VIDEO: Cast and Creative Of HENRY V at Hartford Stage Talk The Price Of War

Watch in the video as the cast of Hartford Stage's H enry V, which will be performed Thursday, October 11, through Sunday, November 11, talk about bringing the show to life on stage!

Henry V will be the first Shakespeare production, and the second play overall, in Hartford Stage's 55-year history to be staged in the round. In addition to Grush, the ensemble cast - comprised of half men and half women - features Karen Aldridge as Exeter, Miles Anderson as Pistol, Kate Forbes as the Constable of France and Burgundy, Peter Francis James as the Chorus and Sir Thomas Erpingham, Felicity Jones Latta as the Archbishop of Canterbury, Nym and Alice, and Baron Vaughn as Fluellen and Mistress Quickly. Hartford Stage Associate Artistic Director Elizabeth Williamson will helm the production, which marks her Shakespeare directorial debut for the Tony Award-winning theatre.

In Henry V, shortly after gaining the throne, Henry must decide whether or not to embark on a war that could solidify his reign-or bring his country to its knees. In France, he grows up fast under the pressure to use all means necessary to win a war against tremendous odds. But even if he finds victory, how easy will it be to settle the peace?

Williamson previously directed the world premiere of Seder, by Sarah Gancher, and Caryl Churchill's Cloud 9 at Hartford Stage. A dramaturg as well as a director, her credits include Matthew Lopez's The Inheritance, which is transferring to London's West End this fall, and the Hartford Stage world premieres of the Tony Award-winning musical A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder; Big Dance Theatre's Man in a Case; Matthew Lopez's Reverberation; Christopher Shinn's An Opening in Time; Bess Wohl's Make Believe; and the new musical Anastasia, currently on Broadway. She has served as dramaturg for many Shakespeare productions, including Hartford Stage's Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet, Macbeth, Twelfth Night and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Williamson has also worked with the American Conservatory Theater, HERE, La Jolla Playhouse, Pioneer Theatre Company, Primary Stages, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Theatre de la Jeune Lune, the Williamstown Theatre Festival, and many others.

Mark Lawrence, Haley Tyson, and Reid Williams, students at The Hartt School at the University of Hartford, have been cast in the Ensemble.

In addition to Williamson, the creative team includes Set Designer Nick Vaughan (Seder and Cloud 9 at Hartford Stage); Costume Designer Beth Goldenberg (Queens for a Year, Hartford Stage; Engagements, Second Stage Theater); Lighting Designer Stephen Strawbridge (A Midsummer Night's Dream, Hartford Stage; Passion Play, Yale Repertory Theatre); Sound Designer Matt Hubbs (Indecent, Broadway; Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, American Repertory Theater); Composer/Original Music by Christian Frederickson (Sound design for The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey, Hartford Stage; Composer, Trojan Women (After Euripedes), Siti Company). Yan Chen, Hartford Stage Artistic Apprentice, will serve as Dramaturg.

Robyn M. Zalewski (A Midsummer Night's Dream and A Lesson from Aloes at Hartford Stage) will serve as Production Stage Manager, with Nicole Wiegert as Assistant Stage Manager (A Midsummer Night's Dream and A Lesson from Aloes at Hartford Stage).

www.hartfordstage.org.