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The
Taming of the Shrew
by William Shakespeare
directed by Rebecca Bayla Taichman
September 25 to November 18, 2007
Lansburgh Theatre, 450 7th St. NW
With The Taming of the Shrew , Shakespeare gives us the improbable
courtship of the fiery-tongued Katherine by the arrogant Petruchio. But unlike
Shakespeare's other romantic comedies, the play does not stop with the wedding.
Shakespeare considers the institution of marriage, the rifts between men and
women, and the rough journey toward love. One of Shakespeare's earliest and most
popular comedies, The Taming of the Shrew bursts with disguise, deception
and devilment. Director Rebecca Bayla Taichman makes her Shakespeare Theatre
Company debut with this comedy. Taichman previously received acclaim for her
poetic and heart-felt production of The Clean House at Woolly Mammoth.
About
the Marlowe Repertory:
In his short career, William Shakespeare's contemporary Christopher
Marlowe left behind seven plays, dazzling in their brilliant characterization
and soaring verse. To open the new Sidney Harman Hall, the Shakespeare Theatre
Company presents its first-ever productions of Marlowe, producing two of his
greatest plays in repertory.
Tamburlaine
by Christopher Marlowe
adapted and directed by Michael Kahn
October 28, 2007, to January 6, 2008
Sidney Harman Hall, 610 F St. NW
Marlowe's first play, Tamburlaine chronicles its hero's meteoric
rise from humble origins to fearsome warrior and emperor of thousands. Tamburlaine
desolates his adversaries, growing so ruthless that he marches on his beloved's
native country. With ravishing poetry, Marlowe ruminates on the corrupting influence
of ambition and one man's overwhelming desire for immortality. Tamburlaine exemplifies
Marlowe's extravagant style, immense sense of pageantry and bold characters. Michael
Kahn directs, calling up “the combination of stylization and raw force that has
brought his productions of classics to towering life” ( The Washington Post ).
Avery Brooks returns to play the title role after his acclaimed portrayals of
Othello and Oedipus. Franchelle Stewart Dorn returns for the first time since
2000 to play the Empress of Turkey.
Edward
II
by Christopher Marlowe
directed by Gale Edwards
October 27, 2007, to January 6, 2008
Sidney Harman Hall, 610 F St. NW
Deemed by many to be Marlowe's crowning achievement, Edward II features
the playwright's most nuanced characters and some of his finest language. In
the weak, stubborn character of Edward II, Marlowe created a compelling portrait
of a flawed monarch. Though the son of a great general, Edward is an ineffectual
king, and, in the grips of a romantic obsession, fails to recognize the threats
to his crown. A s the play unfolds, Marlowe turns the doomed Edward into a more
tragic figure, contrasting his plight with the ruthless nobles who depose him.
Gale Edwards ( Titus Andronicus , Richard III , Hamlet )
returns to direct. The Washington Post described her production of Richard
III as “compulsively watchable... restlessly inventive." Wallace Acton
returns for the first time since his 2003 performance as Richard III to play
the title role.
Argonautika
Adapted and directed by Mary Zimmerman
January 15 to March 2, 2008
Lansburgh Theatre, 450 7th St. NW
With her signature style and eye for the epic, director Mary Zimmerman turns
her talents to the spectacular tale of Jason and the Argonauts. In their quest
for the Golden Fleece, Jason and his crew encounter a world of dangers—frightening
sea monsters, hypnotic water nymphs, wicked kings … and a young sorceress named
Medea. Amid these fanciful adventures, Zimmerman ponders the nature of loss,
love and leadership. Originally mounted by the Lookingglass Theatre Company, Argonautika received
rave reviews in Chicago. The Chicago Tribune called it “smart, fresh,
endlessly imaginative and thoroughly enjoyable.” Zimmerman returns to the Shakespeare
Theatre Company for the first time since her enchanting production of Pericles .
Major
Barbara
by George Bernard Shaw
directed by Ethan McSweeny
February 19 to March 23, 2008
Sidney Harman Hall, 610 F St. NW
Full of Shaw's signature shrewd, urbane wit, Major Barbara depicts
timeless tensions between wealth and charity, government and religion, business
and family. At the center of the play is the rebellious but naively idealistic
Barbara Undershaft. A major with the Salvation Army, Barbara finds the foundation
of her beliefs rocked when the charity accepts a donation from her long-estranged
father, a millionaire arms dealer. Often called Shaw's greatest play, Major
Barbara offers a provocative discourse on poverty, faith and justice, while
entertaining us with vivid characters, intriguing plot twists and a hefty dose
of pure fun. Ethan McSweeny returns for the first time since his production of The
Persians , which The Washington Post proclaimed “stunning … acutely
theatrical.
About the Roman Repertory:
For its second repertory presentation, the Shakespeare Theatre Company
explores politics and ambition through two of Shakespeare's Roman plays: Julius
Caesar and Antony and Cleopatra.
Julius
Caesar
by William Shakespeare
directed by David Muse
April 27 to July 6, 2008
Sidney Harman Hall, 610 F St. NW
As swift and enthralling as a political thriller, Julius Caesar portrays
the life-and-death struggle for power in Rome. Fearing that Caesar's growing
strength and constitutional ambitions threaten the Republic, a faction of politicians
plots to assassinate him. But when Caesar is killed, chaos engulfs Rome. Alive
with stunning rhetoric, Julius Caesar investigates the intoxicating
effects of power and the dangers of idealism. In Caesar, Brutus and the young
Marc Antony, Shakespeare created three fascinating, dynamic characters. Shakespeare
Theatre Company Associate Artistic Director David Muse makes his mainstage directing
debut after several hit productions at area theatres. The Washington City
Paper called his production of Frozen at Studio Theatre “triumphant … glorious” and
praised his “wonderfully sensitive guidance.”
Antony
and Cleopatra
by William Shakespeare
directed by Michael Kahn
April 26 to July 6, 2008
Sidney Harman Hall, 610 F St. NW
Featuring some of the most sublime poetry of love and loss ever written, Antony
and Cleopatra is a dark, intimate portrait of an ill-fated love affair. The
play begins two years after the events of Julius Caesar , with civil
unrest roiling imperial Rome. The aging Marc Antony, one of the empire's three
rulers, lives a decadent life in Egypt, carousing with Queen Cleopatra. As Rome
reasserts its claim on him, Antony struggles between his sense of duty to his
country and his consuming love for Cleopatra. Michael Kahn directs one of Shakespeare's
last great tragedies. The Baltimore Sun extolled Kahn for molding the
Shakespeare Theatre Company “into the closest thing this country has to Britain
's Royal Shakespeare Company.”
The
Imaginary Invalid
by Molière
directed by Keith Baxter
June 10 to July 27, 2008
Lansburgh Theatre, 450 7th St. NW
Written and first performed while Molière was dying, The Imaginary
Invalid targets the medical quacks of 17th-century France. The eccentric
and wealthy hypochondriac Argan decides to marry his strong-willed daughter Angélique
off to a doctor, so that he'll always have a physician around. But Angélique
loves another man, and her attempts to persuade her father to let her marry him
lead to outrageous tricks and disguises. Molière's keen wit and hilarious
characters take center stage in this knockabout farce. Keith Baxter ( Lady
Windermere's Fan , The Rivals , The Country Wife ) returns
to direct a cast that includes René Auberjonois in his Shakespeare Theatre
Company debut. The Baltimore Sun called Baxter's production of Lady
Windermere's Fan “charming … a nearly irresistible temptation.” |