TITLE OF SHOWS: Shakespeare

LENGTH OF SHOW(S): 60-Minutes, No Intermission

THEME [one sentence description]: A celebration of a tapestry of Shakespeare’s characters in a solo performances: the theme is human emotions.

CONTENT
[brief description]: The show is a combination of some of the most emotional speeches Shakespeare ever wrote, ranging the gamut of emotions, hilarity, hate, tears, anger, fear, sorrow, frustration, tenderness, love, joy – all by one actor in a display of 22 characters from 17 scripts.

GOAL [the purpose of this show]: To make accessible, understandable and meaningful an art-form which often audiences say they do not understand or that they fashionably say they do not like; to give the audience an experience with Shakespeare they will never forget.

POINT OF VIEW OF ARTISTS: Shakespeare is comprehensible, compassionate and accessible and an art-form that deeply moves and enriches our lives as much today as it ever has.

PRESENTATION [skills used to present show]: In SHAKESPEARE, the set is black velvet, black surrounds, a draped table, four cubes of black velvet, a gold-frame, Renaissance portrait, an ornate, Medieval throne, exquisite hand-props of tooled leather book, ivory mirror, a skull, masks, a Moroccan dagger, a candle and holder of twined brass, a brass cup – and the costume is simplicity itself: grey corduroy pants, burgundy-coloured shoes, a navy-blue pull-over. The actor walks out of the audiences onto the stage and using the “Seven ages of man”, psychologically chronicles the rise and decline of the human experience.

TARGET AUDIENCE: Festival, Adult and Teen-age audiences. The show has played successfully overseas (even with non-English speaking audiences) because of the emotionality of the pieces, the clarity of the presentation of the language, the universality of the ideas and the understanding of intonation, music and spirit in the speeches. It has played as well in community series, festivals and Fringes. But, we want to target people who don’t like Shakespeare – why preach only to the converted? They will really enjoy it anyway, but new-comers, teen-agers who struggle with texts in schools or think that Shakespeare is for egg-heads – this show will change their thinking and dispel many misconceptions and prejudices.

CAST [see Bios]: Robert Greenwood (actor)

LANGUAGE IN WHICH SHOW IS PERFORMED: Elizabethan English

PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS AVAILABLE:

  • Poster blanks

  • Coloured slides

  • Black and White photos

  • Video-clips [VHS-NTSC and PAL formats]

  • Preview articles

  • Reviews

  • Teachers’ evaluations

  • Evaluations

  • Letters of reference

  • CD Roms

WHERE SHOW HAS BEEN SUCCESSFULLY PERFORMED OR WORLD PREMIERE, ETC.: These shows were premiered in Calgary during Sun.Ergos’ Subscription Seasons. Both shows have been performed in Singapore, Indonesia, Croatia and Canada, in festivals and community series and in Fringes.

REFERENCES FOR SHOW:

  • Joan Flood, Director, INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN’S FESTIVAL, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

  • Ester Roth-Cohen, Tel Aviv, Israel

  • Jasenka Ramljak, Associate Director, MEDUNARODNI DJECJI FESTIVAL, Sibenik, Croatia

  • Nick Richardson, Director, INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS, United World College of Southeast Asia, Singapore

  • Ibu Gedong Oka, Director, CANTI DASA ASHRAM, Canti Dasa, Bali, Indonesia

  • Director, WINNIPEG FRINGE FESTIVAL, Winnipeg, Manitoba

  • Director, EDMONTON FRINGE FESTIVAL, Edmonton, Alberta

WORDS WHICH HAVE BEEN USED TO DESCRIBE THE SHOW:
quality, professional, high-energy, skilled, remarkable, memorable, rewarding, emotional, conviction, unique, wonderful, transparent, amazing, tour-de-force, powerful, gripping, intimate, innovative, versatile, beautiful, stirring, imaginative, tremendous, evocative, moving

FOR MORE INFORMATION OR MATERIALS, PLEASE CONTACT:
Administrative Assistant
Sun.Ergos, A Company of Theatre and Dance
130 Sunset Way
Priddis, Alberta, CANADA T0L 1W0

TEL 403-931-1527 TOLL FREE 1-800-743-3351
FAX 403-931-1534
e-mail: waltermoke@sunergos.com