Lauren Zbylski News

The Porters of Hellsgate Theatre Company presents William Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew," directed by Rose Fliegel and Alicia Patterson, opening Saturday, April 20th!

The Porters of Hellsgate Theatre Company presents William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew, directed by Rose Fliegel and Alicia Patterson. This production features gender-swapped roles, giving female stories a platform traditionally assigned to men.

ANIMAL FARM, Orwell's brilliant political satire about the corrupting influence of power, charts the fall of idealism and the rise of tyranny after the animals of Manor Farm rise up against their oppressive human owner in a struggle for rights, equality, gaining the right to make their own choices on how to live their lives. Onstage, the story is read by two children, the girl (Sierra Rose Friday) and boy (Shane McDermott), keeping the audience informed as to the action taking place or what has gone on off stage leading to that particular scene. It all begins as the animals, led by Snowball, an idealistic pig (Christopher Yarrow), take over the farm from Mr. Jones (Steve Fisher). Their plan goes well at first; all the animals are equal and content. But eventually, several of the other pigs, led by Napoleon (Mark Lewis) and Squealer (Melora Marshall), yield to the lure of power and start to make decisions that serve their own interests best, eventually leading them to proclaim that some animals are more equal than others. The quote, 'absolute power corrupts absolutely,' certainly applies to Orwell's masterful work.