Bard in Boston

The Eternal Home of Shakespearean actors of the past: Mount Auburn Cemetary

Fri, 20 Apr 2012 01:34:06 GMT

I just got an email about a really cool sounding event this Sunday.

http://www.harvardsquare.com/Events/2012/April/The-Undiscovered-Country--Shakespeare-and-Mount-Au.aspx

Susan Zawalich will be leading a walking tour of Mount Auburn Cemetery, focusing on the gravesites of people like Edwin Booth and Charlotte Cushman, along with other Shakespeare-abilia, such as quotes from the plays that people put on their gravestones.

National Theatre Live: The Comedy of Errors

Sat, 25 Feb 2012 00:27:17 GMT

On Thursday, March 1 at 7:00 pm, the Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline presents the National Theatre of London's acclaimed production of Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors, captured live from the National's stage and broadcast in high-definition on the Coolidge's giant silver screen. There will be an encore presentation on Sunday, March 18 at 10:00 am. These presentations are part of NT Live, the National Theatre's groundbreaking initiative to broadcast the best of British theater to cinemas around the world.

The Bard's furiously paced comedy will be staged in a contemporary world into which walk three prohibited foreigners who see everything for the first time.

Two sets of twins separated at birth collide in the same city without meeting for one crazy day, as multiple mistaken identities lead to confusion on a grand scale. And for no one more so than Antipholus of Syracuse and his servant Dromio who, in search of their brothers, arrive in a land entirely foreign to their distant home. A buzzing metropolis, to the outsiders it appears a place of wonderment and terror, where baffling gifts and unexplained hostilities abound.

Consistently recognized by strangers, the visitors question their very selves as the turmoil escalates. Meanwhile, Aegeon, father to the Antipholus twins, has been captured searching for his sons and, as an illegal immigrant, is sentenced to death at sunset.

Lenny Henry plays Antipholus of Syracuse.

Tickets are $20 general admission; $17 Coolidge members and seniors. For more information: http://www.coolidge.org/content/comedy-errors.

"Magnificently funny: a modern-urban production full of sharp ideas" - The Times

"Wall-to-wall joy. Sublime" - Daily Mail

Measure for Measure

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 21:04:53 GMT

Just in time for Valentine's Day, the Anarchist Society of Shakespeareans will perform "Measure for Measure" - William Shakespeare's timeless story of love, manipulation, and a severed head. The show will be at the Democracy Center (45 Mt Auburn Street), Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA. It is free and open to the public, and will play February 10, 11, 17, and 18 at 8pm; Feb 12 at 3pm.

A damned fine Hamlet

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 14:39:10 GMT

(X-posted from my personal journal.)

We (my daughter Elayna, sindrian, gwynraven, and myself) saw the new Hamlet from the Psych Drama Company at the Boston Center for the Arts last night.

Folks, this was amazing.

The use of a female Hamlet is not new (the actor/director, Wendy Lippe, has played Hamlet twice before). Nor is the obvious choice to make Hamlet lesbian. But they went so much further here.

First, there was the choice to not make any other gender changes (from a casting POV) other than Hamlet. The recent productions of Romeo and Juliet, Titus Andronicus, and Twelfth Night that I've seen have all played with a lot of casting changes, but focusing on only one role showed how that one change has a ripple effect.

There were, to be sure, other gender-oriented changes, notably in Ophelia (also a lesbian, for obvious reasons), and Rosencrantz and Guldenstern (implied to be homosexual, not the first time that casting choice has been made). But the focus of the play was not on the sexuality alone.

This was a play about Hamlet's madness. Again, not the first time. Pretty much any good Hamlet is going to be about Hamlet's madness, with the question being to what degree the insanity is for show. A lot of this has to do with how the ghost is displayed, and the choice here was to imply that, while there was clearly something out there (Horatio and company see it, after all), the message might not have been what Hamlet thinks it was. And Hamlet switches from early melancholia to batshit crazy early on, with the implication that Hamlet is crazy, and pretending to be crazier.

But there's a brutal, horrible moment about 2/3 of the way in when the audience (and at least one other character) figures out that Hamlet is completely sane (other than possibly his message from his dad). Even at that moment, actions occur that then do drive her mad. It's brilliant, painful to watch, and one of the best choices I've seen in a long time. Not spoiling it because if you're local, I want you to see this.

There's a lot of sex and violence here; the "get the to a nunnery" scene is one of the most erotic ones I've seen on stage in a while, and if you've ever wanted to see Claudius mostly bare-ass, you'll get your chance. But there's a lot of humor early on, most around Polonius and the gravediggers (of course), but also with Rosencrantz and Guldenstern, who are given layers and depths not normally scene outside of a Stoppard play. One big choice here was to have R+G be the leaders of the players, providing them with a greater conflict as Hamlet uses them to flush out Claudius. It's a risky choice that works brilliantly.

The cast is amazing. Lippe is powerful, conveying hurt, mirth, and insanity wonderfully, and she plays off an incredibly talented cast. Horatio, Gertrude, and Ophelia were all delightful, but Claudius really steals the show. One of the problems with a lot of productions is that that the actor playing Claudius usually goes for the big oratory, but never conveys the sense of pure evil the role needs (assuming you're not seeing one of the productions that portrays him as less than evil, a valid choice, but not what was made here). The Claudius here (note that I don't have my program with me, which is why I can't name names) is perfect, evil without being comical, loving Gertrude even as he plots to kill her daughter.

The choice to make the setting modern and chance the finale from fencing to chess actually allows them to explain the whole "Laertes dies first" thing nicely (as anyone who watches is will see).

Each performance also features a brief post-show lecture on one psychological element of Hamlet (see this page for the schedule). It's a nice touch, but if you're planning on leaving after the performance (understandable, as it's nearly four hours), sit in the center or on the side closest to the door, as the speech starts immediately after curtain calls.

There are eight performances left, running through the 17th. If you're local, try to catch one of them. Good, cheap Shakespeare (tickets are $25 each, $20 for students; you can also use Goldstar to knock the price down to $16.50 after service fees) is one of the great things about living in the Boston area, and this is one of those productions I'll remember for years.

It was also Elayna's first production; I suspect it might have ruined future productions for her. Ah, well.

The Show is ON

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 21:19:22 GMT

I have received word from the illustrious TD that tonight's performance of As You Like It is ON!

As You Like It Opens Tomorrow!

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 02:15:50 GMT

Come one, come all to Theatre@First's As You Like It!

Our Shakespeare in the Square production is FREE and open to the public. Bring your blanket, bring a low chair (bring your rain gear!) and come on down to Seven Hills Park, next to the Holland Ave. entrance of the Davis T for a fabulous evening of Shakespearean follies!

FOUR SHOWS THIS WEEKEND!
Thursday, September 8th - 8pm
Friday, September 9th - 8pm
Saturday, September 10th - 8pm
Sunday, September 11th - 3pm MATINEE

As You Like It is one of the Bard's most beloved comedies, featuring the pluckiest cross-dressing heroine of them all! Weep with the clowns, laugh at the lovers, ooh and aah over the magical set. Let Theatre@First carry you away to the Forest of Arden, right here in Davis Square!

This production was made possible by an incredible list of donors. To add your name to the list, visit our website today! It's not too late to be part of this amazing show!

A Midsummer Night's Dream - June 10-12 and 17-19, in Cambridge - FREE

Mon, 23 May 2011 18:04:59 GMT

The Anarchist Society of Shakespeareans will be performing "A Midsummer Night's Dream" at the Democracy Center (45 Mt Auburn Street), Harvard Square, Cambridge, in June. The show is FREE and open to the public. It will play June 10, 11, 17, and 18 at 8pm; June 12 and 19 at 3pm. The show is set in the 60s; hippies and beatniks meet the Bard! Any questions, please contact Ron Lacey: ThePyrateKing@yahoo.com.

MIT Shakespeare Ensemble, Romeo & Juliet, March 11-13th, 17-19th

Tue, 01 Mar 2011 23:04:08 GMT

ROMEO & JULIET

Performed by the MIT Shakespeare Ensemble, directed by Ted Eaton

March 11-12th and 17-19th 8pm, March 13th at 2pm

Tickets $6 for MIT/Wellesley students, $9 for other students, $12 general admission.

La Sala de Puerto Rico, Building W20 MIT

Group rates available.

_Cymbeline_, Actors Shakespeare Project

Sun, 13 Feb 2011 16:43:01 GMT

The venue is depressingly squalid, the production values are almost non-existent, and the material is certainly not Shakespeare's best. But it turns out that none of that is actually required for theatrical magic to happen. The show was really excellent, despite, or perhaps to some extent because of, its limitations.

The text of the play is a mishmash of standard Shakespearean tropes. You've got the true lovers, but a villain is able to convince the guy that his wife was unfaithful; you've got the faithful servant who was wrongly exiled, but remains faithful nonetheless; the girl disguised as a boy; the children separated at birth growing up unaware of their true identity; the evil stepmother queen; the ogre king who doesn't understand his daughter; a small duel and a big battle; funny music, sad music. Things look grim in the middle, but the final scene is right out of Commedia, as the tangles get untangled, the families get reunited, and nobody dies except the most evil characters. Even given their heavy cutting of the text, the tale is baroque and overstuffed.

There were only seven actors, covering about 20 parts. Costumes were plain white, with an accesory belt/sash that could be moved about to help distinguish between different characters. All the actors were also skilled enough to be varying their voice and movement with each character, so there was never any confusion, despite the multiplicity of characters (and disguises). The actors all had good emotional range, enough to *act* well, even above the task of making their parts distinct.

The doubling was well-chosen, often adding a layer of meta-commentary to the characters. For instance, For instance the princess has two suitors, one heroic, one base, both played by the same actor. This helps with a later plot point when the proncess mistakes the corpse of the bad lover for her true love's body. The silliest instance of doubling was the 'character' of the doctor, a walking piece of necessary exposition; he appears at three points in this production to deliver his vital plot point, yet is so devoid of character-level importance that they have him played by a different actor each time! And yet, they exaggerated his vocal and physical mannerisms such that it was stil clear that he was the same person, despite being personated by someone else :-)

The seating was in the round, and very close to the stage. Asides were often directed to specific audience members, face-to-face, which worked well to connect the players and audience. For that matter, those players who weren't on stage *were* audience, sitting off to the side, and visibly reacting as audience members to the action on stage.

But the off-isde actors weren't *just* being audience; they were also being the band and the foley department. The show had truly marvelous sound design. Very few props were physically carried by the on-stage actors; the presence of objects was indicated by mime on-stage combined with off-side sound effects. When someone got a letter, they would 'snap' open the paper (the sound of that being provided by foley), and then the character who wrote the letter would stand up from his off-side chair and recite it. Various characters and situations had audio leitmotifs that went with them: the insidious tinkling music-box of a poison, the jingling of bribe money, the creak of a chest opening (which, as kestrell pointed out, clearly sounded like an *evil* chest)...

They had an interesting approach to stage directions as well. Lacking any scenery (and having trimmed the text some for time), they took a boldly literal method of changing settings. An actor, while moving to his mark, would declaim loudly, "Act Three, Scene One. Britain. A hall in Cymbeline's palace." This not only established setting, but also helped ensure that there was no confusion of characters with all the doubling.

The foley and the literalization both contributed to another aspect, the violence design. Normally, I'm not a fan of abstract, stylized violence, but in the context of a highly-abstracted production, it worked marvelously. There were three particular scenes that stood out to me.

In one early scene, a man slaps a woman, hard. The actors were clearly far enough apart on the stage that there was no question of his blow actually connecting, or even being seen to connect. But her physical reaction was perfectly timed with that blow, as was a cymbal crash from the foley section, giving it all a very visceral impact despite the lack of contact.

Later, there's a fight between a silly (if evil) fop armed with a sword, versus an unarmed but much cooler opponent. This was performed as a duel-by-slide-whistle; apparently sufficiently obnoxious music can be fatal :-)

The high point of the violence was the big battle scene in V.2. In a bold but successful move, they cut *all* the dialogue, leaving nothing but stage directions. These stage directions were incanted from off-side, while most of the cast mimed the action in slow-motion dumb-show. It's a very complicated battle scene, yet was conveyed swiftly, clearly, and movingly.

The production reminded me rather of my all-time-favorite Shakespeare performance, by a group called "Actors from the London Stage", which did similarly small-cast, low-production-values, highly-successful productions.

Perhaps the highest praise I can give this show comes not from myself, a sophisticated long-time Shakespeare geek. There was a small boy in the audience, perhaps ten years old, who remained rapt with attention throughout the whole 2 1/2 hours. *That* says good theater.

Highly Recommended.

http://www.actorsshakespeareproject.org/season7/winter_festival.html

"Merchant of Venice," March 29 - April 10 (2011), Cutler Majestic Theatre

Wed, 24 Nov 2010 20:47:03 GMT

THE MERCHANT OF VENICE
MARCH 29 to APRIL 10
Cutler Majestic Theatre (219 Tremont Street Boston, MA 02116)

ArtsEmerson is having a "1 DAY SALE
NOV. 29 ONLY: TICKETS $25
Applies to first two performances of each of these productions.
Select a highlighted date to order tickets."

The dates for Merchant are March 29 and 30, which are a Tuesday and Wednesday, so probably suboptimal for most people (myself included).

As You Like It: Nov. 12-20

Thu, 11 Nov 2010 15:38:51 GMT

As You Like It

November 12, 13, 18, 19, 20 at 8pm
November 20 at 2pm

Cambridge YMCA Theatre
820 Mass Ave, Central Square
Cambridge, MA

http://www.longwoodplayers.org/OurSeasonFall.html

a plethora of Shakespeare

Mon, 25 Oct 2010 17:31:08 GMT

The fall season has snuck up on me.

This coming weekend:

MIT Shakespeare Ensemble: "King Lear" (Oct. 28-30).

Northeastern: "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (Thurs. Oct. 28).

Hyperion Shakespeare Company/Harvard-Radcliffe Dramatic Club:
"Antony & Cleopatra" (Oct. 29-31 & Nov. 4-6).
ALSO: Thomas Kyd's "The Spanish Tragedy" (Oct. 28-30).

More options:

Actors' Shakespeare Project: Henry IV Parts 1 & 2 (through Nov. 21).

BU Shakespeare Society: "All the World's a Grave," a Shakespeare mash-up, no dates yet.

Fri, 16 Jul 2010 11:19:20 GMT

If you think you know Shakespeare, think again. Festival@First 7: Shaken Up Shakespeare opens tonight!

We've got monsters and matriarchs, puppets and poetry, monologues and mayhem, songs and swords, dancing and death (what? It's still Shakespeare after all...) plus more Hamlets than you can shake a spear at. After one twisted evening with us, you'll never look at the Bard the same way again.

Performances range from the somber to the silly, and run two weekends only at Unity Church of God in Somerville, just down the street from Davis Square. Visit our website to learn more or reserve tickets and we'll see you at the theater!

Friday, July 16 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, July 17 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, July 18 at 3 p.m. (matinee)
Thursday, July 22 at 8 p.m.
Friday, July 23 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, July 24 at 8 p.m.

6 William Street, Somerville, MA 02144

We regret to inform our patrons that the performance space is not wheelchair accessible.

Shaken Up Shakespeare in Somerville

Thu, 15 Jul 2010 15:19:08 GMT

In the middle of July the seventh 1-act festival by Theatre@First opens its doors. And boy do we have a doozy for you. This time the 8 tales are all based in part or in whole on William Shakespeare. We range from the silly to the somber.

With some we take the stories and simply change the characters and reveal whole new meanings. Others we change the world around the story instead. But whether we make you laugh or cry each one will make you see some of the most common plays in a new light.

We have the 15 Minute Hamlet by Tom Stoppard!*

We have the world premiere of A Nice Danish Boy by Mark Harvey Levine!

We have music, dancing and puppets!

We have Godzilla (sorta) and dubbed it (really!)

We have the sad tale of Queen Harriet the IV!

But the show only runs for two weekends:
July 16th through the 18th and July 22nd through the 23rd at Unity Church in Somerville. 8pm each night except Sunday the 18th which is a 3pm matinee.
$15, $12 Students and Seniors.

For more information and to reserve tickets please visit our website at http://www.theatre@first.com.

*Produced by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc. New York City

== TICKETS ==

http://www.theatreatfirst.org/tickets.shtml

Or, if you'd like to see the show for FREE, please email Beckie Hunter (bex77 at comcast dot net) for volunteering information!

A Midsummer Night's DREAM

Wed, 26 May 2010 05:50:29 GMT

Hey All,

Just wanted to invite all you bard's in Boston and Shakespeare fans to come see A Midsummer Night's DREAM, as you've never seen it before. I'm excited to play Hermia in the Contemporary Theatre of Boston's dark rendition of the show.

"In their reimagining of Shakespeare’s classic work, the Contemporary Theatre of Boston departs from traditional imagery, immersing the audience in a world that is at once modern and timeless, bringing together elements of ethereal fantasy and hard-bitten realism. It is a production filled with both beauty and grotesquerie, exploring the dark Eros at the heart of the work. The CTB’s interpretation of Dream promises to be a unique and haunting experience."

The show is playing at the Plaza Theatre at the Boston Center for the Arts, in the South End. (539 Tremont Street.)

We open June 2nd and run Weds-Saturday nights until June 19th.

For ticket info, please visit www.contemporarytheatreofboston.com

(This show is recommended for adults only, as there is nudity involved.)

Thanks guys!!

"Love looks not with the eyes, but with the Mind..."

Actors' Shakespeare Project TIMON OF ATHENS

Mon, 24 May 2010 01:16:48 GMT

TIMON OF ATHENS is one of Shakespeare's less-performed plays, and for that reason alone, the ASP production is a must-see for a completist like me. But that also gives a bit of a challenge is writing a review of it -- having seen only this production, I have no other productions to compare it to. There were weaknesses in the show, but I don't know which of those were because of Shakespeare and Middleton's plot and dialogue, and which were because of directorial choices, and which because of acting choices . . .

A brief overview of the play: first, some things about its writing. This was one of Shakespeare's latter plays, and it was a collaboration with Thomas Middleton, who also wrote THE REVENGER'S TRAGEDY. (Incidentally, if you ever get a chance to see Alex Cox's version of THAT play, with Derek Jacobi, Chris Eccleston, and Eddie Izzard, it's well worth it. But that's a total tangent.) So, it's the work of two really competent-to-brilliant playwrights, but that doesn't necessarily mean that their COLLABORATION was brilliant. Many scholars feel that this was really something of a work-in-progress that wasn't completely polished up before it was published.

So, at the very beginning, you're starting with a text that has some good stuff in it, but which is a bit of a mess.

The concept definitely has some promise to it. Timon (which, incidentally, is pronounced as "Tie-mon", not "TEE-mon" like the meerkat) is a very rich man in Athens. He uses his wealth to entertain people and give them lavish gifts, until, one day, his steward informs him that, despite the steward trying to rein this in for YEARS, Timon is now bankrupt, having given away pretty much everything he owns. He then tries to borrow money back from his friends, who all owe their whole fortunes to him, all of whom turn him down. Homeless and penniless, he goes out to live in the fields, because nobody likes him, everybody hates him, guess he's going to go eat worms. While digging for said worms, he uncovers gold. Which just pisses him off MORE, because now he realizes that gold just gets you people who want to leech off of you.

In the "B" plot, Timon's buddy Alcibiades gets banished from Athens, and so decides to destroy the city in revenge.

The only other really likeable character is the philosopher Apemantus, who hates everybody and spends the play insulting all the other characters.

For the record -- that's the likeable characters: a guy who gets duped by parasitic friends to give away his entire fortune, the loyal steward who couldn't keep him from doing that, a soldier who decides to destroy the city 'cause They Done Him Wrong, and a churlish and hostile grouch. Everybody else is worse.

The ASP production cuts a fair bit, and condenses several characters. For instance, as written, Timon has a number of servants. In the ASP production, the only servant is Bobbie Steinbach as Flavius, and she's given almost all the plot-critical points of all the other servants. This MOSTLY works, but the removal of all the other servants causes one significant plot train-wreck. In one of the scenes that establishes Timon's generosity, a man comes to Timon stating that Timon's servant has been courting the man's daughter, and that was a completely unsuitable match, since the man was from a respectably middle-class family, and his daughter couldn't marry a poor servant. So Timon gives his servant a big chunk of money to allow the match to go forward.

With the removal of the servants from the play, the plotline is given to Daniel Berger-Jones as Alcibiades, the soldier. This does a number of weird and unfortunate things -- first, it makes it unclear what status Alcibiades is -- is he too low status to be a respectable match for a middle-class woman? But he actually commands a good chunk of the Athenian army -- the reason he can make war on Athens when he's banished is that most of the army decided to go along with HIM. If he's that powerful, why did he need to borrow the money in the first place? Wouldn't he be a good match for a respectable woman?

The other problem is later in the play, when he and his whore meet up with Timon in the wilderness. It would be an awkward enough scene as it is -- but with Timon having personally gotten Alcibiades respectably married, it's even worse.

That's the only really glaring directorial mistake I saw, though, and the rest of the play generally worked rather well for me.

And now let me talk about the set and the use of color. Honestly, the way they designed the set is worth the price of admission right there. Given that there are signs on the doors saying, "Warning: the set collapses partway through the performance," I suppose that it's not really a spoiler to say that the set collapses partway through the performance. We were in the second row, and the gust of wind from the collapsing set would have blown my hair out of my face, if I still had hair. Pretty impressive stuff.

But not as impressive as the way that they started the play out in black and white, and then changed it to full color. I can't explain it better than that. You just have to see it.

To sum up: the play itself is flawed, and there are a few directorial choices that are also flawed. However, the show as a whole works well enough, the set is absolutely spectacular, and, let's face it, when else are you going to get to see TIMON OF ATHENS?

Ticket information and so forth is at http://www.actorsshakespeareproject.org/season6/timon.html

Auditions: Shaken up Shakespeare!

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 14:13:54 GMT

What do musicals, horror films, puppet shows, and Shakespeare have in common? They are all part of Festival@First 7: Shaken up Shakespeare! Theatre@First's 7th annual 1-act festival hits Davis Square in Somerville this summer with reinterpretations of the Bard, both comedic and dramatic.

Auditions will be held May 10-12. Performances are July 16-18, 22-24.

For more information and to sign up visit our website:
http://www.theatreatfirst.org/auditions.shtml

Hamlet

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 00:17:31 GMT

A new theater group, Gan-e-meed, is putting on an all-female cast production of Hamlet, with shows in Lowell (May 7,8,9,14,15,16 at Gallery 119) and Somerville (May 21,22,23,28,29,30 at the Center for the Arts at the Armory). Tickets are $15-$20.

Shakespeare's birthday bash

Thu, 15 Apr 2010 17:44:55 GMT

This Saturday afternoon, in Harvard Square (mostly; there's a bit at the beginning at city hall in Central), there's going to be a celebration of Shakespeare's birthday, including scenes, monologues, poetry, songs, and even insults. Schedule here.

Love's Labour's Lost at Brandeis

Mon, 12 Apr 2010 17:12:59 GMT

There's going to be a production of Love's Labour's Lost at Brandeis's Spingold Theater, April 29 through May 2, directed by Steven Maler.

Thursday at 8 p.m. - $18
Friday at 8 p.m. - $20
Saturday Matinee at 2 p.m. - $18
Saturday at 8 p.m. - $20
Sunday Matinee at 2 p.m. - $20

Directors Sought for Shakespeare Scenes

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:56:28 GMT

Dear Shakespeare Enthusiasts,

Somerville's Theatre@First is looking for directors for our seventh annual one-acts festival. This year our theme is "shaken up Shakespeare" so we're in the market for scenes from the canon, reinterpreted with a modern (or not-so-modern) twist! You can download the official call for directors on our website and view some pre-twisted ideas from the Theatre@First community here and here.

Some things you should know:
Director applications are due by the end of the day on Monday, March 22.
Production dates are July 16-24, with auditions anticipated the week of May 10.
The festival will be performed at Unity Church of God in Davis Square.
Theatre@First is a volunteer organization--directors (and other crew) are not paid.
Scenes without directors will NOT be considered.

Remember: The goal is to have a good time. You don't need to do something that's never been done before; you just need to add your own personal creativity and passion to Shakespeare's work. This is a great opportunity for folks interested in directing Shakespeare without the commitment of a full-length show. Plus, our company has a long history of working with first-time (as well as experienced) directors during our one-acts festivals.

Any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me at one-acts@theatreatfirst.org. My name is Erika and I'm the Festival Director.

To read more about Theatre@First's history with Shakespeare and one-acts festivals, visit our website.

Midsummer Night's Dream

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 15:08:49 GMT

The Contemporary Theatre of Boston is putting on Midsummer at the BCA, June 2–19. No information yet about curtain times or ticket prices, though.

Pericles

Thu, 28 Jan 2010 13:39:46 GMT

The Harvard-Radcliffe Dramatic Club is putting on Pericles this spring, with shows April 29, 30, and May 1 at 8, and a matinee May 1 at 2 pm. Ticket prices haven't yet been announced.

Final Weekend of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare [Abridged]!

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 05:42:00 GMT

This is the final weekend of Flat Earth Theatre's production of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare [Abridged] at The Factory Theatre in Boston.

EdgeBoston describes it as "a sizzling spark of life". We describe it as 3 dudes condensing all of Shakespeare's plays into 2 hours with varying levels of success (and a high level of hilarity).

Shows are January 14th, 15th and 16th at 8PM at the Factory Theatre located at 791 Tremont Street, Boston, MA. Tickets are priced at $15 general admission, $10 for students and seniors. Tickets may be purchased at the door, though purchasing online is strongly recommended.

Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) - Opening this Friday!

Mon, 04 Jan 2010 19:54:52 GMT

"Romeo, Romeo... Who needs a Romeo?" Flat Earth Theatre ponders this and other deep subjects in their upcoming production of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) by Adam Long, Daniel Singer, and Jess Winfield presented January 8th through the 16th.

Come marvel as three thespians condense the entirety of The Bard's works into a single evening. Cheer as the Tudor monarchs play football for the crown, salivate while Titus Andronicus hosts a cooking show, and sob as you finally discover why Hamlet is so emo. Originally produced in 1987, The Complete Works was among the first plays to attempt this momentous feat. This January, Flat Earth will bring this hilarious romp to the Factory Theatre in Boston's Historic South End.

Performances are to be held January 8th, 9th, 14th, 15th, and 16th at 8 PM with a matinee presented Sunday, January 10th at 2 PM. Additionally, there will be a "Pay-What-You-Can" preview held Thursday, January 7th at 8 PM. All shows will be performed at the The Factory Theatre located at 791 Tremont Street, Boston, MA. Tickets are priced at $15 general admission, $10 for students and seniors. Tickets may be purchased at the door, or online here.