Mortal Folly Theatre is thrilled to present its second full-length production, Macbeth, adapted and directed by Artistic Director Katherine Harte-DeCoux. The production runs from December 1st through December 19th at the Gene Frankel Theatre.
More than just a tale of "vaulting ambition", Mortal Folly's Macbeth is not so much a history as a deeply affecting morality tale, an emotional study of humanity risking everything in the name of love and honor, and gravely suffering the consequences. Harte-DeCoux's adaptation of the Folio takes advantage of Macbeth's relative brevity to add moments of non-verbal storytelling throughout the play, enriching the story with contextual details and giving enlightening new perspective to some of theatre's most well-known and frequently-performed roles. Set in a mythical Dark Age of feudal lords and long swords, Mortal Folly's take on this story of sorrow, blood, and destiny explores the balance between Fate and Free Will, and offers a personal, passionate and cinematic take on one of the Bard's greatest tragedies.
Macbeth features Matthew Rini (HORATIO at the New York Fringe; NYIT-Award winning THE THREE SILLIES) as Macbeth, Liz Sklar* (IMBUED opposite
Stacey Keach; THE PHILLISTINES and GOOD BREEDING at ACT) as Lady Macbeth, Mark August (ONE LIFE TO LIVE; THE GOOD WIFE) as Macduff ,
John Short (
Caligula Maximus) as Malcolm, as well as Alyssa Borg, Erik Cheski,
Sam Eggers, David A Ellis*, Josey Nicole Housley, Bryant Martin,
John Short, Hannah Sloat*, Bran
Don Smith, Melanie Stroh, and
RoBert Lee Taylor*.
*Appearing courtesy of Actor's Equity Association
Like Mortal Folly's highly successful A Midsummer Night's Dream (June 2010 at The
Richmond Shepard Theatre), Macbeth will feature music composed specifically for the production by Musical Director Amanda Gookin (program director for The Harmony Effect and member of PUBLIQuartet) and spectacular fights choreographed by resident Fight Director Nathan DeCoux (Fight Director for the premiere of CORNBURY: THE QUEEN'S GOVERNOR by Obie-Award winning playwright
William Hoffman). New to Macbeth is an arsenal of hand-crafted weapons and armor provided by Gotham Armory, who recently crafted the weapons for the hit Broadway show Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson. The show's assistant director and character movement expert is Stacee Mandeville (MAD HOT BALLROOM).
More information about the Company, and a blog about the process of creating this production of Macbeth can be found at www.mortalfollytheatre.org. Tickets are $18.00, on sale now. Complimentary tickets for press, industry professionals and Actor's Equity members can be reserved by contacting the company at mortalfollytheatre@gmail.com. This production is an Equity-approved showcase.
About Mortal Folly Theatre:
"Love the Work, Play the Play"
Mortal Folly was founded in September of 2009 by long-time director and actor Katherine Harte-DeCoux, with the goal of creating immersive and educational theatrical experiences for both audiences and actors. For hundreds of years classical theatre, and Shakespeare in particular, has held an honored place of respect and relevance in our society; Mortal Folly strives to be a company that continues to keep these classics accessible, inspiring, and provocative.
From the performance aspect, we believe that just as a cellist cannot improvise a concerto, actors cannot fully realize themselves as storytellers through intuition and talent alone. They must embrace the process - the work - as whole-heartedly as the performance. We believe the current generation of young actors has not had nearly enough emphasis placed on the fundamentals and craft inherent in Classical Theatre, and we offer an on-the-job training ground to any actor who seeks to further their skills in this timeless genre of storytelling. We've found that this dedication to the art of classical theatre always results in a deeper, more involved experience for the audience.
From the educational aspect, we believe that the classics are incredible teaching tools for many subjects, not just material for a high-school English class. Our goal is to bring the stories to the students, make them a part of the world of the play, and inspire a thirst for more art in their lives.
Mortal Folly Theatre is a Sponsored Artist of The Field (www.thefield.org).
