The Winter’s Tale: Act 1, Scene2 Leontes August 16, 2013
Use yourself! In a very frank and candid interview, Chris Clavelli reveals how his experiences inform his roles. From forgetting your lines to losing a child, Chris takes us on a journey of artistic development. He does so with eloquence and a tart sense of humor.
The Taming of the Shrew; Act 5, Scene 2 Katherine June 12, 2013
Wake and Shake! In this spirited interview with multi-talented Gabra Zackman, we explore performing outdoors, good Petruchios and we hold a “prism of light” up to Kate’s last speech in Taming of the Shrew. There is subtext here, or is it nuance?
Women playing men playing women playing men… Lisa Wolpe, Founder and Artistic Director of the Los Angeles Women’s Shakespeare Company, talks about her life’s work. Carrying on a centuries old tradition, the LAWSC is celebrating it’s twentieth year. Delving into the “Oh that this too too solid flesh…” soliloquy, Lisa talks playing Hamlet, gender bending and what it’s like to be a “silverback.” From a woman steeped in Shakespeare comes a deft dance of thought.
An all-female, multi-cultural aesthetic offers new insight when the Odyssey Theatre Ensemble and Los Angeles Women’s Shakespeare Company co-present Hamlet in celebration of LAWSC’s 20th anniversary. Featuring a cast of 16 LAWSC favorites and talented newcomers – including producing artistic director and celebrated Shakespearean actress Lisa Wolpe in the title role – Hamlet opens for press on Aug. 30 at the Odyssey Theatre in West L.A.
Performances of Hamlet take place on Fridays and Saturdays @ 8 p.m. and Sundays @ 2 p.m.*, Aug. 30 through Oct. 27. (*On Sunday, Sept. 1 only, the performance will be @ 5 p.m. with no 2 p.m. matinee.) Additional weeknight performances are scheduled on Wednesdays @ 8 p.m. on Sept. 18, Oct. 2 and Oct. 16; and on Thursdays @ 8 p.m. on Sept. 12, Sept. 26, Oct. 10 and Oct. 24. Tickets are $30, except for the performance on Saturday, August 31 which is $45 and includes a gala reception following the performance. The Odyssey Theatre is located at 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd., West Los Angeles, 90025. For reservations and information, call (310) 477-2055 or go to www.OdysseyTheatre.com.
Measure for Measure; Act 2, Scene 2 Angelo July 5, 2013
What dost thou, or what art thou, Angelo? Straight from the stages of The Stratford Festival, Tom Rooney gets to the bottom of this question in our latest interview. Explore Angelo’s past, present and future and why Tom Rooney describes him as a Man/Boy. Dive into this dense speech, from the first read to the final syllable. Oh Fie Fie Fie upon you if you miss this one from a master of Shakespeare.
What would happen if Shakespeare was “bitten” by Bram Stoker’s Dracula? One man aims to find out.
Neal J. Freeman has created a mash up of two classic texts: Midsummer and Dracula. The Nightmare ‘Dream’ is the Shakespeare play told through a classic horror film lens with a healthy dose of tongue-in cheek. As the lovers embark on their famous journey into the woods, they encounter a villain unlike any imagined by Shakespeare. No ruffled neck is safe in this, the ORIGINAL douchey teen vampire drama.
The Nightmare ‘Dream’ will play Sunday 8/11 at 6pm, Monday 8/12 at 9:30pm, Thursday 8/15 at 9:30pm, Friday 8/16 at 3:45pm, and Sunday 8/18 at 4:15pm.
As You Like It: Act 2, Scene 7 Jacques June 14, 2013
With age comes wisdom. Hudson Classical Theater Company (formerly Hudson Warehouse) Artistic Director Nicholas Martin-Smith stays in the moment while performing Jacques famous “All the World’s a Stage” speech from Act 2, Scene 7 of As You Like It. Nicholas discusses what it’s like to start a theater company, how he overcame a learning disability and why experience is a great teacher. This interview is “sans” nothing.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Act 1, Scene 1 Helena June 14, 2013
It’s a Family Affair! Bringing classical theatre to life for four generations isn’t easy. Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum is a labor of love for a family with Shakespeare in their veins. Ellen Geer, Melora Marshall and Ian Flanders share the fascinating story of the Theatricum’s past, present and future. And Willow Geer keeps it fresh with a feisty and vivacious take on Helena from A Midsummer Night’s Dream Act I, Scene i.
To cue or not to cue that is the question. Colin David Reese uses cue scripts in performing Shakespeare. He also eschews punctuation, breathes only at the end of the verse line and incorporates leCoq into his work. Not one to mince words, Colin never fails to entertain and enlighten in this, our first international interview. Sit back and listen to how it will fadge.
Henry Vi, Part iii: Act 3, Scene 2 Gloucester February 5, 2013
Catch a wave! Stay “on top” of Jim Devita‘s words as he discusses how he learned to avoid generalizing in acting Shakespeare. Jim explores the importance of training (and what Shakespearean actors can learn from Michael Jordan.) We plunge into Richard of Gloucester’s speech in Henry VI, Part iii, to discover the secret to playing villains, plumbing emotions (or not) and pursuing metaphors. Join us for a discussion of the most voluble soliloquy in Shakespeare’s canon.
Richard III; Act 1, Scene 1 Gloucester April 2, 2013
What is Shakespeare’s idea of tragedy? Is an audience seduced by Richard? What happens to the soul of ambition after the final prize has been won? Is there any sympathy left for this devil? The answers and much more, including a fantastic reading of the opening speech, can be found in Part II of our interview about Richard III with Ron Russell and Jim Wallert of the Epic Theatre Ensemble. Their production of Richard III: Born With Teeth runs through May 4th. For details click here.
The Nightmare Dream
