The Nashville Shakespeare Festival to Present KING LEAR

The Nashville Shakespeare Festival will bring Shakespeare's King Lear to the stage for its ninth annual Winter Shakespeare season at Belmont University's Troutt Theater Jan. 8-31.

"Over the last few years, we're received many requests from the community for a professional production of King Lear," said Denice Hicks, executive director of the Nashville Shakespeare Festival. "We are happy to finally bring the story of King Lear and his three daughters to life during Winter Shakespeare."

The show will be Nashville's first full, professional production of the famous tragedy - previous productions were presented by community theatres or have been adaptations of the original story ­- and will feature live, original music.

Sewanee University Professor of Theatre Arts David Landon will play King Lear, a role he has studied for decades. Landon teaches acting, physical comedy and solo performance and is a frequent director and actor for Theatre/Sewanee. He has played leading roles at the Heritage Repertory Company, the Arkansas Rep, Alabama Shakespeare Company and the New York Shakespeare Festival, as well as roles in film and television. He is a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard and holds a doctorate in comparative literature from Vanderbilt University.

Pre-sale tickets to the show are $15 for students, $27 for adults and $24 for seniors, with discounts available for groups. For tickets to the 10 a.m. school matinees, email education@nashvilleshakes.org. A special open house and dress rehearsal will be held New Year's Eve from noon to 3:00 p.m. The first public show will be Jan. 8.

For those interested in a unique experience, the Winter Shakespeare Royal Package is available for purchase. A wonderful one-of-a-kind Shakespearean gift, the Royal Package includes tickets to the play, premium VIP seating in the front rows of the main floor or the balcony, reserved curbside parking at the Troutt Theater, a private pre-show reception and discussion hosted by Shakespeare scholars and members of the Nashville Shakespeare Festival team, and a post-show backstage tour and meet and- greet with the cast. All proceeds from the packages will directly support the festival's educational outreach and programming. Each Royal package is $100, 75 percent of which is tax deductible.

For more information, or to purchase tickets or a Royal Package, visit www.nashvilleshakes.org/ or call 615- 255-2273.

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