Seattle Shakespeare Company
Oct. 23-Nov. 17, 2013
Directed by George Mount
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Everyone knows that Beatrice and Benedick were meant for each other…except these two sharp-tongued wits can’t see it themselves! Only the shared resolve of redeeming a young girl’s honor brings the warring pair together. Filled with eccentric clowns, heart-warming families, and troublesome rogues, this vibrant comic celebration of romance will have you cheering when love eventually wins out.
Seattle Shakespeare Company
Jan. 8-Feb. 2, 2014
Directed by Rosa Joshi
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This lyrical beginning to the War of the Roses is among the most moving of all of Shakespeare’s histories. More poet than monarch, Richard II is ill-suited to the role that lineage and legacy demands of him. Surrounded by ambitious men who would prey on his vulnerabilities, Richard is toppled from the throne by his cunning and capable cousin, Henry. But in the loss of his worldly power, Richard makes an unexpected revelation far more important than any kingdom.
Chicago Shakespeare Festival
February 6 – March 23, 2014
Directed by: Gary Griffin
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Boasting one show-stopping song after another—like “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” and “Let Me Entertain You”—this classic musical is inspired by memoirs of the burlesque dancer Gypsy Rose Lee; and it marks Associate Artistic Director Gary Griffin’s continued exploration of the Sondheim canon. Tony Award® nominee Louise Pitre makes her Chicago Shakespeare debut as Rose, the most infamous of all stage mothers. Pitre’s career highlights include many critically acclaimed performances in the theater, on television and concert stages across North America and Europe. Gypsy, a jewel of the American musical theater, has been described by The New York Times critic Frank Rich as “Broadway’s own brassy, unlikely answer to King Lear.”
The Old Globe
February 8 – March 16, 2014
Directed by Barry Edelstein
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NPR calls Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein “one of the country’s leading Shakespeareans.” Now Edelstein’s work takes center stage in his Old Globe directorial debut with Shakespeare’s most enchanting masterpiece, featuring a powerful musical score written expressly for the production by acclaimed classical composer Michael Torke. The Winter’s Talesweeps breathtakingly from tragedy to comedy and along the way visits kings and queens, dancing shepherds, a most extraordinary statue, and one notoriously hungry bear, before it reaches its stunning, magical conclusion.
Chicago Shakespeare Festival
February 22 – March 22, 2014
Director: David H. Bell
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A magical forest filled with a host of some of Shakespeare’s most comedic characters make A Midsummer Night’s Dream one of his most popular plays. CST’s 75-minute abridged Short Shakespeare! production serves as an ideal introduction to the Bard—for audiences of all ages. When lovers cross with mischievous sprites in an enchanted forest, a series of mishaps occur and nothing is what it seems. Add to the mix a bevy of fumbling actors and chaos breaks loose until dawn breaks and all is once again right with the world. After the performance, the actors remain on stage for a brief question-and-answer session. Then join the audience in the Lobby for one-on-one conversations and photo opportunities.
Southwest Shakespeare Company
By Bill Cain
Feb. 28 – March 22, 2014
Anita Farnsworth Theater
Mesa Arts Center
1 East Main Street, Mesa, AZ 85201
(480) 644 6500
In London, 1605, a down-and-out playwright called Shagspeare receives a royal commission to write a play promoting the government’s version of the Guy Fawkes’ Gunpowder Plot. As Shag navigates the dangerous course between writing a lie or losing his head, his devoted theatre troupe helps him negotiate each step along the way.