Press Release | Christopher Plummer’s A Word or Two to open in Los Angeles

January 22, 2014 … The Stratford Festival’s production of Christopher Plummer’s A Word or Two opens at the Center Theatre Group’s Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles today.

The production, directed by Des McAnuff, was originally presented in 2012 as a special event to mark the Stratford Festival’s 60^th season.

“I am thrilled to have the Stratford Festival represented in Los Angeles by Christopher Plummer in A Word or Two,” says Artistic Director Antoni Cimolino. “He worked long and hard assembling this wonderful script and, together with Des, he has created a terrific evening in the theatre. We thank our friends and colleagues at CTG for their interest in this production.”

“I had the chance to see the show over the weekend in Los Angeles,” says Executive Director Anita Gaffney, “and audiences at the Ahmanson Theatre are in for a real treat. Christopher Plummer dazzles with his wit and story-telling mastery. The show played to sold-out houses in Stratford and the creative team that mounted that production has been reassembled for this special engagement.”

A Word or Two runs in Los Angeles until February 9.

The Stratford Festival is garnering great interest in productions developed on its stages. Hirsch, by Alon Nashman and Paul Thompson, developed through the Festival’s new play department and originally produced at the Studio Theatre in 2012, was presented at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre last year, and will open at Vancouver’s Chutzpah Festival next month. The Best Brothers, by Daniel MacIvor, another 2012 production developed by the Festival, was presented at Toronto’s Tarragon Theatre and Winnipeg’s Prairie Theatre Exchange in 2013. The Little Years, commissioned by the Festival from John Mighton, based on an earlier script, was originally produced in 2011 and was re-mounted at Tarragon Theatre in 2012, winning Dora Awards for Best Director for Chris Abraham and Best Actress for Irene Poole. The 2009 production of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum moved on to a Toronto run later that year with Mirvish Productions.

The 2009 production of The Importance of Being Earnest, directed by and starring Brian Bedford, moved to Broadway in 2011, winning a Tony Award for Best Costume Design for Desmond Heeley and Tony nominations for Best Revival of a Play and Best Actor for Brian Bedford. The 2011 production of Jesus Christ Superstar moved to Broadway in 2012, winning Tony nominations for Best Revival of a Musical and Best Actor in a Musical for Josh Young.

The latest Festival commission, an English version of Michel Marc Bouchard’s Christina, The Girl King, translated by Linda Gaboriau, will open this summer at the Studio Theatre. Work continues on a number of other commissions, which the Festival hopes will soon come to fruition in Stratford and beyond.

The 2014 Stratford Festival season runs from April 21 to October 12, featuring King Lear; Crazy for You; two versions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream; The Beaux’ Stratagem; Man of La Mancha; Alice Through the Looking-Glass; Hay Fever; King John; Mother Courage and Her Children; Antony and Cleopatra; Christina, The Girl King; and more than 150 events in The Forum. Tickets are available through the box office at 1.800.567.1600 or online at www.stratfordfestival.ca.

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MEDIA ADVISORY | Coming events in Toronto, Detroit, Montreal

October 3, 2012… The Stratford Shakespeare Festival will be hosting or participating in a number of events over the coming weeks, including the following:

TORONTO
Wednesday, October 10
Twelfth Night screenings
Daniels Spectrum, 585 Dundas Street East, Toronto

The Stratford Shakespeare Festival will be doing two screenings of the 2011 film of Twelfth Night, directed by Des McAnuff, featuring Ben Carlson, Brian Dennehy and Stephen Ouimette. An afternoon screening is for invited students and teachers from the Regent Park area. It will be preceded by a workshop with two actors from the production, Cara Ricketts and Mike Shara, and followed by a question and answer period. An evening screening will be open to the public and will also be followed by a Q&A with Cara Ricketts and Mike Shara.

Schedule:

11:30 a.m. Pre-film workshop for students with Cara Ricketts, Mike Shara and Andrea Jackson

12:30 p.m. Screening of Twelfth Night for students from schools in the Regent Park area.

3:15 p.m. Post-film Q&A with Cara Ricketts and Mike Shara

7 p.m. Public screening of Twelfth Night

9:45 p.m. Post-film Q&A with Cara Ricketts and Mike Shara

DETROIT
Sunday, October 14, at 3:30 p.m.
Stratford Presents: Twelfth Night
Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit Film Theater

The Festival presents a screening of the 2011 production of Twelfth Night, directed by Des McAnuff, featuring Ben Carlson, Brian Dennehy and Stephen Ouimette.

Tickets and information: http://www.dia.org/auxiliaries/event.aspx?id=3408&iid=&aux_id=14&cid=100

MONTREAL
Thursday, October 25, at 5:30 p.m.
McGill Shakespeare Lecture
Leacock Building, Room 232, McGill University, Montreal

Lucy Peacock will deliver an address titled Work, Prayer, Carnival: My Journey with Shakespeare. Introduction by Prof. Paul Yachnin.

DETROIT
Sunday, November 11, at 2 p.m.
Stratford Presents: The Tempest
Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit Film Theater

The Festival presents a screening of the 2010 production of The Tempest, directed by Des McAnuff, featuring Christopher Plummer as Prospero.

Tickets and information:

http://www.dia.org/auxiliaries/event.aspx?id=3407&iid=&aux_id=14&cid=100

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Christopher Plummer’s A Word or Two starts previews

July 25, 2012…Christopher Plummer, one of theatre’s greatest classical actors, takes us on an autobiographical journey through the literature that has stirred his imagination since youth. The one-man show, which is directed by Artistic Director Des McAnuff, begins previews at the Avon Theatre on July 25.

Written, arranged and performed by Mr. Plummer, A Word or Two is a deeply personal work that focuses on the actor’s love of literature and how it has shaped his life.

“The purpose of A Word or Two is simply to celebrate language which seems to be fast vanishing from our midst,” says Mr. Plummer.  “It is very much a personal stroll through literature, a literature that has long stirred my imagination and that, for one reason or another, I cannot let go. The poetry and prose I have chosen to accompany my journey is both silly and sad, sacred and profane; ranging from A.A. Milne to the Bible; Shaw and Wilde to Coleridge and Marlowe; W.H. Auden and Nabokov to Rostand and MacLeish; Shakespeare and Byron to Nash and Leacock. It is intended not just to show the myriad of colours words can paint, but to illuminate along the way the several phases of my particular moon.”

Mr. Plummer, who this year won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for his performance in the film Beginners, is one of the Festival’s most lauded alumni. This production will be the third collaboration between Mr. Plummer and Mr. McAnuff at the Festival; their first two projects, Caesar and Cleopatra, in which Mr. Plummer played Julius Caesar, and The Tempest, in which he played Prospero, have also been captured on film for cinematic release.

“I love working and spending time with Chris. He’s a great collaborator. We have a very free-wheeling kind of creative relationship, and so it’s always a great charge to work with him,” says Mr. McAnuff.

“There’s a tremendous intimacy with this piece. I think he is going to make each member of the audience feel like he’s talking only to them. I hope it stokes the audience’s appetite for great literature, inspiring them to read and, obviously, to continue to go to the theatre to listen to great actors delivering extraordinary words.”

“Christopher Plummer is one of this country’s greatest theatrical treasures and our audiences are always eager to see him on the stage,” says General Director Antoni Cimolino.  “But this production is particularly special because it offers a rare opportunity to glimpse the man himself. It will be an unforgettable and exhilarating experience to witness this deeply personal and affectionate love letter to the writers that have inspired and helped to make him the artist he is today.”

The artistic team for this production includes Set Designer Robert Brill, Lighting Designer Michael Walton, Composer Michael Roth, Video Designer Sean Nieuwenhuis, Sound Designer Peter McBoyle and Costume Consultant Paul Tazewell.

A Word or Two is sponsored by OLG.

Support for the 2012 season of the Avon Theatre is generously provided by The Birmingham Family.  Production support is graciously provided by Nona Macdonald Heaslip and John H. Whiteside.

This year, the Stratford Shakespeare Festival celebrates its 60^th season, with 14 productions presented from April 12 to October 28:  Much Ado About Nothing; 42nd Street; The Matchmaker; Henry V; You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown; The Pirates of Penzance; A Word or Two; Cymbeline; Wanderlust; Elektra; The Best Brothers; Hirsch; and The War of 1812. MacHomer, has concluded its run.

Festival marks anniversary with opening of Henry V

July 9, 2012… The Stratford Shakespeare Festival continues to mark its 60^th season this week with the world premières of three Canadian plays and the opening of Artistic Director Des McAnuff’s production of Henry V. The Festival has been heralded recently throughout North America as a top destination for travel and culture, giving it even more reason to celebrate.

Henry V, featuring Aaron Krohn in the title role, will open on Friday, July 13, the Festival’s anniversary. Wednesday sees the opening of Wanderlust, a new musical commissioned by the Festival from Morris Panych and Marek Norman, based on the poetry of Robert Service. Daniel MacIvor’s new play The Best Brothers, workshopped at the Festival and directed by Associate Artistic Director Dean Gabourie, opens Thursday afternoon, followed that evening by Hirsch, which celebrates the life and career of former Artistic Director John Hirsch. Developed at Stratford over the past three years, Hirsch was created and conceived by Alon Nashman and Paul Thompson.

“One of my proudest achievements at the Festival is to have mounted a celebratory 60^th season that features Canadian works in such abundance,” says Mr. McAnuff, who concludes his tenure as Artistic Director at the end of 2012 and was recently appointed to the Order of Canada. “Fully 50 per cent of the productions on our playbill this year are written by Canadians. They represent an enormous range of dramatic genres, showcasing the talent that has developed in Canada’s rich theatrical landscape since the founding of the Festival 60 years ago.”

“This second round of openings heralds the beginning of the summer season in Stratford,” says General Director Antoni Cimolino, who has been named the Festival’s next Artistic Director. “We have recently been showcased as a top destination by a number of influential media outlets, establishing even further the appeal of this idyllic city. We hope people recognize what an ideal vacation spot Stratford is and include a visit to the Festival in their holiday plans. This year’s productions have won critical acclaim across the board and have been delighting audiences since the season began in April.”

Inspired by the success of Jesus Christ Superstar on Broadway, The New York Times visited Stratford this spring and trumpeted the joys of the city and the Festival in its travel section in June. NPR (National Public Radio) in the U.S. has chosen to include Stratford in a feature of five significant cultural destinations in North America, the only one in Canada. Frommer’s included Stratford as a Top 10 Canadian Summer Vacation Destination; Reader’s Digest featured Stratford in its Top 10 Canadian Road Trips; and Trip Advisor named Stratford one of Canada’s Top 10 Cultural Destinations. Stratford has also been chosen as an iconic Canadian experience for travel writer Robin Esrock’s upcoming book The Great Canadian Bucket List.

Next to open this season is A Word or Two, written, arranged and performed by Christopher Plummer, which is being presented as a special 60^th season event. Directed by Mr. McAnuff, the production, which begins previews on July 25 and opens August 2, is an autobiographical journey through the literature that has stirred the actor’s imagination since youth. Mr. Plummer, who this year won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for his performance in the film Beginners, is one of the Festival’s most lauded alumni, first appearing at Stratford in 1956 in the title role of Henry V. This will be the third collaboration between Mr. Plummer and Mr. McAnuff at the Festival; their first two projects, Caesar and Cleopatra, in which Mr. Plummer played Julius Caesar, and The Tempest, in which he played Prospero, have also been captured on film for cinematic release.

The season’s final offering, Sophokles’ Elektra, translated by Canadian poet Anne Carson, will open August 11, featuring Yanna McIntosh in the title role and Seana McKenna as Clytemestra.

In addition to Henry V, the season features two other Shakespeares – Cymbeline, directed by Mr. Cimolino, which is being praised as one of the finest ever productions of this challenging classic, and Much Ado About Nothing. Three musicals are also on stage – 42nd Street, The Pirates of Penzance, and You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown – as well as Thornton Wilder’s comedy The Matchmaker, which is being hailed as the feel-good show of the year. The War of 1812, by Canadian playwright Michael Hollingsworth, opened on Canada Day, and MacHomer, created and performed by Rick Miller, enjoyed a limited engagement at Stratford in May.

The Festival marked its 60^th season by publishing Stratford Behind the Scenes, a full-colour book that reveals the complexities of season planning and captures the superb artistry carried out by the Festival’s costumes, props, sets and wigs departments. An ebook of Stratford Behind the Scenes will be launched this summer.

An archival exhibition, Most Rare Visions: 60 Years of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, is open to the public daily at 104 Downie Street, across from the Avon Theatre. It features costumes, unique artefacts and props, plus rare footage and new interviews with key players in the Festival’s history

Since its founding 60 years ago, the Stratford Shakespeare Festival has welcomed more than 25 million visitors. Originally conceived as an economic stimulus for the community, the Festival now generates about $140 million in economic activity annually. It employs 1,000 people and creates 3,000 full-year jobs.

The Stratford Shakespeare Festival’s 2012 season runs until October 28. To purchase tickets, visit www.stratfordshakespearefestival.com or call 1.800.567.1600.

Festival officially launches 60th season on Monday

May 25, 2012… The Stratford Shakespeare Festival launches its 60^th season on Monday, May 28, with a gala performance of Much Ado About Nothing. This is the final season under the artistic directorship of Des McAnuff, and one that promises an array of wonderful theatre for every taste and age group.

“The 60^th season is representative of Stratford in all its glory,” says Mr. McAnuff, who is directing Henry V and Christopher Plummer’s A Word or Two, both of which open later in the season. “Embodying Stratford’s hallmark marriage of tradition and innovation, the Cplaybill ranges from the very roots of drama to some of the finest playwrights working in Canada today. Shakespearean comedy, history and romance are complemented by a hilarious contemporary pastiche of Shakespearean tragedy, while the season’s varied musical theatre repertoire acknowledges our own era’s great contribution to the western dramatic tradition. Meanwhile, the strength of our acting company is being showcased not only in Stratford but also on Broadway, with the Tony-nominated Jesus Christ Superstar.”

“As we celebrate our Festival’s 60^th season, the glorious heritage of our past provides us with a clear signpost to the way ahead,” says General Director Antoni Cimolino. “Our pioneering artists and those who supported them sought to create in Stratford nothing less than the finest classical theatre in the world. Thanks to their vision and determination, the adventure that began in 1953 with two productions in a tent is now North America’s premier repertory theatre, featuring 14 productions in five venues. That same spirit drives us today as we explore the classics of the past and give birth to the classics of the future.”

Much Ado About Nothing is directed by Christopher Newton, who was a member of the Festival’s acting company from 1966 to 1968. It features Ben Carlson as Benedick and Deborah Hay as Beatrice.

Five other productions will open during the week: 42nd Street, directed by Gary Griffin and featuring Sean Arbuckle as Julian Marsh, Kyle Blair as Billy Lawlor, Cynthia Dale as Dorothy Brock, and Jennifer Rider-Shaw as Peggy Sawyer; You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, directed by Donna Feore, featuring Stephen Patterson as Snoopy, Erica Peck as Lucy and Ken James Stewart as Charlie Brown; Cymbeline, directed by Antoni Cimolino, featuring Graham Abbey as Posthumus, Tom McCamus as Iachimo, Cara Ricketts as Innogen, and Geraint Wyn Davies as Cymbeline; The Pirates of Penzance, directed by Ethan McSweeny, featuring Sean Arbuckle as the Pirate King, Kyle Blair as Frederic, C. David Johnson as the Major General, and Amy Wallis as Mabel Stanley; and The Matchmaker, directed by Chris Abraham, featuring Tom McCamus as Horace Vandergelder and Seana McKenna as Dolly Levi.

The 60^th season will feature a number of special events, including Christopher Plummer’s one-man show A Word or Two, which will run from July 25 to August 26. Most Rare Visions: 60 Years of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival is an exhibition of Festival artifacts, including rare footage of our pioneers, at a new space kitty-corner to the Avon Theatre, at 104 Downie Street. A symposium, Interpreting Shakespeare Across Settings and Media, featuring Colm Feore, Norman Lloyd, Dr. Katherine Lowe and the Festival’s Director of Archives, Dr. Francesca Marini, will be held on June 2. A dramatic reading of Edward Bond’s Bingo, about an aging William Shakespeare, will be held on June 15, with the playwright on hand for a Q&A with the audience. Lucy Peacock will hold a number of cabarets – Late Night with Lucy – in the new Studio Annex, in July and August, featuring music and conversation. The Celebrated Writers Series returns with Stephen Marche, author of How Shakespeare Changed Everything; Richard McCoy, author of Faith in Shakespeare; Michael Ondaatje, author of The Cat’s Table; and Margaret Atwood, author of In Other Worlds. Master voice and Shakespeare teacher Patsy Rodenberg will present three special events from July 18 to 22, to mark 60 years of the Festival’s extensive actor training activities. The Festival will launch a special 60^th season book on June 2, Stratford: Behind the Scenes, which will available through the Theatre Store. These special events are all in addition to the Festival’s usual enrichment activities.

The Stratford Shakespeare Festival’s 2012 season runs until October 28, featuring Much Ado About Nothing; 42^nd Street; The Matchmaker; Henry V; You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown; The Pirates of Penzance; A Word or Two; Cymbeline; Wanderlust; Elektra; MacHomer; The Best Brothers; Hirsch and The War of 1812.

Opening Week Itinerary

Sunday, May 27
Garden Party
1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Festival Theatre lobby and gardens

Monday, May 28
Gala Opening of Much Ado About Nothing
Festival Theatre, 55 Queen Street, Stratford
6:30 p.m. Pipe Band parades to front of theatre and performs
7:00 p.m. Red Carpet arrivals
7:30 p.m. Performance of Much Ado About Nothing begins
10:10 p.m. Performance concludes

Tuesday, May 29
11:30 a.m. Book Launch – Festival Lobby
The Adventures of Adrian and Tiddlywinks by the late John Sullivan Hayes, former Producer of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival
Opening of 42nd Street
Festival Theatre
8:00 p.m. Performance begins
10:20 p.m. Performance concludes

Wednesday, May 30
Opening of You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown
8 p.m. Avon Theatre
9:55 p.m. Performance concludes

Thursday, May 31
Opening of Cymbeline
8 p.m. Tom Patterson Theatre
11 p.m. Performance concludes

Friday, June 1
Opening of The Pirates of Penzance
8 p.m. Avon Theatre
10:35 p.m. Performance concludes

Saturday, June 2
10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Symposium, Studio Theatre (please contact Andrea Smitko to reserve tickets)
1:00 to 1:45 p.m. Book Launch – Stratford: Behind the Scenes. Rehearsal Hall 3, Studio Theatre.
Opening of The Matchmaker
8 p.m. Festival Theatre
10:40 p.m. Performance concludes

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It’s official – we’ve started our 60th season!

By:Lisa Middleton

After five months of darkened stages, empty lobbies and frosty evenings, we’ve started our 60^th season!  Yesterday 42^nd Street took the stage for its first preview, and it was amazing! What a celebratory way to kick things off —a perfect show for our diamond jubilee (sparkle included!). We know that the rest of the season will be just as thrilling. Here are some things to watch for while you plan your visit and some activities and shows you won’t want to miss!

• A perfect combination of Shakespeare: A history (Henry V), a comedy (Much Ado About Nothing) and a romance (Cymbeline)!
  
• 60 seasons of history on display at our Festival Exhibition! Our Archives Department has created a fabulous Exhibition to share some of the remarkable items we’ve saved over the years.  From a replica of the backstage of the tent to photos, costumes and props, this display will not disappoint! Come and reminisce with us!
  
• Christopher Plummer is back on stage at the Avon Theatre performing his one-man show, A Word or Two. We’re excited to welcome Mr. Plummer back to the Festival two years after his celebrated turn as Prospero in The Tempest – and 56 years after his first performance here as Henry V!
  
• We’re not the only ones celebrating 60 this year! Queen Elizabeth II also marks her 60^th year on the throne – keep watching later this season for a promotion fit for a queen!
• Three world premières! An important part of our mission at the Festival is to support new Canadian works and artists. Be sure to take in one or all of our new productions this season:  Wanderlust, The Best Brothers and Hirsch!
• Don’t let your visit stop at the theatre doors! Go beyond the stage with some of our amazing events:  Bingo: A Dramatic Reading, our Celebrated Writers Series, special tours, Festival Friday Chats, Late Night with Lucy, Lectures on the Plays, Lobby Talks, a masterclass with Patsy Rodenburg, Meet the Festival, Night Music, Prologues, Table Talk, Talking Theatre, Theatre Explorer *gasps for a breath of air* and US Member Weekends!
• It’s your turn… Let us know in the comment box below what you can’t possibly miss this season!

P.S.  Shakespeare’s birthday is just around the corner – 448 years young – and we’re celebrating with a special gift to all our fans. Find out more next week!

Des McAnuff to be honoured with a Governor General’s Performing Arts Award

March 6, 2012… The Stratford Shakespeare Festival extends heartiest congratulations to Artistic Director Des McAnuff, who is the recipient of the National Arts Centre Award of the Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards in recognition of his extraordinary accomplishments over the past performance year.

“Des is very deserving of this recognition,” says General Director Antoni Cimolino. “He has indeed had an extraordinary year, directing two large-scale productions at the Festival, filming one and taking the other on to La Jolla and then to Broadway. This is all in addition to his international accomplishments, which in themselves required super-human strength to complete. We all congratulate him on his achievements and this very great honour.”

At the Stratford Shakespeare Festival Mr. McAnuff directed a celebrated production of Twelfth Night starring Brian Dennehy and Stephen Ouimette. His acclaimed production of Jesus Christ Superstar enjoyed an extended run at Stratford, moved to La Jolla Playhouse in California, and is set to open on Broadway this month with its Stratford cast.

Mr. McAnuff opened the second North American tour of Jersey Boys in Philadelphia. He directed a new musical production of Doctor Zhivago, which played in Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane, Australia, and is now being performed in Seoul with an all-Korean cast. He directed Gounod’s Faust for the Metropolitan Opera starring Jonas Kaufmann, René Pape, and Marina Poplavskaya. Mr. McAnuff’s achievements over the past year also include film, with his production of Faust shown in cinemas worldwide and his production of The Tempest, starring Christopher Plummer released in cinemas. (His production of Caesar and Cleopatra, which also features Christopher Plummer, enjoyed a similar release in 2009, while Twelfth Night is scheduled for cinema release this week).

The year 2011 also saw Mr. McAnuff planning Stratford’s 60^th anniversary playbill, half of which are Canadian works, including three world premières – Morris Panych and Marek Norman’s Wanderlus, The Best Brothers by Daniel MacIvor, and Hirsch by Alon Nashmon and Paul Thompson, about the former Stratford artistic director and legendary theatre artist John Hirsch. Mr. McAnuff will also be directing Shakespeare’s Henry V and Christopher Plummer’s one-man show A Word or Two.

The Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards will be presented in Ottawa in early May.

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Tickets go on sale to the public for Stratford’s 60th season

January 5, 2012… Thanks to the vision and determination of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival’s pioneering artists, the adventure that began in 1953 with two productions in a tent is now North America’s premier repertory theatre. In a season celebrating 60 years of theatrical achievement, the Festival presents 14 productions in five venues, featuring Christopher Plummer and one of the finest acting companies in the world.

The box office for this thrilling season, which runs from April 12 to October 28, opens to the public on Saturday, January 7, at 9 a.m., with a special online advance sale starting at noon on Friday, January 6. Purchase tickets before January 31, and save up to 25% on ticket prices.

“2012 will be a great time to visit Stratford. It’s going to be a year of tremendous celebration,” says Artistic Director Des McAnuff. “We wanted our 60^th season to represent Stratford in all its glory so we spread our arms wide to encompass as many different genres as we possibly could. Our playbill ranges from the very roots of drama, the tragedy of ancient Greece, to some of the finest playwrights working in Canada today. We are also offering Shakespearean comedy, history and romance, along with a varied musical theatre repertoire, which acknowledges our own era’s great contribution to the western dramatic tradition.”

“To celebrate this landmark season, we are presenting a number of special events and limited-run productions – including a one-man show by Christopher Plummer – around which patrons are going to want to build their Stratford visits,” says General Director Antoni Cimolino. “We encourage theatregoers to have a look at the calendar and make a commitment to come to Stratford for the 60^th season. The early-booking discount is a significant discount; it applies to all shows, all seats, all dates – and it’s offered at a time when the best seats in the house are still available. There’s no better time to book.”

The 2012 season truly features something for everyone. For history lovers, there’s Henry V, The War of 1812 and Wanderlust, a new musical set during the gold rush of the Great North. Lovers of romance will enjoy The Matchmaker, as well as the classic Shakespeare plays Cymbeline and Much Ado About Nothing. Another classic, the Greek tragedy Elektra, comes from the hand of one of Greece’s most avant-garde directors. Lovers of literature will want to see Christopher Plummer’s A Word or Two. For families, there’s You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, MacHomer and The Pirates of Penzance. A season rich in musicals also features the Broadway favourite 42nd Street.

Those looking for new Canadian work will be thrilled to see three world premières. In addition to Morris Panych and Marek Norman’s Wanderlust, the Festival will present The Best Brothers by Daniel MacIvor and Hirsch by Alon Nashman and Paul ThompsoThompson. Fully half of the season’s works are by Canadian playwrights.

Limited runs and special events

A Word or Two, a special 60^th season event, written, arranged and performed by Christopher Plummer, runs for 20 performances from July 25 to August 26. The production is an autobiographical journey through the literature that has stirred Mr. Plummer’s imagination since youth.

MacHomer is also in Stratford for a limited run, from May 2 to May 26. This solo show, created and performed by Rick Miller, is a hilarious mash-up of Shakespeare’s Macbeth and TV’s The Simpsons, suitable for fans of all ages.

Opening on Canada Day for a six-week run is VideoCabaret’s production of The War of 1812, a darkly witty, spectacularly staged production presented to mark the bicentennial of the conflict.

Most Friday evenings will have a new dimension in July and August thanks to Late Night with Lucy, a series of cabarets filled with music and conversation, featuring Lucy Peacock and a variety of special guest artists. The new Studio Theatre Annex, which will also be home to The War of 1812, will be transformed into “the living room” for these intimate late-night get-togethers. 

On June 15 the Festival will host a dramatic reading of Bingo. Written in 1973 by British playwright Edward Bond, the play examines an aging Shakespeare torn between his sensibility as an artist and his self-interest as a property owner. The reading will be followed by a question-and-answer session with the playwright.

The Celebrated Writers series presents four authors this season. Stephen Marche, a novelist and journalist who writes a column on culture for Esquire, will speak on themes from his new book, How Shakespeare Changed Everything, on July 14. Richard McCoy, Professor of English at Queen’s University and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, will speak on the subject of Shakespeare’s late romances on July 28. Company members Cynthia Dale and Tom McCamus will read from Michael Ondaatje’s newest novel, The Cat’s Table, with Mr. Ondaatje on hand for the reading and book signing on August 11. Margaret Atwood will round out the series on August 18. 

On August 8 the Festival will host It’s a Farce!, an event which will welcome Tappan Wilder, Thornton Wilder’s nephew and literary executor; Ken Ludwig, erstwhile collaborator with Thornton Wilder and acclaimed playwright in his own right; and The Matchmaker cast members for a lively panel discussion on comedy and farce.

The Festival will present an archival exhibition in a new facility across from the Avon Theatre. Most Rare Visions: 60 Years of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival will be open daily throughout the season at 104 Downie Street. It will feature a recreation of the backstage area of the original Festival tent, unique artifacts, photos, rare footage and new interviews from the Festival Archives, covering every decade of Festival history. Special Exhibition Talks will be held most Saturdays in July and August.

On June 2 at the Studio Theatre, the Festival will present a symposium Interpreting Shakespeare Across Settings and Media, examining how Shakespeare’s work lends itself to a broad range of interpretations and settings.

Master voice and Shakespeare teacher Patsy Rodenburg will return to work with the Festival’s acting company and present a series of special events: a public masterclass on July 18; a workshop for voice teachers, July 20 to 22; and a talk and book signing on July 21.

This season the Shakespeare School will expand to offer a day program for younger students, in Grades 5 to 7 in July and August. One- and two-week residential programs for high-school students are offered in July and August. The Theatre Performance Intensive for students in Grades 11 and 12 will be offered in two three-week sessions, by audition, July 8 to 28 and July 29 to August 18. A March Break Day Camp for 10- to 12-year-olds will be offered March 12 to 16.

In addition, the Festival’s ongoing Beyond the Stage offerings are designed to enhance the theatre experience:

• ·        Night Music, most Monday evenings in July and August with one performance in June;
• ·        Table Talk, featuring lunch and a lecture, select dates in July and August;
• ·        Lobby Talks, on selected weekdays, June through September;
• ·        Theatre Explorer, a variety of scheduled activities, for adults and children, to enjoy prior to selected performances, selected dates, June through October;
• ·        Pre-show lectures, most Thursdays in July and Wednesdays in August;
• ·        Public Library Lectures inToronto (Tuesdays, March 6 to 27),Guelph (Thursdays, March 8 to 22) andHamilton (Wednesday, April 11 to 25);
• ·        Festival Courses, your chance to learn from the elite team of teaching artists and spoken voice, dialect, text, movement and Alexander Technique coaches who work with the Festival’s acting company.

“The playbill for this milestone season seems to me to embody perfectly the marriage of tradition and innovation that has characterized our Festival since its founding,” says Mr. McAnuff. “It will give our audiences great cause for celebration in 2012.”

“We look forward to sharing this celebration with our loyal audiences – some of whom have been coming since the days of the tent,” says Mr. Cimolino. “And with a playbill offering everything from Shakespeare to new work, classic comedy to family favourites, we hope to welcome record numbers of first-time visitors as well.”

For full details of the season and to order tickets, visit the Stratford Shakespeare Festival online at www.stratfordshakespearefestival.com, or call the box office at 1.800.567.1600.

The Festival’s 2012 season partners are American Express, The Dominion of Canada General Insurance Company, Scotiabank Group, Sun Life Financial and Union Gas.

Support for the 2012 season has been provided by the Canada Council, the Ontario Arts Council and the Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund.

2012 Shakespeare Overview

By Aaron Kropf

As we all know by now, 2012 marks the Diamond 60th Season of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival. In this milestone year of celebration, the Festival brings you three plays that reveal very different facets of Shakespeare’s genius – a comedy, a history and a romance – together with a hilarious comic take on one of his most popular tragedies. Let’s have a quick look at each of the Shakespeare shows on our 2012 playbill, starting with the one that opens first.

MacHomer is Shakespeare with a difference, pairing one of his best-known plays with one of the 20^th century’s most recognizable families. Actor and comedian Rick Miller has entertained audiences around the globe with this mashup of Macbeth and – wait for it – The Simpsons. Now, I know many of you are asking: why would the Stratford Shakespeare Festival present a send-up of Shakespeare? Well, for two reasons: first, MacHomer is brilliantly entertaining in its own right, and second, it’s a great way of introducing Shakespeare to new audiences. Younger folks whose only experience of these plays has come from reading them in school will discover the amazing world of Shakespeare in performance – via a popular-culture phenomenon they’re already comfortable with. MacHomer runs at the Studio Theatre early in the season, from May 2 to May 26, with its official opening May 5.

The show featured in this season’s gala opening is Much Ado About Nothing. Directed by Christopher Newton (former Artistic Director of the Shaw Festival), this high comedy contains some of Shakespeare’s best-loved characters and some of his most glorious wit. If you haven’t already read the article on Much Ado’s “merry war” of words in our November issue of SceneNotes, be sure to take a look at it here. With a fantastic cast led by real-life husband and wife Ben Carlson and Deborah Hay as Benedick and Beatrice, this is one production you won’t want to miss. Much Ado About Nothing runs at the Festival Theatre from April 26 to October 27, opening May 28.

Next to open is the romance Cymbeline, directed by Stratford Shakespeare Festival General Director Antoni Cimolino. Being produced for only the fourth time in the Festival’s history, this beautifully moving play has a cast that includes Cara Ricketts as Imogen and Geraint Wyn Davies in the title role. Don’t miss your chance to see this rarely performed masterpiece – who knows when the opportunity will come again? Cymbeline plays at the Tom Patterson Theatre from May 10 to September 30, opening May 31.

Finally, to round out our 60th season celebration, we’re presenting the epic drama Henry V – which will open at the Festival Theatre on the anniversary of our very first performance in 1953. This is a play with special significance for Stratford: when we first presented it in 1956 (our last season in the original tent), Christopher Plummer played the title role and the production became a legend in Canadian theatrical history. Aaron Krohn, who won such critical acclaim in 2011 for his performance as Lenny in The Homecoming, will play Henry this time round, in a production directed by our Artistic Director, Des McAnuff. Henry V runs June 24 to September 29, opening July 13. Here’s a video that will tell you a little more about the show:

We hope you’ll join us in 2012: it promises to be a stellar 60th season!

Get ready for the 2012 season!

By Christi Rutledge

Well, we officially wrapped up the 2011 season last weekend with the closing of Jesus Christ Superstar at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival. It has been an absolutely fabulous season – and as sad as I am to see it close, I can’t help but get excited about 2012! We have a spectacular line-up to celebrate our 60^th season of world-class theatre. Take a tour with me as we explore what’s being offered on our five (!) stages next year.

The Festival Theatre will host four productions: Henry V, Much Ado About Nothing, 42^nd Street and The Matchmaker. Henry V will return to the Festival stage for the first time in 11 years. Directed by Des McAnuff, this production will no doubt be spectacular and have lots to say about war, leadership and friendship. Expect to see a familiar face on stage as Aaron Krohn, who played Lenny in The Homecoming this year, takes on the title role. Mr. Krohn is joining the ranks of some luminous actors – the part of Henry V was first performed at the Festival by a man named Christopher Plummer.

Much Ado About Nothing is high comedy perfection – and with a cast featuring Ben Carlson and Deborah Hay as Benedick and Beatrice, it will be impossible for anyone to resist this performance. Expect to see a Brazilian flare to this witty comedy directed by Christopher Newton, former Artistic Director of the Shaw Festival.

The Festival is also extremely excited to welcome back Cynthia Dale, who will play Dorothy Brock in Gary Griffin’s production of 42^nd Street. This smash Broadway hit tells the classic story of a small town girl moving to the big city to make a name for herself. And it’s full of sensational tap dancing!

And last, but certainly not least, the Festival stage will feature The Matchmaker– Thornton Wilder’s story of a wealthy merchant named Horace Vandergelder (played by Tom McCamus) who searches for a wife with the help of his matchmaker, Dolly Levi (Seana McKenna). This production will be directed by Chris Abraham, who brought you The Little Years (2011) and For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again (2010).

Over at the Avon Theatre, the greatly anticipated return of Gilbert and Sullivan has finally come with Ethan McSweeny’s staging of The Pirates of Penzance. The theatre will also house a one-hander called A Word or Two, written and performed by the legendary Christopher Plummer and directed by Des McAnuff. And there will be a production that appeals to the child in everyone – You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.

It is always exciting for us at the theatre and for our patrons when we get to put on a show as magical as Pirates. It’s one of the first plays that my brother saw as a child here at the Festival, and I remember him coming home from his school trip in 1994 and telling me how fascinated he was by it. Filled with wit and with cherished musical numbers, this is a great play for children and adults alike.

A Word or Two will no doubt be difficult to get tickets to, so the sooner you order yours, the better. You won’t want to miss seeing Mr. Plummer back on our stage to offer an intimate look at his life-long love of literature. And Donna Feore’s production of You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown – presented for the first time at the Festival thanks to Schulich Children’s Plays – will be another heart-warming show to bring the family to. For all the baby-boomers out there, it also offers a chance to revisit a beloved childhood icon.

My favourite theatre, the Tom Patterson, will feature three productions next year: Cymbeline, Wanderlust and Elektra. I am particularly excited for this set of shows!

Cymbeline will be directed by Antoni Cimolino. After falling in love with The Grapes of Wrath this season, I can hardly wait to see how he interprets this fantastic Shakespearean romance.

Another show to get excited about is Wanderlust, a new Canadian musical by Morris Panych and Marek Norman. Wanderlust is a fictional story about the adventures of Robert Service, the great Bard of theYukon, as he grapples with his love for his co-worker Louise, who is engaged to a forbidding man. With songs based on Service’s poetry and Tom Rooney playing the lead (as well as Lucy Peacock playing his landlady, Mrs. Munsch!), this piece had me at “hello.”

Lastly, let’s take a look at Elektra – a play that should be on everyone’s must-see list for the 2012 season. This classic Greek tragedy will be led by the fabulous Yanna McIntosh in the title role, along with Seana McKenna as Clytemestra. Athenian director Thomas Moschopoulos will be making his Festival debut with this production; you may know him as the artist behind the Olympic closing ceremony in Athens in 2004.

The Studio Theatre is home to three productions in our 60^th season: MacHomer, The Best Brothers and Hirsch. Rick Millers’ MacHomer, directed by Sean Lynch, reimagines Shakespeare’s Macbeth through the voices of more than fifty characters from The Simpsons. If you’re dying to see this hilarious production, make sure to book tickets soon – it’s only running through the month of May!

Daniel MacIvor’s The Best Brothers is another new Canadian play that we’re excited to feature in its world première. Associate Artistic Director Dean Gabourie helms this two-man show, in which Mr. MacIvor will star. It’s about two brothers, Hamilton and Kyle Best. Upon the unexpected death of their mother, Hamilton and Kyle mourn in very different ways, leading them to some profound realizations about each other and the woman who raised them.

The last play that we’ll be showing on the Studio stage is Hirsch, a play chronicling the life of John Hirsch, former Artistic Director of the Festival. Mr. Hirsch was orphaned at a young age by the Holocaust, but survived and eventually moved to Canada, where his fierce talent and stormy temperament won him acclaim in the theatre. It’s a gripping play, created and conceived by two celebrated Canadian theatre makers: Alon Nashman and Paul Thompson.

One final production, I promise, and then I’m done!

Next year we will be hosting special guest ensemble VideoCabaret in a brand new theatre space. The Studio Theatre Annex will be accessible through the Studio Theatre and will feature The War of 1812, a satirical examination of Canada’s past from Michael Hollingsworth’s series The History of the Village of the Small Huts.

PHEW – I got through them all! I am so excited to share more about our 2012 productions and hope that you find a great selection of shows to come see during our 60^th season.

Any shows that you’re already looking forward to? Share your thoughts on our 2012 season!