Shakespeare & Company presents a one-time-only performance of Julius Caesar directed by Founding Artistic Director Tina Packer, who was recently honored by a Lifetime Achievement Award by The Shakespeare Theatre Association. The special staged reading features the Obie Award-winning John Douglas Thompson as Brutus along with a cast of returning Company favorites. The reading will be held in the Tina Packer Playhouse at 1:30pm on September 1st.
Shakespeare & Company presents William Shakespeare's madcap comedy, The Merry Wives of Windsor directed by founding company member and Director of Education, Kevin G. Coleman.
The entire cast proves themselves to be exemplary delivering long complicated dialogue that remains true to the old English, not with trite overdone accents but with polished voices and presentation that helps to make each unique, authentic, and engaging. Although the language can be challenging at times, the actors use of body language and near flawless diction helps greatly. Their musicality is both noteworthy and impressive.
Shakespeare & Company presents William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, directed by Company Artistic Director, Allyn Burrows. This classic showcases a rich, affecting, and deeply funny story of longing, love, and laughter which paints Shakespeare at his peak. Performances run from July 2 to August 4th in the Tina Packer Playhouse.
The Homeric epic The Odyssey, is at its core, a story of a man trying to return home after a war. black odyssey is much the same, but instead of Odysseus, hero of the Trojan war, we follow Ulysses Lincoln, a black man who joined the army to earn some money for his young family, but who was pulled into an unexpected war after the attacks of September 11, 2001. This retelling blends the classic story of The Odyssey with lots of music, fantastic costumes, heartbreak and laughter. Unlike the character of Odysseus, who seems most himself when he's fighting, killing or talking his way out of a situation; Ulysses Lincoln is a man who wants to go home, but who is also feels unworthy because of things he did during the war. He's a much more human character, played with perfect humility and inner turmoil by Joe Wilson Jr. Knowledge of the original story of The Odyssey may make certain in-jokes in this play slightly funnier, but there's absolutely no need to slog through that tome before experiencing this excellent production.
Trinity Rep will continue its 2018-19 Season with the epic tale of black odyssey by Marcus Gardley. Inspired by Homer's Odyssey, this story examines Ulysses Lincoln's journey home from war when the world - and the gods - are against him. This adventure brings the combination of history and heart together in a poignant and imaginative story that will captivate audiences. This production will feature resident acting company members, Jude Sandy and Joe Wilson, Jr. as co-directors, with Joe Wilson, Jr. as Ulysses Lincoln. black odyssey runs January 3 - February 3 with press opening on Monday, January 7 at 7:30 pm. Tickets start at $25. More information can be found at www.trinityrep.com/odyssey.
New Repertory Theatre takes us for a ride in the wayback machine for the Boston-area premiere of one of Lydia Diamond's earliest plays. THE GIFT HORSE is a somewhat autobiographical, witty play that is heavy on character, rife with serious themes, and about fifteen to twenty minutes longer than what we are accustomed to two decades later. Obehi Janice, Alejandro Simoes, and Maurice Emmanuel Parent make the ride worthwhile.
New Repertory Theatre presents The Gift Horse, April 22-May 14, 2017 in the MainStage Theater at the Mosesian Center for the Arts, 321 Arsenal Street, Watertown, MA.
Shakespeare & Company presented The Two Gentlemen of Verona last night and Broadwayworld was at the opening. Written by William Shakespeare, and directed by Co-Artistic Director Jonathan Croy, this early romantic comedy takes a gleeful look at the fickle nature of young love, playing in-the-round at the Tina Packer Playhouse throughSeptember 4, 2016.
BroadwayWorld's Richard Ridge recently stopped by the theatre company in the beautiful Berkshires to chat with some Shakespeare & Company insiders for a scoop on the summer season. Below, check out interviews with Jonathan Croy, Tamara Hickey, Cloteal L. Horne, and Ryan Winkles as well as sneak peeks of some of their currently-running shows!
Shakespeare & Company will commemorate the 400th anniversary of the Bard during this 39th performance season with a newly configured theatre, and will debut its first production in-the-round with The Merchant of Venice, directed by Founder Tina Packer and featuring Jonathan Epstein as Shylock. This controversial and poignant play opens the Tina Packer Playhouse on July 1, and runs through August 21.
Playwright Katori Hall's lively play about seven African-American women awaiting the end of World War II in a Memphis beauty parlor/boarding house shows a slice of life with authenticity, empathy, and humor. Dawn M. Simmons directs an ensemble of wonderful actors, and the design team brings out the flavor of 1945 Memphis.
In the tradition of the moving Intimate Apparel and hilarious By the Way, Meet Vera Stark, Saturday Night/Sunday Morning is a 'fresh, spontaneous, and highly watchable'* play that brings together seven African-American women in a Memphis beauty parlor/boarding house during the waning days of World War II. As they wrestle with the uncertainty of what the future will hold when, and if, their men return, they fight dirty - with each other and with their own fears and desires, uncovering newfound friendship and love. Katori Hall is an exciting new theatrical voice best known for her play The Mountaintop, about Martin Luther King, Jr.'s final night before his assassination.
William Shakespeare's hilarious farce, The Comedy of Errors is playing at the Tina Packer Playhouse at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox, Ma. and Broadwayworld attended a performance. Director Taibi Magar delivers a whirlwind of magic, music and mayhem in the rollicking production of Shakespeare's shortest comedy. Performances run through August 23.
Casting for Shakespeare & Company's upcoming Summer Performance Season was finalized last week which includes a roster of audience favorites, critics' top picks and a bevy of newcomers joining the Company's ranks in this celebratory season in honor of the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare's birth. See play titles, casting, Press Openings and full schedules for each production listed below.
Steve Alpert and Ken Greiner in association with Slant Theatre Project present the world-premiere of THE STEADFAST, Mat Smart's gripping new play that looks at eight U.S. soldiers across the sweep of American history - from the Revolutionary War to the War in Afghanistan - and The Common thread that connects them across continents and centuries. THE STEADFAST is inspired by Mr. Alpert's Legacy painting. Preview performances of THE STEADFAST began January 20 prior to an official press opening of January 23 at TBG Theatre (312 West 36th Street) in Manhattan. Slant Theatre Project's co-founder Wes Grantom directs. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the production in the photos below!
The sight and smell of smoke, the surrounding walls draped in sheets of white fabric, and a brew of eerie sounds and lights combine to set the mood for Boston Center for American Performance's MONSTER, a rendering of the oft-told FRANKENSTEIN tale that is not likely to be confused with earlier film or theatrical versions. Obie Award-winning playwright Neal Bell's edition will not evoke images of Boris Karloff or Mel Brooks, but it elevates the underlying themes of one man's attempt to play God and discover a way to defeat death to an inescapable level of consciousness.