This October, audiences will experience Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus as they never have before. Chesapeake Shakespeare Company, Maryland's premier classics company, will present Titus Andronicus in a production that puts both audience and actors on the move.
The Chesapeake Shakespeare Company will bring Titus Andronicus outdoors to the grounds of the Patapsco Female Institute Historic Park, October 8-November 1, 2009. On, in and around the massive, haunt
Ed Stone ruins and pillars of the PFI, audience members will join Titus Andronicus and his family as they seek revenge against their enemy Tamora, Queen of the Goths, in Shakespeare's bloodiest tragedy.
Last year's CSC production of Julius Caesar was performed in the same fashion and almost all performances sold out. Audiences were thrilled by the up-close and personal experience and demanded more productions like it.
Audiences and actors will travel throughout the Ruins for an exciting, theatrical adventure. Instead of building a stage and seating the audience in a conventional way, the play will be performed in various locations in and around the Ruins. In this way, the Ruins themselves become the stage.
One moment the audience will be seated, and at the next they'll be on foot with the actors, peeking through a window, or peering up to a balcony. And while there will be opportunities to sit, much of the time the audience will be mobile, so patrons are encouraged to wear comfortable walking shoes and dress in layers appropriate to the weather.
Titus director and CSC Director of Education, Dr. Kevin Costa, says, "In keeping with CSC's hallmark to break down the walls between production and audience, Titus will be staged in promenade style so that audience and actors will inhabit the same space. In addition to this being a very exciting way to see and hear the play, I'm also hoping that it creates the kind of experience where audiences feel involved to the point that they feel directly affected by the choices the characters are making. Our audience, then, won't merely side with one character; they will feel tied into the very decisions that they may have made alongside a character or characters at some point in the play."
Paranormal experts and psychics alike have visited the Ruins in effort to meet Annie Van Derlot, a former student of the Institute, who died of pneumonia her first winter at school. Although no member of the CSC staff has met Ms. Van Derlot, patrons and actors moving through her school at night during this Halloween season might encourage her to make an appearance during Titus Andronicus. With century-old rumors that the Ruins are haunted, patrons are encouraged to bring flashlights for their own comfort and security.
Tickets for Titus Andronicus can be purchased online at www.chesapeakeshakespeare.com, by calling 866.811.4111 or immediately prior to the performance at the box office. Please note that due to limited capacity, patrons are encouraged to purchase their tickets in advance. Groups of 10 or more, please call 410.313.8874. For general information, call the CSC offices at 410.313.8874. (07/20/10)
www.chesapeakeshakespeare.com.
