Shakespeare & Company Presents CORIOLANUS

Shakespeare & Company presents a special limited run workshop production of William Shakespeare's Coriolanus in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre. Performances run from August 21 - August 25, and brings together Artistic Director Allyn Burrows and Founding Artistic Director Tina Packer performing together for the first time. The Company also welcomes Christopher V. Edwards, Artistic Director of Actors Shakespeare Project, to the Company's stage.

"Shakespeare's Coriolanus is a man of contradictions and complexities: noble, valiant, heroic in battle and unrivaled in military prowess; brutal, proud, impolitic and immune to advice; capable of great loyalty to family, friends, country, and of equally great betrayal," said Director Daniela Varon. "His relationship with his mother, Volumnia, one of the fiercest women in the canon, could occupy every therapist vacationing in the Berkshires in August - and they would need time to spare to unpack his relationships with his adversary Aufidius, his friend/father-figure Menenius, his colleague Cominius, and his wife Virgilia. Small wonder then that this play draws and fascinates Allyn and Tina, and that they should want to engage with it together and see what happens. I am curious and grateful to be in the room with these formidable veteran actors, and our wonderful younger collaborators, in a spirit of inquiry into what is essential in the play."

The workshop production of Coriolanus is an examination of what happens when an ambitious, arrogant general seizes power only to prove his complete ineptitude in a leadership role. Coriolanus, while successful in battle, learns that ultimately it is the people who choose their leaders, and in spite of joining with his arch enemy to exact revenge on the city of Rome that betrayed him, Coriolanus is doomed to meet the fate he deserves.

In this special workshop production, actors will perform scenes from the play with script in hand, and engage the audience in discussions exploring the themes and relationships of the play. Coriolanus is generously sponsored by Deborah and Bill Ryan, and will feature Allyn Burrows (Coriolanus), Brandon E. Burton (Ensemble), Christopher V. Edwards (Tullus Aufidius), Rory Hammond (Virgilia), and Tina Packer (Volumina). The creative team includes Daniela Varon (Director), Raz Golden (Assistang Director), J.P. Elins (Stage Manager), Dennis Ebert (Assistant Stage Manager), Grace Eldred (Wardrobe), Devon Drohan (Set Designer), Govane Lohbauer (Costume Designer), and Natalie Johnsonius Neubert (Sound Designer).

Tickets are $25-$55 and can be purchased online at shakespeare.org, or by calling Shakespeare & Company's box office at (413) 637-3353. Berkshire Residents enjoy a 40% discount at select performances. The show runs from August 21 to August 25. The Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre is indoors, air-conditioned, and wheelchair accessible. Shakespeare & Company is located at 70 Kemble St. in Lenox, Massachusetts.

Following the performance, Canyon Ranch will be hosting an intimate post-performance dinner and discussion with the artists. Tickets for this exclusive dinner are $250 each (including performance ticket) and funds raised will be used to support the Company's summer season. Seating for the dinner is limited, and those wishing to purchase tickets should call Natalie Johnsonius Neubert at 413-637-1199 ext. 180 to request availability.

The Company's 2019 Summer Season also includes Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, The Merry Wives of Windsor, and The Taming of The Shrew; plus Tony nominee The Children by Lucy Kirkwood, The Pulitzer Prize-winning Topdog/Underdog by Suzan-Lori Parks, and Tony Award nominee, Time Stands Still by Donald Margulies.

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