How would you argue that Twelfth Night is still relevant today by using themes?

One way of approaching this question would be to consider
how you would stage a production of this excellent play if you were a director, and how
you would highlight the themes that you feel are relevant to society today. One of the
themes that we can definitely relate to today, given the current financial crisis and
the cult of personality that is so important is that of the dangers of
ambition.

Clearly, any discussion of this theme would have
to focus on the character of Malvolio, who we discover has massive ambitions to rise
above his station. Of course his ambition makes him a sitting target for Maria, whose
letter wonderfully manipulates his hopes to convince him that his mistress is in love
with him, which is something that Sir Toby and other characters find so amusing due to
the difficulties of achieving social mobility in Shakespeare's time. Consider the famous
quote from the letter that Maria writes to Malvolio, pretending to be
Olivia:

In my
stars I am above thee, but be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve
greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon
'em.

The play is the story of
how Malvolio tries to reach for greatness that is above him and falls terribly, to the
great amusement of others. If we think about this theme of ambition and how it relates
to the financial crisis, I think it is perfectly clear that using this theme the play is
very relevant to today's society. Shakespeare produced plays with timeless themes, and
this is one example of a theme that is equally applicable to today's world as it was in
the world of Shakespeare.