Chicago Theatre Company's OTHELLO: THE REMIX Set for 2012 Cultural Olympiad

Chicago Shakespeare Theater (CST) announced today that in addition to being among the 37 international companies who will come together for an unprecedented 37-play "Globe to Globe" Festival for the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad on May 5 and 6, CST's commission, The Q Brothers' Othello: The Remix, will be Chicago Shakespeare's premiere appearance in Germany's Shakespeare im Globe Neuss Festival July 6 and 7 and return engagement at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, August 1–27, 2012 where Funk It Up About Nothin' won critical acclaim in 2009. The company is currently in rehearsal at Chicago Shakespeare Theater for the production's debut in London next month.

Shakespeare's 448th Birthday on Monday, April 23 inaugurates the showcase of 37 international companies in the unprecedented 37-play "Globe to Globe" festival. Othello: The Remix joins the multi-lingual presentation representing the language of American hip-hop. The Globe Theatre's production of Henry V will be the only other production presented in the English language. Shakespeare's plays have been translated into every major living language and there is a long tradition of his plays being performed around the globe in people's own vernacular. Additional languages and companies span six continents, and include: The National Theatre of China's Richard III; Belarus Free Theatre's King Lear; from Bangladesh, Dhaka Theatre's The Tempest; a Zulu presentation of Venus & Adonis; The South Sudan Theatre Company's Cymbeline; and from Kyoto, Japan, Chiten's Coriolanus.

Othello: The Remix, created by The Q Brothers, GQ and JQ, is a fresh urban take on William Shakespeare's tragedy, spun out and lyrically rewritten over original beats. Born and raised in Chicago, The Q Brothers started their professional careers in the Off Broadway hit The Bomb-itty of Errors. The current production is their second collaboration with CST Creative Producer Rick Boynton, who was instrumental in the creation of The Q Brothers' award-winning CST commission Funk It Up About Nothin'-which received critical acclaim in its world premiere at Chicago Shakespeare and subsequent international tour to New York, Australia and the UK. In addition to The Q Brothers, the cast of Othello: The Remix includes Jackson Doran and Postell Pringle.

Photo by Peter Bosy.

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