Results tagged “philadelphiashakespearefestival”

Fun around town, for $10 or less:

What is there to say, really, about any production of Romeo & Juliet that probably hasn't been said already? It is, after all, the first Shakespearean play that most of us are exposed to, and although it's not (at least in my opinion) one of Shakespeare's best works, it's probably his most frequently performed. So the challenge for any theatre company wishing to produce it is how to do like Ezra Pound said and make it new.

There's a reason that nobody really produces Pericles, one of Shakespeare's final plays. And that reason is, to put it bluntly, that Pericles is really stupid. Really stupid. Most directors, producers, and English teachers know this, accept it, and pretend that the play doesn't exist at all. And then there's The Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival, which decided to revive this forgotten work, using a script developed and adapted by the Oregon Shakespeare Festival that cleaned and clarified Shakespeare's original text in order to "[relate] the story more succinctly."

A tall, icy glass of our favorite internet junk, just for you.

Fun around town, for $10 or less:

A little while back, we told you about the First Person Story Tour and its colorful "mascot," the Story Tour Van. The Story Tour was a promotion to build up some buzz for the First Person Festival. Well, it's that time. The festival kicks off today with a wide range of events. The events are priced from free to $35 (the two most expensive events include food as part of the ticket price), and there's a bit of something for everyone. The Festival takes place entirely at 2111 Sansom Street, home of the Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival, so no matter which event you're going to, you'll know where to be, and you won't have to scramble from one location to another when you're going to multiple events.

Apologies, first and foremost, to the actor behind whom I walked in last night. I know how jarring and distracting that can be, and you looked rather frightened when the door opened. It was unforgivable and unprofessional of me. All I can say is that I was absolutely certain that the play started half an hour later than what the curtain time actually was. I promise that that won't happen when I return tomorrow for .

We told you we'd keep an eye on The Shakespeare Cafe at the Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival, and so we have. The Cafe will run on Mondays, April 9th through May 14th, and offers three Bard-centered diversions. April 9 and 16 will feature Arpeggio Jazz Quartet providing an improvised jazz backdrop to Festival actors reciting some of Shakes' (Phillyist likes to call him "Shakes") best love poetry. April 23 and 30 is "Comedy-Sportz does the Bard," where the local improv troupe will use its format of short improvisational games to poke some fun at the ol' guy. And on May 7 and 14 there will be... (wait for it....) Sword-fighting! With swords! Well, there'll also be some recreations of Shakespearean fights that don't include swords, and that's cool, but we do have a liking for a period actor whacking someone with a sword. It's just a thing we have.

Tickets go on sale today for the Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival's 2007 season. This year's offerings are Othello for tragedy, The Taming of the Shrew for comedy. There is also the somewhat mysterious "Shakespeare Cafe" on Mondays in April and May; we're going to have a close eye on that one and we'll keep you posted. If you prefer to see your Shakespeare on a weekend, Phillyist recommends picking up some tickets now; Saturday nights and Sunday matinees frequently sell-out. Also, while the events page currently doesn't have any listings, check back, as they promise birthday celebrations and sword-fighting demonstrations. Shakespeare and sword-fighting? Phillyist is in heaven.

this and the recent free staging of Tweltfh Night in Clark Park, we're beginning to wonder if there isn't some sort of free, Shakespearean epidemic going around. (Hmm..maybe we should pay more attention to those conspiracy theories.
FREE Two Gentlemen of Verona


Wed - Sat (through August 20th) 7PM The Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival

2111 Sansom Street, 2nd Floor

Free (Tickets available at Box Office 1 hour before showtime)
Photo of the Shakespeare Memorial outside the Central Library by author, who really wishes someone would stage a free production of King Lear

).

Even while on vacation in Texas, we’re still keeping track of what’s going on in Philadelphia’s Theatre Scene. Read on!