The Mobtown Players Present Thomas Kyd's THE SPANISH TRAGEDY, Now thru 7/26

The Mobtown Players concludes its 2013-2014 season with the Baltimore premiere of Thomas Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy, the Elizabethan thriller considered by some to be the first modern play.

Hatred. Lust. Revenge. For 100 years, Thomas Kyd's swift, vicious, and violent The Spanish Tragedy bloodied the Renaissance stage. The most popular and notorious play of its day, this tale of insanity and vengeance has influenced artists ranging from William Shakespeare and Ben Jonson to Quentin Tarantino.

Now The Spanish Tragedy is receiving its Baltimore premiere in a lavish production adapted by Joshua and Kat McKerrow and directed by Joshua McKerrow. This spectacle of brutal Elizabethan drama brings to life the embodiment of Revenge, the malice of betrayal, and the surrender of a civilized society to madness.

The Spanish Tragedy is Mobtown's first production at St. Mary's Great Hall Theatre in Hampden. For over a decade, the Mobtown Players produced classical and contemporary plays, including numerous world premieres, from its home in the Meadow Mill building in Woodberry. On April 30, heavy rains caused the Jones Falls, which runs past Meadow Mill, to overflow, flooding the building and rendering the theater unusable.

Despite these challenges and assisted by a fundraiser, Mobtown has remained committed to producing The Spanish Tragedy. The entire company is excited by the prospect of performing at St. Mary's, a former church that is now home to a spectacular Elizabethan-style stage.

To learn more about our fundraising efforts, visit https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-spanish-tragedy.

The Spanish Tragedy will run today, July 11-26 at The Great Hall Theatre at St. Mary's Outreach Center, located at 3900 Roland Avenue in Hampden. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8 P.M., with one Sunday performance on July 20 at 4 P.M.

The cast includes Ishai Barnoy (Duke of Castile), Daniel Douek (King of Spain), Megan Farber (Ghost of Don Andrea), Jeffrey Gangwisch (Pedringano), David Guzman (Page), Jennifer Hasselbusch (Isabella), Joshua Hopkins (Christophil/Hangman/Ambassador), Lucas Iverson (Serberine/Spanish General), Kat McKerrow (Bellimperia), Shelby Monroe (Revenge), Matthew Purpora (Balthazar), Bill Soucy (Lorenzo), Rob Vary (Horatio), and Frank Vince (Hieronimo).

The production team includes Jeffrey Gangwisch (effects designer), Kat McKerrow (costume designer), and Bill Quick (lighting designer). Michael Couey is the fight choreographer. Gretchen Hylton is the stage manager.

The Mobtown Players was founded in 1998, finding a permanent home in Hampden in 2003. The non-profit theater company is dedicated to making both classic work and contemporary plays accessible to a wide variety of audiences. For more information, visit www.mobtownplayers.com.

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