Austin Pendleton and More to Star in A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM at The Resident Acting Company

This fall, The Resident Acting Company will present William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Sheen Center for Thought and Culture in the Frank Shiner Theatre. The limited three-week engagement plays October 11 – November 2. The official opening night is Wednesday, October 15 at 7PM.

The cast features Austin Pendleton, Rachel Botchan, Anique Clements, RJ Foster, Carine Montbertrand and Andy Paterson, TBA. The production is directed by Bradford Cover, Artistic Director of The Resident Acting Company.

Since first presented in the 1590s. Shakespeare’s beloved comedy, A Midsummer Night’s Dream has delighted audiences with its interwoven stories of four young lovers, mischievous fairies, and a troupe of amateur actors presenting an ancient story of ill-fated lovers. In RAC’s new production, the misguided (but often brilliant) thespians not only produce the play-within-a-play, but they take over the whole Midsummer story, taking on the roles of all lovers, fairies, and lords of Athens. Through a clown-inspired kaleidoscope created by these inexperienced but well-meaning actors, RAC offers a new perspective on an evergreen classic as they bend gender, mine the text, and allow for the ridiculous to find the sublime. “…Lord, what fools these mortals be!”

With A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Resident Acting Company presents its first fully-staged production. RAC was formed in 2018, in response to the celebrated and award-winning Pearl Theatre closing its doors after 33 seasons. The Resident Acting Company carries on, and reexamines The Pearl’s legacy in the context of becoming a true acting ensemble. The mission of the RAC is as follows: “We believe theatre is best when created by artists experienced in working together, and allied in producing theatre as a company. Our strength lies in the power of our ensemble, and our communion with our audience. We are dedicated to a full repertory, strongly rooted in the classics, which we know reflects, enlightens, and informs contemporary life.”