CRT Presents PERICLES 2/26-3/8 In The Nafe Katter Theater

Connecticut Repertory Theatre (CRT) will present William Shakespeare's Pericles, Feb. 26 - March 8 in the Nafe Katter Theatre on the Storrs campus. For tickets and information, call 860-486-4226 or visit www.crt.uconn.edu.

In Shakespeare's masterful story, Pericles, Prince of Tyre, suffers agonizing losses, endures personal betrayals, and faces a tsunami-like wave of spirit-numbing catastrophes in a quest that also includes moments of celebration, festivity, observance, remembrance and unparalleled joy. Pericles' tempest-tossed odyssey raises profound questions about why suffering and grave, undeserved misfortunes befall our lives, and offers hope through courage and redemption.

Shakespeare's hero travels throughout the ancient world where he meets kings and competes for his princess. Wildly theatrical, Pericles' journey takes him to far-off lands and exotic environments. He encounters shipwrecks, marriage, prostitution, near-death experiences and even pirates. Shakespeare uses this journey to unveil, as only Shakespeare can, the essence of human courage, honor and redemption.

Director Dale AJ Rose said, "Pericles is a joy to work on. It was one of Shakespeare's most popular plays performed during his lifetime. It speaks to the value and strength of family of faith and morality in a 21st Century world where family, faith and morality are replaced with materialism, self centeredness and cynicism. It is ultimately a play about healing and redemption."

Shakespeare wrote Pericles late in his career, probably in the first decade of the 17th Century. The play fell into relative obscurity for many years but has recently become more popular with U.S. audiences.

Pericles will include original music arrangements by composer Spencer Emanuel who said, "By tapping many cultures and time periods, we increase the imaginative aspect of storytelling. The music will follow suit; I'll be taking bits from multiple cultures. Traditional instruments from all over the East will be heard, sometimes alone, sometimes combined with the orchestral instruments of the West."

THE CREATIVE TEAM
Dale AJ Rose (director): is the Associate Artistic Director of CRT and the Director of Performance Studies for the MFA and BFA Actor Training Programs in the Department of Theatre Arts. For CRT he has directed productions of Arabian Nights, Restoration Comedy and As You Like It. Dale last served as Director of the School of Theatre and Dance at the University of South Florida in Tampa, FL. He was the Director of Performance Training at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Mr. Rose was Artistic Director of the Shakespeare Festival of Dallas where, among others, he directed Earle Hyman in King Lear and Morgan Freeman in Othello. He was Artistic Director of the Plaza Theatre, also in Dallas, where he worked with John Goodman, Mariel Hemingway and Zakes Mokae. Again in Dallas, he was a co-founder of Stage #1. He began his professional directing career as founder and Artistic Director of the Alice People Theatre in Tampa. Mr. Rose has directed all but seven of Shakespeare's plays.

The artistic team includes Michael Anania, Scenic Designer; Chad LeFebvre, Lighting Designer; Sachiko Komuro, Costume Designer; Derek Jones, Sound Designer and Spencer Emanuel, Composer

THE CAST

The cast will feature two Equity artists and actors from UConn's BFA and MFA acting programs. The two Equity artists are:

Clark Scott Carmichael (Gower): is making his debut at CRT. Most recently, he played BJ in the new Suzanne Bradbeer play, You Miss Them When They're Not Around at Dreamcatcher Rep. Clark played Arthur in Camelot at Pennsylvania Center Stage and was a Jumper on Broadway in Tom Stoppard's Jumpers directed by David Leveaux and starring Simon Russell Beale. Regionally, he has appeared at Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, Missouri Repertory Theatre, Two River Theater Company, Williamstown Theatre Festival, The Acting Company, Hope Summer Rep, and the Shakespeare Theatre in Washington D.C., among others. On television, his credits include, As the World Turns, Law & Order, Kidnapped as well as Campbell Scott's film Hamlet. 

Michael Sharon (Pericles): is making his debut at CRT. Other favorite roles include Leontes in The Winter's Tale (George Bernard Shaw Theater, London), Macbeth (Los Angeles Theatre Center), Marc Antony in Julius Caesar (Portland Stage Co.), and Oberon in Shakespeare in Hollywood (Wilma Theatre, Philadelphia). Michael has worked regionally at the Shakespeare Theater of Washington, D.C. (Twelfth Night, Julius Caesar, Antony & Cleopatra), The Utah Shakespearean Festival (A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Merchant of Venice, Coriolanus, Twelfth Night, Camelot, Johnny Guitar), The Oregon Shakespeare Festival (Othello, As You Like It, Richard III, Baltimore Waltz) Actor's Theatre of Louisville (Sherlock Holmes), Cincinnati Playhouse (Avenue X), and Goodspeed Opera House (Shenandoah). NYC Credits include Josephine's Song at the York Theatre, and The Most Happy Fella at NY City Opera, Lincoln Center.
Meghan O'Leary (Thaisa): is a Senior BFA Acting candidate at the UConn. Previous CRT credits include, Man For All Seasons, The Threepenny Opera (Betty), Love's Labour's Lost (Jaquenetta), Pentecost (Toni Newsome), The Arabian Nights (Butcher and others), Cabaret (Kit Kat Girl), and Prudence (Helen Benson). Hope Summer Repertory Theatre credits include, Kiss Me Kate (Hattie), Sarah: Plain and Tall (Sarah), and Godspell.
Ali Perlwitz (Marina): is a sophomore in the BFA acting program. Her favorite roles include Dotty/Mrs. Clackett in Noises Off, Katharine Hepburn in Rewind: 80 Years Behind the Silver Screen, The Shadow Box (Maggie), The Cave Dwellers (Queen), The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds (Beatrice), and Wendla in Uconn's Spring Awakening, directed by Joe Jung. Perlwitz attended four years at Arts at the Capitol Theatre Magnet High School in Willimantic.
Gretchen Goode (Dionyza): is a first year MFA acting candidate making her debut on the CRT stage. She recently played Paulina and Mopsa in UConn's Graduate Actor Project of The Winter's Tale. Past credits include Annie Sullivan in The Miracle Worker, the title role in Lysistrata, Lucy in Your A Good Man Charlie Brown, Marty in Grease, Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Fiddler On The Roof, Hamlet, and A Minor's Christmas Carol. She also studied at the Pacific Conservatory of Performing Arts in Santa Maria, CA.
Ryan Guess (Cleon): is a first year MFA actor. He appeared last semester in the graduate showcase production of The Winter's Tale, as Florizel. Ryan is a graduate of Western Michigan University's Theatre Performance program.

The ensemble cast also includes MFA actors Brooks Brantly, Kevin Coubal, Caroline Gombe, Phillip Korth, Christina Sanchez, Philip AJ Smithey, Robert Thompson, Jr., and Brian Patrick Williams as well as BFA actors Joe Cisternelli, Jack Fellows, Tom Foran, and Jeremy Garfinkel.

INFORMATION
Please call 860-486-4226 for tickets or for more information. Please call or visit the box office for specific show dates and times because performance schedules vary and are subject to change.

Evening performances start at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesdays and Thursdays, and at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday evenings. Matinee performances start at 2 p.m.

Ticket prices range from $11- $29. For more information or press tickets contact Frank Mack at 860-486-4799.