David Joseph News

With a healthy dose of hilarity, heart and humility Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike joins the Bernstein repertory with director Matthew Penn at the helm. Christopher Durang's Tony-award winning homage to Chekhov leaves no stone unturned when it comes to family dynamics, sibling rivalries, love, lust, hopes and dreams in this razor sharp comedy. The stalwart cast includes audience favorites Tod Randolph and Elizabeth Aspenlieder, and S&Co. newcomers Jim Frangione, Angel Moore, Mat Leonard and Olivia Saccomanno. Performances run in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre August 6 - September 14. Press Opening is Friday, August 15 at 8:00pm. To RSVP or for interview opportunities contact Communications & Press Director Elizabeth Aspenlieder: aspenlieder@shakespeare.org.

Shakespeare & Company's Dennis Krausnick, a founder and also Director of Training, steps into the title role of Julius Caesar for a brief run beginning July 15 through August 2. Nigel Gore, who has been playing Caesar since it opened several weeks ago, takes a short-term leave from the show after this weekend's performance on Sunday July 13-Gore will be back in the role Saturday, August 9. Krausnick was last seen on stage in the Playhouse in 2012's King Lear in the title role. See Krausnick's bio and photo links below.

A sweeping spectacle of bawdy buffoonery and bloody rebellion, director Jonathan Epstein's razor sharp and condensed adaptation of Henry IV delivers both parts in one dynamic evening of theatre. Performances run in the Tina Packer Playhouse August 2 - August 31. Press Opening is Friday, August 7, at 7:00pm. To RSVP or for interview opportunities contact Communications & Press Director Elizabeth Aspenlieder: aspenlieder@shakespeare.org.

Idealism, ambition, conspiracy, honor, greed, betrayal and the lust for power-echoes of our own modern politics-are all on tap in Shakespeare's potent and bloody Julius Caesar. Last performed at the Company in 1993, Founding Artistic Director Tina Packer delivers audiences her 'bare-Bard' production of Caesar, marking its final leg of a three city tour-Orlando, Florida, Prague in the Czech Republic, and now at home in Lenox, with Shakespeare & Company. With 7 actors playing multiple roles this poetry-filled psychological and political thriller follows the conspiracy and assassination of the omnipotent Roman leader, and the consequences that ensue from his brutal murder. Performances run in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre today, June 27 - August 30.Press Opening is Friday, July 4 at 8:00pm.

The Servant of Two Masters gets a fresh take in the deft hands of director and long-time Company artist Jenna Ware. Her fast-paced and hilarious adaptation of this classic Commedia dell'arte farce by Carlo Goldoni features an adroit and energetic cast, some of whom are Berkshire natives, and who trained with S&Co. as adolescents and are now acting, directing and teaching for the Company. Servant offers up a hearty dose of madcap'd mayhem, music, sword fighting and massive amounts of fun for our audiences of all ages to enjoy! This family-friendly show runs on the 200-seat, tented outdoor Rose Footprint Theatre from tonight, June 25 - August 23. Press Opening is Friday, June 27 at 5:30pm.

Shakespeare & Company's Artistic Director Tony Simotes sets his new production of A Midsummer Night's Dream in the mysterious bayous of New Orleans just as the Jazz Era in America was exploding. The production features original music, live musicians, a Drama League partnership, and a cast of over a dozen seasoned Company actors and newcomers.

Shakespeare & Company unleashes its devilish new take on The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) by Adam Long, Daniel Singer, and Jess Winfield. A hilarious medley of mayhem, comedy, and lunacy, Complete Works is directed by resident funny man Jonathan Croy and features just three actors who play over 750 roles- yes we are kidding-well, sort of. This family friendly show runs in the Tina Packer Playhouse from July 4 - August 24th. Press Opening is Friday, July 11 at 7:00pm. To RSVP or for interview opportunities contact Communications & Press Director Elizabeth Aspenlieder: aspenlieder@shakespeare.org.

Idealism, ambition, conspiracy, honor, greed, betrayal and the lust for power-echoes of our own modern politics-are all on tap in Shakespeare's potent and bloody Julius Caesar. Last performed at the Company in 1993, Founding Artistic Director Tina Packer delivers audiences her 'bare-Bard' production of Caesar, marking its final leg of a three city tour-Orlando, Florida, Prague in the Czech Republic, and now at home in Lenox, with Shakespeare & Company. With 7 actors playing multiple roles this poetry-filled psychological and political thriller follows the conspiracy and assassination of the omnipotent Roman leader, and the consequences that ensue from his brutal murder. Performances run in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre June 27 - August 30.Press Opening is Friday, July 4 at 8:00pm.

The Servant of Two Masters gets a fresh take in the deft hands of director and long-time Company artist Jenna Ware. Her fast-paced and hilarious adaptation of this classic Commedia dell'arte farce by Carlo Goldoni features an adroit and energetic cast, some of whom are Berkshire natives, and who trained with S&Co. as adolescents and are now acting, directing and teaching for the Company. Servant offers up a hearty dose of madcap'd mayhem, music, sword fighting and massive amounts of fun for our audiences of all ages to enjoy! This family-friendly show runs on the 200-seat, tented outdoor Rose Footprint Theatre from June 25 - August 23. Press Opening is Friday, June 27 at 5:30pm. To RSVP or for interview opportunities contact Communications & Press Director Elizabeth Aspenlieder: aspenlieder@shakespeare.org. Read on for more on cast and director.

Shakespeare & Company's Artistic Director Tony Simotes sets his new production of A Midsummer Night's Dream in the mysterious bayous of New Orleans just as the Jazz Era in America was exploding. The production features original music, live musicians, a Drama League partnership, and a cast of over a dozen seasoned Company actors and newcomers.

No rural area has as many summer stages as the Berkshires of Massachusetts whose offerings overflow its borders.

Artistic Director Tony Simotes kicks off a celebratory season in honor of the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare's birth with Shakespeare's Will, directed by Daniela Varon and featuring Kristin Wold. This provocative one-woman play by Canadian Playwright Vern Thiessen imagines the bold and unapologetic journey of Shakespeare's enigmatic wife, Anne Hathaway, and the couple's unconventional courtship and marriage. Performances run in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre today, May 23 - August 24.

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.

Artistic Director Tony Simotes kicks off a celebratory season in honor of the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare's birth with Shakespeare's Will, directed by Daniela Varon and featuring Kristin Wold. This provocative one-woman play by Canadian Playwright Vern Thiessen imagines the bold and unapologetic journey of Shakespeare's enigmatic wife, Anne Hathaway, and the couple's unconventional courtship and marriage. Performances run in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre May 23 - August 24.

Shakespeare & Company arrives at Bard College at Simon's Rock in Great Barrington with a special collaborative production and World Premiere of William Coe Bigelow's Leap Year. Directed by Stephen Rothman and featuring a cast from both Bard College and S&Co., performances run tonight, August 23-September 1 in the McConnell Theater, located within the Daniel Arts Center on the campus of Bard College at Simon's Rock- 84 Alford Rd, Great Barrington, MA.

Shakespeare & Company arrives at Bard College at Simon's Rock in Great Barrington with a special collaborative production and World Premiere of William Coe Bigelow's Leap Year. Directed by Stephen Rothman and featuring a cast from both Bard College and S&Co., performances run August 23-September 1 in the McConnell Theater, located within the Daniel Arts Center on the campus of Bard College at Simon's Rock- 84 Alford Rd, Great Barrington, MA.

Considered by many to be one of the greatest plays of the 20th century, MOTHER COURAGE AND HER CHILDREN is set against the backdrop of the Thirty Years War of the seventeenth century. The play follows the fate of Mother Courage, an artful canteen woman with the Swedish Army, intent on keeping her business and family alive amidst the destruction of war. Written by Bertolt Brecht, directed by Artistic Director Tony Simotes and starring Academy Award-winner Olympia Dukakis, this play still resonates today providing a profound insight into the moral implications of war. MOTHER COURAGE AND HER WOMEN runs tonight, July 26 - August 25, in S&Co.'s Tina Packer Playhouse.

Considered by many to be one of the greatest plays of the 20th century, MOTHER COURAGE AND HER CHILDREN is set against the backdrop of the Thirty Years War of the seventeenth century. The play follows the fate of Mother Courage, an artful canteen woman with the Swedish Army, intent on keeping her business and family alive amidst the destruction of war. Written by Bertolt Brecht, directed by Artistic Director Tony Simotes and starring Academy Award-winner Olympia Dukakis, this play still resonates today providing a profound insight into the moral implications of war. MOTHER COURAGE AND HER WOMEN runs July 26 - August 25, in S&Co.'s Tina Packer Playhouse.