Photo Flash: CRT Presents THE COMEDY OF ERRORS

"Small cheer and great welcome makes a merry feast."

Two sets of identical twins are accidentally separated at birth. That's the comic spark that ignites Shakespeare's funniest and wildest comedy. When the sets of twins are unknowingly reunited in the same town, hilarity, mayhem and even romance ensue - all depicted as only Shakespeare can with brilliantly witty word-play and exquisite poetry in this physical, fast-paced and sexy episode of mistaken identity.

Antipholus and Dromio of Syracuse find themselves in Ephesus where, unknown to them, their twin brothers (with the same names) reside. Complete comic anarchy is immediately unleashed when each pair is mistaken for the other and they are bombarded with accusations of infidelity, betrayal and more. When romance, money, jewelry and even courtesans are thrown into the mix, this comically out of control situation will need to be dealt with by the King and Queen.

CRT's production is set in the 1920's with original jazz music composed by Spencer Emanuel and original puppets designed by Tom Getchell. Director Paul Mullins said, "I am thrilled to be working on The Comedy of Errors. It is a mad knockabout farce complete with mistaken identities, Keystone Cop chases, crazed conjurers, jealous wives and mistresses and shady guys with guns. But framing and underscoring this insanity is a beautiful and romantic story about the search for family and love; a story about loss and reconciliation."

Dassia Posner, dramaturg for the CRT production, said, "The Comedy of Errors is one of Shakespeare's funniest and most poignant plays. It is populated with characters who are lost, but who come to find themselves through the discovery of one another: twins are reunited, parents find their lost children, lovers discover their soul mates. Our production will bring Shakespeare's exhilarating wonder of discovery to our audiences as our actors find moments of laughter and love in an unpredictable world filled with surprises." 

THE CREATIVE TEAM
Paul Mullins (Director) is a company member of The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey where he has directed Richard II, King John, Noises Off, Private Lives, The Time of Your Life, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, The Illusion, Rhinoceros, All's Well That Ends Well and The Threepenny Opera. For The Old Globe: Twelfth Night, Macbeth, The Merry Wives of Windsor and Measure For Measure. For The Studio Theatre in Washington, DC: The Solid Gold Cadillac, Fat Pig, The Seafarer, This Is How It Goes and The Russian National Postal Service. For Portland Stage: Third, Trying, Lettice and Lovage and True West. He has also directed productions for The Juilliard School, Yale School of Drama, The University of Texas and The University of Missouri, KC.

The Design team includes: Jeanette Drake, Scenic Designer; Alex Goldberg, Lighting Designer; Sachiko Komuro, Costume Designer; Spencer Emanuel, Composer; Tom Getchell, Puppet Designer; and Dassia Posner, Dramaturg.

THE CAST

The cast will feature equity actors Barbara Broughton and Harold Surratt.

Barbara Broughton (Aemilia) Barbara most recently appeared in Grey Gardens (as Big Eddie), both in New York and at The Studio Theatre in Washington, DC. Her Broadway work includes Music Music at City Center and Stephen Sondheim's Sunday In The Park With George. Her numerous Off Broadway credits include Concertina's Rainbow (The Cherry Lane) The Red Truck (The Epic), Johhny Pye and the Foolkiller (The Lamb's Theatre), A Little Night Music (The York Theatre) and Pets (Theatre East). Selected Regional: Alabama Shakespeare Festival (The Bird Sanctuary, Beauty and The Beast), Dallas Theatre Center (Pride and Prejudice), Northern Stage (The Price), Pittsburgh Public Theatre (Les Liaisons Dangereuses, George Washington Slept Here), The BoarsHead Theatre, (Humble Boy), The Hangar Theatre (Dolly in Hello Dolly), The Pioneer Theatre (My Fair Lady), Actor's Theatre of Louisville (Quilters), Pittsburgh CLO, (1776), as well as roles at GeVa Theatre, Syracuse Stage, Berkshire Theatre Festival, Goodspeed Opera, among others. National Tours: Company (Sarah), Cover Girls, and George M! Recent TV and film: Law and Order, The Sunset Gang (PBS) and The Producers Movie Musical.

Harold Surratt (Egeon) Broadway: Impressionism (u/s), directed by Jack O'Brien; Serious Money directed by Max Stafford-Clark. Other NY credits: The Public Theater; Keen Co.; Urban Stages; Milk Can Theater. Regional Theatre: 5 seasons American Conservatory Theatre; Old Globe Theatre - educational tour; Berkeley Shakespeare Festival; Denver Center - company member; Mark Taper Forum's Taper Too; South Coast Rep.; The Boston Court; The Court Theatre; Shakespeare Festival L.A.; The Pilot Theatre; Three Rivers Shakespeare Festival; A Contemporary Theatre Festival; Classical Theatre of Harlem at The Folger in D.C.; Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts in Santa Maria; The Actors' Gang tour of The Exonerated. Television: Fringe; ER; Crossing Jordan; The District; Dragnet; The Practice; Piano Lesson; The Temptations mini-series; Presidio Med. Films: The Dream Team; Pelican Brief; Blood in Blood Out Bound By Honor; Sudden Death. 

The cast will also feature graduate acting students Brooks Brantly as Antipholus of Ephesus, Philip AJ Smithey as Antipholus of Syracuse, Kevin Coubal as Dromio of Ephesus, and Ryan Guess as Dromio of Syracuse.

Brooks Brantly (Antipholus of Ephesus) is a 2nd year MFA Actor at UConn and Graduate of Morehouse College. He was last seen on the CRT stage in Galileo as Cardinal Bellarmin. Past credits include: CRT - The Exonerated (Robert Hayes), Pericles (Antiochus); the Graduate Acting Project, The Winter's Tale (Leontes); Blues for an Alabama Sky (Sam), Julius Caesar (Brutus), Sexual Perversity in Chicago (Bernie) and the graduate performance workshop production of Reasons to be Pretty (Kent).

Philip AJ Smithey (Antipholus of Syracuse) is a second year MFA Actor at UConn. He received a BA in theater studies from Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA. Past credits include: CRT - Sagredo in Galileo, David in The Exonerated, Hud in Hair, Simonides in Pericles, Shepherd in the Graduate Acting Project, The Winter's Tale, Demetrius in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Motel Kamzoil in Fiddler on the Roof, Mr. West in Two Trains Running and Milo Tindle in Sleuth.

Kevin Coubal (Dromio of Ephesus) is a second year MFA Actor at UConn. He recently appeared in CRT's productions of Galileo (Inquisitor/Oppenhiemer/Guitar) The Exonerated (Gary Gauger), Hair (Tribe/Trumpet) and Pericles (Cerimon/French Knight) and the Graduate Acting Project, The Winter's Tale (Autolycus). He is a graduate of the University of Oregon where his productions included: Endgame (Clov), Measure for Measure (Angelo), La Dispute (The Prince), The Big Knife (Smiley Coy), The Lesson (The Pupil). He also acted for Willamette Repertory Theatre in Wild Oats (Harry Thunder).

Ryan Guess (Dromio of Syracuse) is a 2nd year MFA Actor at UConn. He last appeared in CRT's productions of Galileo, The Exonerated, Hair (The Principle, Tribe), Pericles (as Cleon) and in the Graduate Acting project, The Winter's Tale (Florizel). Ryan is a graduate of Western Michigan University's Theatre Performance program.

The ensemble cast also includes MFA actors Caroline Gombe, Gretchen Goode, Christina Greer, Phil Korth, Robbie Thompson, Jr, and Brian Patrick Williams; BFA actors Scott Cooke, Jack Fellows, Zachary Kamin, Sarah Murdoch Billard, Rachel Rosado, and Desmond Thorne.  

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