The Acorn Theater Ensemble Presents RICHARD II In PMA For One Show 5/16

The Acorn Shakespeare Ensemble, producers of the environmentally-staged "Naked Shakespeare" series, announces plans for an ambitious mounting of Shakespeare's Richard II in the Great Hall of the Portland Museum of Art (PMA). The performance represents the culmination of 9 months of text work by the Westbrook-based company, which performs regularly at the Wine Bar on Wharf Street and SPACE Gallery. There is only one planned performance at the PMA on Saturday, May 16th at 8 p.m. and seating is very limited. Tickets are $18 and can be reserved by calling 854-0065 or visiting www.acorn-productions.org. The production is made possible in part by a grant from the Margaret E. Burnham Charitable Trust.

Richard II features local actor Paul Haley in the title role of the king whose fall from power and subsequent murder is caused by his own hubris. The play, written in 1597, focuses on the internal shortcomings of a king who misjudges how willing his subjects are to accept his insistence that he rules by divine mandate. Although rarely performed, Richard II contains many beautiful sections of prose, including John of Gaunt's memorable speech describing England as an "earth of majesty." Acorn's Producing Director Michael Levine, director of the play, decided to set the action in the PMA's Great Hall in order to utilize the unique architecture of the space, including the windows overlooking the floor on the second and third floor.

The Acorn Shakespeare Ensemble was founded in 2004 by Michael Howard and Michael Levine in order to make the works of the world's greatest playwright accessible to more members of the community. The company presents a variety of scenes, sonnets, solilolquies and full length plays in various non-traditional venues throughout downtown Portland. These performances are presented without the trappings of sets, lights and costumes in order to focus attention on the poetry of the language, allowing the imagination of the audience to bring the images to life. The company also brings a one-hour two actor version of Macbeth into local high schools, and performs monthly on the first Monday of the month at the Wine Bar on Wharf Street in Portland.

WHEN: Saturday, May 16th at 8 p.m.
WHO: Acorn Productions
WHERE: Portland Museum of Art, Portland
HOW MUCH: $18 general admission, $15 students and seniors
FMI: www.acorn-productions.org or 854-0065

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