JULIUS CAESAR Opens Writers Theatre's 25th Season

Writers Theatre, under the leadership of Artistic Director Michael Halberstam and Executive Director Kathryn M. Lipuma, opens its 25th Anniversary Season with a new adaptation of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, directed and adapted by Artistic Director Michael Halberstam and Scott Parkinson. The show runs September 7 - October 16, 2016 in the Alexandra C. and John D. Nichols Theatre at 325 Tudor Court, Glencoe.

Shakespeare's masterpiece of power and conspiracy, friendship and betrayal, stands as the greatest political drama ever written. Caesar has made Rome the world's most powerful Empire through his brilliant military strategies, and upon his return from the wars wishes for a reluctant Republic to crown him King. When his fellow Senators decide that his advancement must be halted, they come to a brutal and extreme solution: the great man must fall.

With a newly streamlined adaptation by Michael Halberstam and Scott Parkinson that is both epic in scale and arrestingly intimate, this fresh and innovative look at the text will immerse audiences in the struggle for global supremacy, raising important questions about the responsibilities of a citizenry when confronting radicalism and tyranny.

"Caesar has been on my bucket list of passion projects for some years," says Artistic Director Michael Halberstam. "But the way I have wanted to stage it has always been beyond the capabilities of our venues. That is, until now! Now that we finally have a home where the sophistication of our theatres matches the sophistication of our artistic ambitions we can take a serious look at a play that has never been more relevant. We are in the heart of an election season unlike any in my lifetime and, therefore, I cannot think of a better time to explore Shakespeare's remarkable play about global politics, world power and the nuances and grayness of great political movements. Scott Parkinson's considerable knowledge of the play and his expertise with the language has made him an ideal collaborator in manifesting an adaptation that seeks to streamline the play and lift the relationship between Brutus and Cassius, creating an actor-driven realization of the political landscape in which they find themselves."

The cast includes: Kareem Bandealy (Brutus), Christine Bunuan (Calphurnia/Metella Cimber), Arya Daire (Portia/Decia/Soothsayer),Sydney Germaine (Cinna/Octavius Caesar), Matt Hawkins (Caius Ligarius/Lepidus), Thomas Vincent Kelly (Mark Antony/Trebonius),Julian Parker (Cobbler/Caska), Scott Parkinson (Cassius) and Madrid St. Angelo (Julius Caesar).

The creative team includes: Courtney O'Neill (Scenic Designer), Mara Blumenfeld (Costume Designer), Jesse Klug (Lighting Designer),Rob Milburn and Michael Bodeen (Original Music and Sound Design), Mike Tutaj (Projections Designer), Breon Arzell (Movement Director) and Bobby Kennedy (Dramaturg). David Castellanos is the Production Stage Manager.