Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival's Upcoming Season to Include LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST, THE 39 STEPS and More

Terry O'Brien, Founding Artistic Director of the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, has announced the 2012 season that will run from mid-June through Labor Day weekend.

The plays, which run in repertory, are Love's Labour's Lost, directed by O'Brien and Romeo and Juliet, directed by Associate Artistic Director Christopher Edwards. The third play, The 39 Steps will be directed by Russell Treyz.

In discussing the new season and his decision to direct Love's Labour's Lost just weeks after closing the Festival's 25th season, O'Brien said "The shows I've directed for the past several years, Hamlet, Troilus and Cressida, Pericles and Cymbeline, have been adventurous, aggressive, powerful stories and I haven't done anything light or romantic for a long time. Love's Labour's Lost will give me the chance to switch gears."

As most people have come to know, music plays an important role in most HVSF productions and for O'Brien, he often begins his directing process by listening to music. "With Hamlet I was listening to a lot of heavy metal, and now I'm listening to Stravinsky's 'Pastorale', a lovely, wonderful, complex and moving piece of music, which is how the relationships in Love's Labour's Lost feel to me. There is comedy and there is certainly romance, but it feels more grown-up. One of the things I particularly love about the play is the ending, which, unlike most Shakespeare comedies, isn't neatly tied up. I think it's more interesting that way and allows the story to really stay with you as you discuss it with friends and imagine for yourself what the future holds for the lovers."

Young, impetuous love and tragedy stir the world of Romeo and Juliet. Perhaps one of the best known and loved of Shakespeare's plays, Edwards hopes that audiences will let go of their preconceived ideas about the story. "The challenge with Romeo and Juliet is that we are all so familiar with the play. The key is to simply allow yourself to experience and be moved by the story. It's about young love and the tragic loss of innocence. I think it really reflects what teenagers deal with today. Kids have an innate sense of hope and possibility and they often act on those feelings impulsively only to have their hopes dashed as the realities and turmoil of the world set in. It is such a rich and beautifully told story I hope people will give themselves the opportunity to rediscover Romeo and Juliet."

The 39 Steps, adapted by Patrick Barlow, from the novel by John Buchan, from the movie of Alfred Hitchcock, will follow in the footsteps of HVSF's critically acclaimed non-Shakespeare productions of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged (2009 and 2010), and Around the World in 80 Days (2011). With a cast of 4 playing over 140 characters, an onstage plane crash, handcuffs, missing fingers, and some good, old-fashioned romance, The 39 Steps is a fast-paced comedy-thriller that promises an evening of fun for the entire family. "The HVSF Company is extremely creative and it will be fun to work with them to create a production with their unique and freewheeling stamp on it," said Treyz. "Even if people have seen the Hitchcock movie or the play when it was on Broadway, I feel confident in saying that this production will offer an entirely new and entertaining experience."

Fast and accessible are two oft-cited traits of the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival. As important as the actors and directors are, O'Brien believes the audience plays an equally important role in every season. "The actor/audience connection is at the heart of our work and I believe it is what has made us so successful. We are committed to bringing our work especially to people who never believed they could comprehend or enjoy Shakespeare. I want our audience to understand that for us the real moment of creation occurs not in the isolation of the rehearsal studio, but when the actors engage with the audience in the blast furnace of live performance."

The region's only professional resident Shakespeare company, HVSF makes its home under a specially designed tent theater perched high upon the banks of the Hudson River, on the grounds of the historic Boscobel House & Gardens in Garrison, New York. Using the dramatic views of the Hudson Highlands and the sweeping vistas from the elegant lawns of Boscobel as near-perfect stage scenery, the critically acclaimed Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival presents unparalleled productions with the perfect marriage of theater and nature. Audience members are invited to arrive two hours early in order to enjoy a picnic meal - with one of the most spectacular al fresco views - on the grounds of the estate.

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