BWW Previews: SPOLETO FESTIVAL USA in Charleston, SC

For seventeen magical days at the start of summer, some of the world's greatest artists assemble in one of America's greatest cities. The 41st annual Spoleto Festival USA kicks off in Charleston this weekend, and, as usual, America's premiere performing arts festival delivers a healthy dose of theatre.

Kicking off the first weekend (and continuing through the second) at the Historic Dock Street Theatre is a production of Irish master Samuel Beckett's WAITING FOR GODOT by Irish theatre company Druid. Druid's Artistic Director Garry Hynes makes her third trip to Spoleto with "the freshest, funniest and most affecting production of the play in at least a quarter of a century" (The Irish Times). Hynes pulls double duty at Spoleto this year, also directing the festival's production of Vivaldi's FARNACE.

The opening weekend also features a return to the festival for Aurélia Thierrée with MURMURS, her second collaboration with her mother, director Victoria Thierrée Chaplin. For those not in the know, yes, that's Chaplin as in Charlie; the Tramp's daughter (Victoria) and granddaughter (Aurélia) have been making theatre all their lives. Vogue calls their blend of mostly-wordless narrative, puppetry, and design elements "enchanting and hallucinatory." MURMURS plays at the Emmett Robinson Theatre at College of Charleston.

Rounding out weekend one is Henry Naylor's one-woman monologue ANGEL, which tells the story of a Kurdish female fighter who helped to drive back ISIL from their conquest of Kobanî, Syria. The award-winning production was featured at the Adelaide and Edinburgh Fringe Festivals and has a "tight, beautifully structured script" delivered "with an intensity, wit, and a passionate sense of what might have been that breaks the heart" (The Scotsman). ANGEL soars at Woolfe Street Playhouse.

Leading the way in week two is a puppet show about two trains in love. After an extended absence, Gabriadze Theatre returns to Spoleto with RAMONA, a story about a little engine waiting for her mighty hero to return to the station. From its review of the piece at the 2015 Lincoln Center Festival, The New York Times says "marvels abound...extraordinary is the handicraft with which Mr. Gabriadze shapes each scenic element." RAMONA runs at the Emmett Robinson Theatre at College of Charleston.

More puppet magic is on display in the second weekend, courtesy of THE TABLE by Blind Summit Theatre, an internationally-acclaimed company that held the position of puppet directors for the London Olympic Opening Ceremonies in 2012. THE TABLE is a Fringe First award-winning tale of Moses and his relationship with God that is "astonishingly accomplished" (The Telegraph) and "brilliantly funny" (Time Out). THE TABLE is set at the Emmett Robinson Theatre at College of Charleston.

Finishing off the official festival theatre offerings is the physical theatre piece IL N'EST PAS ENCORE MINUIT. Making their return to the festival is the French circus collective Compagnie XY with a work about the instability and imbalance we all face as humans. Their gasp-inducing feats will have you on the edge of your seat in an hour The Guardian calls "a display of acrobatics that shows that circus is an art form that delivers meaning and comes wrapped in metaphor." IL N'EST PAS ENCORE MINUIT plays at Memminger Auditorium.

For even more theatre goodness, there's the Piccolo Spoleto Festival, the Spoleto fringe fest that features lots of local and regional acts as well as performers from around the United States. Some Piccolo theatre highlights include Jonathan Tollins' BUYER AND CELLAR and Rodney Lee Rogers' THE GENTLEMAN PIRATE, both presented by Charleston's own PURE Theatre, a local production by Threshold Repertory Theatre of former Spoleto Festival entry EVERY BRILLIANT THING by Duncan Macmillan, and many rising sketch and improv comedy stars in Piccolo Fringe at Theatre 99.

For more information including ticket prices, show times, and more, check out the festivals on the web at www.spoletousa.org and www.piccolospoleto.com. Spoleto Festival USA and Piccolo Spoleto Festival run May 26 - June 11. Take a trip to Charleston for this convergence of spectacular performing artists...as if the Holy City itself weren't enough of a draw already.

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