay off the student loan…