All's Well That Ends Well at The Center at West Park

A theatre troupe in modern-day America is ready to perform the Western they have been rehearsing for weeks. However, at the very last minute, this cast of characters must switch to a Shakespeare play at the request of the venue. They open up the first folio to pick one fast, and they choose the first one they see, All’s Well that Ends Well. Sounds simple enough, right? Wrong. They’ve managed to pick one of Shakespeare’s most misunderstood comedies.

This comedy begins after the funeral of Count Rousillion, where the Countess must bid farewell to her son, Bertram who is off to the ailing King of France’s court. Bertram leaves behind the orphaned and forlorn Helena, daughter to the great doctor, Gerard de Narbon. Compelled by love, a mother’s blessing, and a wealth of medical knowledge from her father, Helena follows Bertram to the King’s court. Miraculously, Helena heals the King and is rewarded with the marriage of her choice: one to Bertram. The hasty nuptial goes through and all is well… until Bertram refuses to consummate the marriage and runs away to the Italian wars with his braggart friend Parolles. Bertram writes home to Helena that he will only be a husband to her if she wears the ancestral ring he never takes off his finger, and if she becomes pregnant with his child. Will Helena rise to the challenge yet again? Will this show have a happy ending? Will Parolles ever stop talking? You’ll have to wait and see!

With the help of shadow puppets, a band of soldiers, and original music by Stephanie L. Carlin, what’s left is a chaotic, joyful, and country-fried romp begging the question, do the ends really justify the means?

Michelle Kariuki as Helena
Reid Watson as Bertram
Michael Luca as Parolles
Cato Crumbley as Countess
Roy Koshy as Lafeu
Gabriel Ethridge as Lavatch/Band
Michael Miranda* as King of France
Jillian Cicalese as Diana
Feryal Kilisli as Widow
Olivia Ridpath as Dumaine/Band Leader
Candice Lam as Morgan/Band
Natalie DeBoer as Mariana/Band
Colleen Wood* as Understudy
Bradwin Amos as Understudy

*Proud members of Actors’ Equity Association

Sophia Carlin - Director
Valerie Peter Chong - Stage Manager
Stephanie LaVardera - Assistant Director
Nicole Amaral - Company Manager/Covid Compliance Officer
Stephanie L. Carlin - Composer/Arranger
David Andrew Greener Laws - Producer
James Rightmyer Jr. - Producer