Photo Coverage: Variations on Shakespeare Performance

By: Walter McBride Aug. 06, 2008

This Monday, August 4th, the New Globe Theater presented VARIATIONS ON SHAKESPEARE: An Evening of Songs Inspired by the Bard. This concert highlighted songs from musicals based on the works of William Shakespeare with performances by some of Broadway's hottest stars.

The evening was hosted by Tony Award winner Mark Rylance, the first Artistic Director of Shakespeare's Globe in London who is currently treading the boards in the hilarious hit revival of Boeing-Boeing, with appearances and performances by Broadway and TV Star Tom Cavanagh (Some Americans Abroad, TV's Ed, Urinetown, Shenandoah), Anthony Rapp (Some Americans Abroad, original cast of RENT, You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown), Emmy Award nominee George Wendt (Norm in TV's Cheers, Hairspray), Tony Award nominee Martha Plimpton (upcoming Pal Joey, Top Girls, Cymbeline, The Coast of Utopia), Tony Award winner Christian Hoff (Jersey Boys, upcoming Pal Joey), Tony Award nominee Alice Ripley (Side Show, Next to Normal), Barrett Foa (The Drunken City, Avenue Q, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee), Tony winner Denis O'Hare (Sweet Charity, Assassins, Take Me Out), Autumn Hurlburt (MTV Finalist "Legally Blonde: Search for the Next Elle Woods", Legally Blonde), Kate Shindle (Legally Blonde, Cabaret, Jekyll and Hyde, and Miss America 1998), Darius de Haas (Rent, Marie Christine, Kiss of the Spiderwoman), Alexander Gemignani (Les Miz, Sweeney Todd, Sunday in the Park With George), Garrett Long (South Pacific, The Spitfire Grill), and more The evening was directed by Igor Goldin with musical direction by David Andrews Rogers.

The works of William Shakespeare have always served as a true inspiration for many playwrights and composers over the years, with some of the most famous musical theatre pieces inspired by the Bard's plays. Kiss Me, Kate inspired Cole Porter to transform the classic Taming of the Shrew, and gave us such great songs as "Too Darn Hot" and "So In Love." The Comedy of Errors was the play that inspired Rodgers and Hart to pen the hit musical The Boys From Syracuse and the most famous musical of them all, West Side Story, is a beautiful musical re-telling of Romeo And Juliet set in 1950's New York City.

Photos by Walter McBride/Retna Ltd.

Variations On Shakespeare

David Andrews Rogers

Mark Rylance

Robert Cuccioli

Robert Cuccioli and Clarke Thorell

Mamie Parris and Barrett Foa

Darius de Haas

Autumn Hulrburt and Darius de Haas

Autumn Hurlburt and Darius de Haas

Alexander Gemignani

Autumn Hurlburt

Garrett Long and Barrett Foa

Garrett Long

Barrett Foa

Mamie Parris

Christian Hoff

Erik Keiser and Sara Michelle Valencia

Kenita Miller

Denis O'Hare

Martha Plimpton

Anthony Rapp and Tom Cavenaugh

Anthony Rapp

Kate Shindle and Alice Ripley

Alice Ripley

Kate Shindle and Autumn Hurlbert

George Wendt

George Wendt and Clarke Thorell

Garrett Long and Clarke Thorell

Mark Rylance

Kate Shindle

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