Shakespeare in Clark Park to Pair THE TAMING OF THE SHREW With THE TAMER TAMED This Month
Will love conquer all or will the patriarchy crumble?
Shakespeare in Clark Park is bringing a night of raucous comedy to Clark Park from July 27th to July 31st at 7pm, with The Taming! a comedy in two very different acts. The Taming! pairs Shakespeare's problematic masterpiece, The Taming of the Shrew, with a community-created adaptation of John Fletcher's Elizabethan revenge play, The Tamer Tamed. The Taming of the Shrew will be directed by Kathryn MacMillan while The Tamer Tamed will be adapted by Charlotte Northeast and directed by Ang Bey. Will love conquer all or will the patriarchy crumble?
The creative team of The Taming! is exploring themes of love, patriarchy, and domestic violence, and will contextualize Shakespeare's original text from a modern viewpoint and from multiple perspectives. Playwright and adaptor Charlotte Northeast is interested in seeing how the community members who make up the Active Conscious Chorus in our adaptation of The Tamer Tamed will respond to the text, saying "they will be the framework by which we question what theatre means, what it means to be in a community, and what it means to be in love." After a series of community workshops this Spring that helped shape the adaptation, we held auditions to find the eight community members who will perform in The Taming! and further influence the tone of the play.
For The Tamer Tamed, director Ang Bey's vision is that the show, "will preserve the themes of femme/women's liberation, love, and bravery, while also serving as a love letter to Black community and culture that makes West Philadelphia West Philly."
The Taming!'s Act 1 of The Taming of the Shrew is directed by Kathryn MacMillan while Act 2 of The Tamer Tamed is directed by Ang Bey. Rounding out the creative team are Dirk Durossette (Set Designer), Asaki Kuruma (Costume Designer), Robert Kaplowitz (Sound Designer), DeAnna Howard (Lighting Designer), Pax Ressler (Composer), and Steve Wei (Fight Choreographer).
In addition to the Active Conscious Chorus, MacMillan and Bey direct a company of professional actors many of which will play different roles in Act 1 and Act 2: Jo Vito Ramirez (Young Petruchio/Rowland), Kira Player (Katherine/Ensemble), J Hernandez (Old Petruchio/Vincentio), Donovan Lockett (Maria/Ensemble), Brian Anthony Wilson (Baptista/Moroso), Josh Browns (Gremio/Petronius), Morgan Charece Hall (Livia/Tailor/Widow), Adam Howard (Grumio/Jacques), Frank Jimenez (Hortensio/Sophocles), David Pica (Tranio), Minou Pourasharati (Bianca), and Ben Bass (Lucentio/Ensemble).
The Taming! runs July 27th-31st. All performances are free and are staged at 7 pm in "the Bowl" of Clark Park, located near the intersection of Chester Avenue and 43rd Street in West Philadelphia. For more information, please visit shakespeareinclarkpark.org.
Shakespeare in Clark Park is a theater company committed to presenting free, outdoor productions of Shakespeare's plays, creating a cultural event accessible to the Clark Park neighborhood and the greater Philadelphia area. With Henry: Your Prince and Mine and The Winter's Tale, Shakespeare in Clark Park began practicing Radical Community Engagement and remains committed to thoughtfully incorporating the community in future seasons. Over 16 seasons, Shakespeare in Clark Park helped to expand Philadelphia's summertime cultural scene while re-imagining the world of the park through the works of Shakespeare.
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