Tanglewood schedules Harry Connick, Jr and Donal Fox for Labor Day weekend concerts to complete the most ambitious popular artists calendar to be assembled by the BSO at their summer home in the Berkshires in decades. Both performances are listed for Sat. Aug. 31 – Doanl Fox at 1pm in Ozawa Hall and Harry Connick, Jr. 7pm in the Koussevitsky Music Shed.

Mr. Connick will perform music from his most recent album, Every Man Should Know, a collection of original songs released in early June 2013. Tickets for Harry Connick, Jr.’s Saturday, August 31, 7 p.m. Shed appearance run from $29.50 to $99.50 and go on sale Tuesday, July 2, at 10 a.m. The Tanglewood grounds will open at 4 p.m.

Earlier in the day on Saturday, August 31, composer, pianist and innovator Donal Fox will perform his Scarlatti Jazz Project. Mr. Fox and his quartet will bring their unique amalgam of jazz, Latin, and classical music to Ozawa Hall at 1 p.m. Ticket prices run from $18 to $53 and also go on sale on July 2.

$40 All Day Lawn Pass will allow concert goers to enjoy the Scarlatti Jazz Project on the lawn at 1 p.m. and remain through the Harry Connick, Jr. Shed concert at 7 p.m. Pass will be available to purchase July 2.

The 2013 summer season at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox features such plays as Love’s Labour’s Lost and Richard II by William Shakespeare, Bertolt Brecht’s Mother Courage and Her Children, Terrence McNally’s Master Class, which a portrays Maria Callas, Heroes, a comedy by Gérald Sibleyras, and The Beauty Queen of Leenane by Martin McDonagh.

TINA PACKER PLAYHOUSE:
Love’s Labour’s Lost
June 22 though September 1. Press opening: June 29
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Lisa Wolpe
Featuring Mark Bedard and Jonathan Croy

“They have been at a great feast of languages, and stolen the scraps.”

Love’s Labour’s Lost is a delightful comedy serving up a feast of language, clowning, dance, and romance. The beautiful Ladies of France meet the Lords of Navarre, and disguises and deception lead to marriage proposals in a whirlwind of good intentions and broken promises. How can you create a lasting relationship while pursuing personal perfection and power? How do you educate the heart as well as the head? These ancient struggles are the stuff of constant confusion in this contemporary exploration of the labyrinth of love.

Love’s Labour’s Lost will feature Mark Bedard (Berowne) making his Shakespeare & Company debut. Bedard recently played Captain Spaulding in Animal Crackers, capping five seasons as a top comedian at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. He is currently starring as Vladimir in Waiting for Godot at San Francisco Bay area Marin Theater. Bedard will be joined by Company favorite Jonathan Croy (King Lear), celebrating his 28th season with Shakespeare & Company. Bedard and Croy will be under the direction of Lisa Wolpe, Producing Artistic Director and Founder of the Los Angeles Women’s Shakespeare Company, an all-female Shakespeare company. She will also play Hamlet for that company’s twentieth anniversary later this year, directed by Timothy Douglas (director of Richard II).

Richard II
July 5 through July 21. Press opening: July 12
(Special Limited Run)
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Timothy Douglas
Featuring Rocco Sisto and Tom O’Keefe

“Mine honour is my life; both grow in one.”

How does a state contend with a barbarous ruler who is perceived to be appointed by God? King Richard II has designed the murder of his uncle, wasted public funds, and used the influence of his crown to misrule a nation. Not until Richard banishes Henry Bolingbroke does he create an enemy skeptical of his divine mandate who is intent on constructing his demise.

The production features founding Company member and three-time OBIE Award winner Rocco Sisto in the title role. Sisto was last seen as Caliban in The Tempest, a role he’s performed twice at the Company to critical acclaim. He will be joined by Tom O’Keefe as Henry Bolingbroke, reteaming the duo after a appearing together in the world premiere of Joan Ackerman’s The Taster at Shakespeare & Company in 2010. After appearing in both Shakespeare productions last summer, Timothy Douglas returns to direct Richard II. Douglas last directed at Shakespeare & Company in 2007 with Joe Penhall’s psychoanalytic drama, Blue/Orange, a highlight of the Company’s 30th Season.

Mother Courage and Her Children
July 26 through August 25. Press opening: August 2
By Bertolt Brecht
Directed by Tony Simotes
Featuring Olympia Dukakis, Apollo Dukakis, and John Douglas Thompson

“I won’t let you spoil my war for me. Destroys the weak, does it? Well, what does peace do for’em, huh? War feeds its people better.”

Considered by many to be one of the greatest plays of the 20th Century, Mother Courage and Her Children is set against the backdrop of the Thirty Years War and follows the fate of Mother Courage, an artful canteen woman with the Swedish Army, intent on keeping her business and family alive amid the destruction of war. Mother Courage and Her Children still resonates today as a profound insight into the moral implications of war.

Academy Award winner Olympia Dukakis, Apollo Dukakis, and Artistic Director Tony Simotes reteam after the critically acclaimed, sold out run of The Tempest during Shakespeare & Company’s 35th Season. “I had a terrific time last summer exploring The Tempest with Tony and the amazing cast and crew,” Olympia Dukakis said when Mother Courage and Her Children was announced in the fall. “I consider Shakespeare & Company one of my artistic homes – a place of artistic support and enthusiasm. I jumped at the chance to get in the room with Tony and my brother again.”

OBIE Award winner John Douglas Thompson joins the cast in the role of The Cook. Thompson last appeared at Shakespeare & Company as Louis Armstrong in Satchmo at the Waldorf, a role he continued to play to critical and audience acclaim at the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, CT and the Wilma Theatre in Philadelphia, PA.

ELAYNE P. BERNSTEIN THEATRE:

Master Class
May 24 through August 18. Press opening: May 31
By Terrence McNally
Directed by Daniel Gidron
Featuring Annette Miller and Deborah Grausman

“A performance is a struggle. You have to win.”

A master class with famed opera singer Maria Callas is an intimidating affair. Just ask Sophie, her first “victim” in Terrence McNally’s Tony Award-winning Master Class. McNally takes us inside Callas’ infamous sessions, which she conducted late in her career. Callas regales us with the details of her illustrious and controversial professional life, encouraging her pupils (and the audience) to take notes. Master Class prompts the question so often posed by artists: What is the price of fame?

Elliot Norton and IRNE Award winner Annette Miller will embody Callas in a true tour de force performance. Miller was last seen at Shakespeare & Company as the irrepressible Marjorie Taub in the Company’s 35th Season hit, The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife. Joining Miller will be Deborah Grausman, producer of Shakespeare & Company’s Broadway in the Berkshires benefit, the Company’s main fundraiser this year. Gausman’s acting credits include Wendy in Peter Pan, which garnered her a Philadelphia Theater Critic Award nomination for Best Lead Actress in a Musical, Seama in the Off-Broadway production of A Stoop on Orchard Street, and Chava in a national tour of Fiddler on the Roof. Daniel Gidron, who directed Miller in her Elliot Norton Award-winning performance as Golda Meir in Golda’s Balcony, returns to direct Master Class.

Heroes
June 13 through September 1. Press opening: June 14
By Gérald Sibleyras
Translated by Tom Stoppard
Directed by Kevin G. Coleman
Featuring Jonathan Epstein, Malcolm Ingram, and Robert Lohbauer

“Nothing revolts me more than a picnic!”

Winner of the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Comedy, Heroes is the irreverent and poignant story of three World War I veterans confined to a retirement home in their twilight years. The year is 1953, and Gustave, Philippe and Henri have seen more exciting days. They amuse themselves with nostalgic anecdotes, provocative gossip, and generally irritating one another. But life in the French countryside proves to be a bit too calm, and the three war veterans begin to plot their escape. Together, they contrive what might be their last epic adventure.

Heroes will feature longtime Company members Jonathan Epstein (The Tempest, King Lear), Malcolm Ingram (The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife), and Robert Lohbauer (Mengelberg and Mahler). Kevin G. Coleman returns to the director’s chair, a role he’s currently performing for the Company’s winter production of The Liar. Coleman last directed Epstein in the Company’s acclaimed production of The Winter’s Tale in 2010.

The Beauty Queen of Leenane
August 8 through September 15. Press opening: August 9
By Martin McDonagh
Directed by Matthew Penn
Featuring Founding Artistic Director Tina Packer and Elizabeth Aspenlieder

Irish writer Martin McDonagh has become one of the most powerful voices writing for stage and screen, and his critically acclaimed career began with a Tony Award-winning debut, The Beauty Queen of Leenane. Described by The Wall Street Journal as “the cleverest, most cunningly constructed and assured play in years,” The Beauty Queen of Leenane, steeped with Irish humor and razor sharp wit, quickly unfolds into a darkly comic thriller certain to leave you breathless.

Founding Artistic Director Tina Packer portrays the formidable, aging and manipulative Mag. Longtime Company actor Elizabeth Aspenlieder plays her middle-aged virginal daughter, Maureen. Both of whom are locked in a dance of mutual loathing, which may prove more durable than any love. Matthew Penn, a veteran director of stage and screen, joins the artistic team for his first production at Shakespeare & Company, taking on this award winning and heartbreaking play.

SPECIAL FUNDRAISING EVENTS:

Broadway in the Berkshires – Special Benefit Performance
July 8 in the Tina Packer Playhouse
On the heels of the hugely successful inaugural Broadway in the Berkshires benefit event in 2011, Producer and Company member Deborah Grausman is bringing together a dazzling array of guest stars, some of whom were previously featured in Broadway in the Berkshires, paired with a new group of performers from both on and off Broadway, and beyond. This special benefit event will include a brief live auction and all proceeds will benefit Shakespeare & Company’s internationally acclaimed Education and Training Programs.

For more information on the Broadway in the Berkshires special benefit event, contact Ariel Bock, Manager of Institutional Giving and Event Coordinator at 413-637-1199 ext. 117 or abock@shakespeare.org.

Pearl
August 5 at 7:30 PM in the Tina Packer Playhouse
The new opera Pearl (offered in a very popular workshop version last year) will be presented at Shakespeare & Company as a special one-night engagement. All proceeds from this event will benefit the Actor Training Scholarship Program.

A modern retelling of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s timeless novel The Scarlet Letter, Pearl is told from the viewpoint of the daughter of Hester Prynne. The libretto was written by feminist psychologist Carol Gilligan (together with her son Jonathan Gilligan) who also penned a stage adaptation of The Scarlet Letter, which was produced by Shakespeare & Company in 2002.

The project of Pearl was initiated by Grammy-nominated conductor Sara Jobin, a Berkshire County resident, who was the first woman to conduct the San Francisco Opera. The composer is Amy Scurria, who has had pieces commissioned by the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Minnesota Orchestra, and the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, among others. Performers in the opera include Maureen O’Flynn and John Cheek, both regulars on the Metropolitan Opera stage.

25th Fall Festival of Shakespeare
Saturday, October 12 in the Tina Packer Playhouse
A special 25th Fall Festival Gala on Saturday, October 12th will kick off a weekend of celebration and reunion of participants and artists alike. The Gala will look back on Shakespeare & Company’s most widely acclaimed arts-education program through film / photos / short performance scenes and more. The evening will include an auction. All proceeds will benefit the Education Program and the Fall Festival of Shakespeare.

Guided by Director of Education Kevin G. Coleman and Associate Director of Education Jenna Ware, the Education Program received the Commonwealth Award in 2005, the highest award for excellence in the arts, sciences, and humanities given by the state of Massachusetts. It was also the subject of the two-year study by Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education (Project Zero), which recommended national replication. The Education program has been identified by the Arts Education Partnership and the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities as a Champion of Change.

BANKSIDE FESTIVAL:

The Declaration of Independence
July 4 on the Bankside Meadow
Our free, ever-popular reading of the Declaration of Independence features some of the most stirring words of political rhetoric ever written, spoken out loud by Shakespeare & Company actors and special guests from the community. Filled with music, barbeque, sweets and treats, this jubilant summer event is always a huge hit, drawing over 1,000 patrons last summer.

Shakespeare & Young Company
August 15 & 16 in the Rose Footprint Theatre at 5 PM
No writer has captured the powerful emotions of adolescence better than Shakespeare. In his words, youth spring eternal. Join our Young Company actors as they perform Shakespeare’s works with a fierce and fiery temperament, exploring their passion for friendship, love, justice, and hope.

Riotous Youth
July 12, July 26, August 9, and August 23 at 9 AM, 10 AM, and 11 AM
Now in its 14th year, Riotous Youth is a two-week program for multiple age groups, designed to introduce young actors to Shakespeare through a series of fun and creative workshops, including exercises involving voice, movement, and acting. Participants play theatre games, create craft projects, and explore Shakespeare’s words through scenes and monologues, either at Shakespeare & Company’s campus in Lenox, MA or down the road in Lenox Memorial High School’s state-of-the-art theatre. At the end of each two-week session, Riotous Youth participants create a performance piece based on scenes from a play, which they share with family, friends, Shakespeare & Company members, and the general public at the outdoor, tented Rose Footprint Theatre.

SPECIAL EVENTS:

The Studio Series
July 31 through August 28. Wednesdays at 5 PM in Bernstein Studio One
The Studio Series returns to Shakespeare & Company giving a stage to new and unique works. This weekly series of staged readings features many popular Company actors and directors who delve into the work of provocative contemporary voices. Many of these plays will be under consideration for future seasons. Last year, Martin McDonagh’s The Beauty Queen of Leenane featuring Founding Artistic Director Tina Packer and Elizabeth Aspenlieder wowed audiences in The Studio Series, and will now receive a full production in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre later this summer.

Author! Author!
July 14 through September 1. Sundays at 10:30 AM in the Tina Packer Playhouse
The 2013 Summer Season will also see the return of Author! Author!, Shakespeare & Company’s popular series of talks with bestselling and award-winning authors. Author! Author! showcases authors both local and national and covers a wide array of literary expertise. These lively and informal discussions are sure to entertain and enlighten. Tasty light breakfast items are available at Josie’s Place before and after the discussion, and book signings with the authors always follow the discussion.

Tuesday Talks
July 2 through August 13
Josie’s Place in the Tina Packer Playhouse & Mike’s Place in The Iredale Lobby of the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre
Join the actors, directors, designers, and scholars of Shakespeare & Company for an intimate discussion of the process behind creating this season’s productions and the key themes of these thought-provoking plays. All talks take place in the lobby of their respective theaters.

Wednesday Q & A’s
July 10 through August 14 in the Tina Packer Playhouse and Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre
The productions have you talking, so why not include Company actors, directors, and designers in your conversation? Wednesday Q & A’s take place after select performances.

Behind the Scenes Tour
July 3 through August 31. Wednesdays and Saturdays at 10:30 AM
Ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes at Shakespeare & Company? Peek around the curtain with this in-depth tour, which takes visitors to the costume shop, scene shop, backstage areas, weapons storage, and more. An interesting and informative two-hour adventure not to be missed!

But wait, there’s more!
Don’t forget to visit our bustling concessions stands and gift shops before and after the show. Open six days a week during the summer season, they are stocked full of homemade treats and fabulous Shakespeare & Company memorabilia! We have everything from comfy hoodies to stunning posters and greeting cards to naughty tees that make great keepsakes and gifts. You can also purchase selected merchandise online at www.shakespeare.org.

Our Midsummer Night Meals, buffet style dining will return between matinee and evening performances every Saturday in July and August to serve up some scrumptious fare as guests rub elbows with Company actors and rising stars. And don’t forget, our incredible food service crew is ready to make your group visit or special event a memorable one! Keep an eye out for special tastings, brunches, and feasts all season long.

Shakespeare & Company will announce additional programing and casting in the coming weeks, including the popular Bankside show, which is always free for kids, Studio Series titles, Author! Author! guests, and more!

Note: All casts, titles, dates and times are subject to change.

Shakespeare & Company tickets contact information

• 70 Kemble Street
• Lenox, MA 01240
• phone: 413-637-1199
• www.shakespeare.org

Shakespeare & Company directions

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Jacob’s Pillow presents Compagnie Käfig June 26-30 in the Ted Shawn Theatre in Becket, MA. Compagnie Käfig is an international ensemble of dynamic hip-hop dancers led by universally acclaimed Artistic Director and choreographer Mourad Merzouki. They were the smash hit of Festival 2012 with sold-out shows and favorable reviews; the company performs in an encore program of two virtuosic works, Correria and AGWA, both bursting with athleticism, artistry, and drama.

A major figure on the hip-hop scene since the early 1990s, choreographer Mourad Merzouki works at the junction of many different movement disciplines, fusing circus, martial arts, fine arts, and music with a continuous exploration of all hip-hop styles. He is known for opening up new outlooks in dance, while honoring the hip-hop movement’s roots and its social and geographical origins.

About Mourad Merzouki

Born in Lyon, France, in 1973, Merzouki started learning martial arts and circus skills at age seven. At 15, he discovered hip-hop and began exploring the world of dance, orienting his hip-hop style towards more professional horizons and testing himself in other dance styles. With this experience came the urge to undertake his own artistic projects, mixing hip-hop with what he had learned about the performing arts. He created the Accrorap company, with other dancers, in 1989. In 1994, the company performed ATHINA at the Lyon Biennale de la Danse and was acclaimed for taking hip-hop from the street to the stage without losing its true identity. The troupe’s first international performance took them to refugee camps in Croatia, where they learned that dance can be a potent means of communication in extreme situations.

In 1996, Merzouki created his own company, Käfig. In May 2004, he received the award for Best Young Choreographer at the International Dance Festival in Wolfsburg, Germany. Other winners included Maurice Béjart, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, and Tero Saarinen. In July that same year, Merzouki was made a Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres (Knight of Arts and Letters) by the Minister of Culture and Communications. In 2006, Merzouki received the SACD’s New Dance Talent Award. In 2008, he received the Créateurs sans Frontières Award (Creators without Borders) from Bernard Kouchner, France’s Minister for Foreign and European Affairs; the award singles out artists and cultural personalities who have had an impact on the international arts scene. In 2008, Merzouki joined the Board of Directors of the Centre National de la Danse in Pantin, France, for a three-year term and in 2009 he was appointed as Director of the Centre Chorégraphique National de Créteil/Val-de-Marne.

Contact info. and Directions to Jacob’s Pillow

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• 358 George Carter Road
• Becket, MA 01223
• Phone: 413.243.9919
• Web: jacobspillow.org

PERFORMANCE AND TICKET INFORMATION

• Compagnie Käfig – Ted Shawn Theatre
• Wednesday, June 26 through Saturday, June 29 at 8pm
• Saturday, June 29 and Sunday, June 30 at 2pm
• Free Pre-Show Talks with Jacob’s Pillow Scholar-in-Residence Philip Szporer is offered in Blake’s Barn 30 minutes before every performance.
• A Post-Show Talk with Compagnie Käfig and Pillow Scholar Philip Szporer will take place onstage on Friday, June 28.
• Tickets $39-$69. Under 35 Friday Tickets are available for $19 on Friday, June 28 (ages 18–35), two per person, must show I.D. when picking up tickets. $10 Youth Tickets, sponsored by ALEX®, are available for Friday, June 28 at 8pm and Saturday, June 29 at 2pm (must be accompanied by an adult ticket).
• Now on sale online at jacobspillow.org, via phone at 413.243.0745, or in person at the Jacob’s Pillow Box Office. Under 35 Fridays Tickets and Youth Tickets are available by phone and in person only.
• Box Office Hours: Monday and Tuesday, 10am–6pm, Wednesday through Saturday 10am–8pm, and Sunday 11am–5pm.
• Jacob’s Pillow is located at 358 George Carter Road in Becket, MA, 01223 (10 minutes east on Route 20 from Mass Pike Exit 2). The Jacob’s Pillow campus and theatres are handicapped-accessible.

IN THE DORIS DUKE THEATRE, JUNE 26-30
LEO
Doris Duke Theatre
Wednesday, June 26–Saturday, June 29, 8:15pm
Saturday, June 29 & Sunday, June 30, 2:15pm
What would happen if the laws of gravity suddenly changed? This fantastical, touching, one-man show from Berlin blends brilliant physical theatre, acrobatics, and mind-bending animation, challenging perceptions of reality through the clever interplay of live performance and video projection. Total Theatre Magazine (U.K.) says “LEO is majestic. Simple and sophisticated…an ingenious, elegant show.” A gem for all ages! Tickets $22-$38, available at jacobspillow.org and via phone 413.243.0745.

ALSO THIS WEEK, JUNE 26-30
FREE Inside/Out Performance: Naomi Goldberg Haas/Dances for a Variable Population
Wednesday, June 26 at 6:15pm
New York City-based Dances for A Variable Population (DVP), directed by Naomi Goldberg Haas, is a multigenerational dance company that brings dance to the community and brings the community into the concert hall. Through fun, lively choreography, DVP makes inclusive dance that engages communities both as participants and audience members, erasing the border between dancer and non-dancer. For this engagement, DVP brings a restaging of Washington Square Dances, inspired by Terry Riley’s landmark 1964 composition In C as remixed by contemporary composers. Washington Square Dances was created for the arrival of spring in New York City and the recent renovation of Washington Square Park. Audiences of all ages will have the opportunity to join DVP in a grand finale.

Inside/Out Performance: Peridance Contemporary Dance Company
Thursday, June 27 at 6:15pm
Peridance Contemporary Dance Company (PCDC) has been committed to presenting energetic and evocative dance since its inception in 1984, when it was founded by Artistic Director Igal Perry. Perry’s newest work, Infinity, is set to Beethoven’s “Hammerklavier” Sonata: Adagio and inspired by the striking images of rural landscapes frequent in Salvador Dali’s paintings. Infinity depicts the vulnerability of the human image against a background of vast, open spaces. Dwight Rhoden’s Evermore was created on PCDC in February of 2013 and merges his dynamic style with the company’s physical strength and artistry. PCDC will also perform a duet excerpted from acclaimed Israeli choreographer Ohad Naharin’s Mabul (1992) set to Vivaldi.

FREE PillowTalk: Physical Theatre as Dance
Friday, June 28 at 5pm
An exploration of how the circus and dance worlds intersect, with a look at the work of Elizabeth Streb, originator of STREB EXTREME ACTION, and the gravity-defying LEO, represented by Gregg Parks. Once called the Evel Knievel of dance, Elizabeth Streb’s choreography intertwines dance, athletics, boxing, rodeo, the circus, and Hollywood stunt-work. Creative Producer Gregg Parks discusses LEO, a blend of physical theatre, acrobatics, video animation, and imaginative humor.

FREE Community Event: Kids Corner
Friday, June 28, TIME TBD
Young dance enthusiasts are invited to the Jacob’s Pillow Kids Corner to enjoy a variety of movement activities and games.

FREE Inside/Out Performance: Jeremy McQueen
Friday, June 28 at 6:15pm
Jeremy McQueen, of the Broadway musicals Wicked and The Color Purple and a 2013 recipient of the Joffrey Ballet’s Choreographers of Color Award, returns to Inside/Out this summer with the New England premiere of Black Iris. Inspired by Georgia O’Keeffe’s 1926 Black Iris III painting, McQueen’s Black Iris, performed en pointe and featuring a cast of 13, is set to Felix Mendelssohn’s “Piano Trio No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 66.” “Black Iris is a work about what it means to be a modern Black woman, the push and pull of the beauty and the grounded-ness, and pursuit of a fulfilling existence against adversity and struggle” (Britt Julious, WBEZ 91.5 Chicago). McQueen’s choreographic work, which takes the form of contemporary, ballet-based movement, focuses on the artistry and emotion behind storytelling through movement.

FREE PillowTalk: Dancing on Ice
Saturday, June 29 at 4pm
Explore the lyricism and virtuosity of a distinct art form in this retrospective film program of significant moments in ice dancing history, narrated by founder/director of Ice Theater of New York, Moira North. Ice Theater of New York has advanced the form by commissioning many prominent contemporary choreographers.

FREE Inside/Out Performance: The School at Jacob’s Pillow Movin’ Commercial Program
Saturday, June 29 at 6:15pm
As part of their study in the Movin’ Commercial Program, dancers of The School at Jacob’s Pillow present commercial dance variations coached by program director Jeffrey Page.

Master Class: LEO
Sunday, June 30, 10am
For intermediate/advanced dancers, ages 16 and older. Pre-registration required. Call the Community Dance Hotline, 413.243.9919 x5. Registration opens the week of class; early registration is not possible.

George Frideric Handel’s first opera Almira is scheduled for its first modern-day historically conceived production, by Boston Early Music Festival at Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, Gt. Barrington, MA. All performances will be sung in German with English supertitles. Members of the Almira directorial team will give a pre-opera talk 90 minutes prior to each performance and the orchestra will perform a fanfare 20 minutes before curtain.

Performances are Friday and Saturday, June 21 and 22 at 7pm, and Sunday, June 23 at 2:30pm; Tickets ($30 to $95) are available via the Mahaiwe Box Office at 413-528-0100 or mahaiwe.org.

About Handel’s Almira

Written when Handel was only 19, Almira tells a story of intrigue and romance in the court of the Queen of Castile, in a dazzling parade of entertainment and delight which the composer would often borrow from during his later career. One of the world’s leading Handel scholars, Professor Ellen T. Harris of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), has said that BEMF is the “perfect and only” organization to take on Handel’s earliest operatic masterpiece, as it requires BEMF’s unique collection of artistic talents: the musical leadership, precision, and expertise of BEMF Artistic Directors Paul O’Dette and Stephen Stubbs; the stimulating and informed stage direction and magnificent production designs of BEMF Stage Director in Residence Gilbert Blin; the highly skilled BEMF Baroque Dance Ensemble to bring to life Almira’s substantial dance sequences; the all-star BEMF Orchestra; and a wide range of superb voices.

Leading the BEMF Almira production will be: three-time Grammy-nominated Artistic Co-Directors Paul O’Dette and Stephen Stubbs (USA); Stage Director and Set Designer Gilbert Blin (France); Costume Designer Anna Watkins (United Kingdom); Choreographers Caroline Copeland and Carlos Fittante (USA); and Lighting Designer Lenore Doxsee (USA). Past collaborations by members of this artistic team have earned unprecedented critical acclaim, with the 2011 BEMF opera Niobe, Regina di Tebe by Steffani heralded as “the opera production I’ve been waiting for” (The Boston Phoenix) and “breathtakingly beautiful and dramatically compelling” (City Journal), and the 2009 sold-out run of Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea declared “a magnificent, illuminating production” (The New York Times) and “theatrically vibrant and musically superb” (The Boston Globe).

Starring in the title role of Almira and making her Boston Early Music Festival début, will be soprano Ulrike Hofbauer. A native of Bavaria heralded for her “expressive passion” (Basellandschaftliche Zeitung), Hofbauer specializes in Baroque vocal and operatic repertoire; her busy performance career includes regular collaborations with ensembles such as Collegium Vocale Gent, L’Arpeggiata, La Chapelle Rhénane, L’Orfeo Barockorchester, and Cantus Cölln – among others – and under the direction of such esteemed artists as Andrew Parrott, Andrea Marcon, Gustav Leonhardt, Philippe Herreweghe and Christina Pluhar.

In addition to Ms. Hofbauer, BEMF has assembled another extraordinary and international cast totaling eight vocalists, including two beloved BEMF artists in back-by-popular demand performances: soprano Amanda Forsythe (USA) as the princess Edilia; and tenor Colin Balzer (Canada) as the mysterious orphan Fernando. Ms. Forsythe performed the title role in BEMF’s 2011 production of Steffani’s Niobe, Regina di Tebe, and was praised by the New York Times for using “her shapely soprano to superb effect.” Mr. Balzer was also most recently featured in Niobe, earning acclaim from Cleveland Classical for his “stellar” performance. Completing the cast will be: Christian Immler (Germany) as Consalvo; Zachary Wilder (USA) as Osman; Tyler Duncan (Canada) as Raymondo; Valerie Vinzant (USA) as Bellante; and Jason McStoots (USA) as Tabarco. Joining the cast, will be the internationally acclaimed 24-member Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra, the eight-member BEMF Baroque Dance Ensemble, trained by BEMF Ballet Mistress Melinda Sullivan, and eight performers from the BEMF Young Artists Training Program, along with 30 backstage crew members. With a production budget of $1.2 million, Almira will be the most elaborate opera staged in the Berkshires this season.

In 1703, an 18-year-old George Frideric Handel set out for the cosmopolitan city of Hamburg to start his musical career in the orchestra at the city’s flourishing opera house. Towards the end of 1704, the director of the Hamburg Opera, composer Reinhard Keiser, tapped Handel for an opportunity to compose his own opera. The result, Almira, was a great success with Hamburg audiences, combining German, Italian, and French influences into a crowd-pleasing spectacle of dance, comedy, and drama. Even at this young age, Handel shows the genius that would make him a star in Italy and London. Numerous musical ideas and passages from Almira would find their way into Handel’s later works. The libretto by Friedrich Christian Feustking is itself based on the libretto by Giulio Pancieri for a Venice production in 1691. It tells the story of Almira, the newly crowned Queen of Castile, and her trials and follies in a quest for love. A cast of equally lovelorn characters joins her to navigate jealousies, duels, dungeons, and misunderstandings on their way to a joyously happy ending.

About the Boston Early Music Festival

In addition to the performances at the Mahaiwe, Handel’s Almira will be the Operatic Centerpiece of the 2013 Boston Early Music Festival, June 9–16, 2013. Described as “heaven…for early music fans” and “a concentrated celebration of everything from period-instrument recitals to Baroque opera” by The New York Times, the Boston Early Music Festival will also feature concert performances by the world’s leading soloists, chamber ensembles, and the Grammy-nominated BEMF Orchestra. Inspired by the Operatic Centerpiece, the theme for the 17th Festival will be Youth: Genius and Folly. The Festival’s Artistic Directors and distinguished artists will explore evolution and revolution in music that spans centuries. Alongside a full schedule of concerts and opera performances, will be dozens of Fringe Concerts presented by artists ranging from college collegiums to consummate professional ensembles; numerous informative Symposia and Masterclasses; and the world-famous Exhibition, North America’s largest early music trade show comprised of instrument makers, schools of music, publishers, societies of historical performance, and the BEMF CD Store. For more information, please see BEMF.org or call 617-661-1812.

Williamstown Theatre Festival will feature such actors as Brooks Ashmanskas, De’Adre Aziza, Reed Birney, Joey Slotnick, and Omar Metwally during the 2013 WTF season. Other news includes the announcement that Dominique Morisseau has been awarded WTF’s 2013 L. Arnold Weissberger Award for Playwriting for her play Paradise Blue. Ms. Morisseau will receive a $10,000 grant and receive a reading as part of WTF’s FRIDAYS@3 series, as well as publication by Samuel French, Inc.

Actors named for 2013 WTF season

Further casting announcements for the 2013 Williamstown Theatre Festival: On the Main Stage, Joey Slotnick (The Big Knife; Twister; “Nip/Tuck”) joins the cast of Animal Crackers (playing June 26 – July 14, 2013) as ‘Groucho’, the same role he played to critical acclaim in The Goodman Theatre’s 2009 production. Other new additions to the cast include Joey Sorge (Nice Work if You Can Get It) and Brad Aldous as ‘Harpo’ (“Boardwalk Empire”), joining previously announced cast members Jonathan Brody, Adam Chanler-Berat, Mara Davi, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Ellen Harvey, and Jacob Ming-Trent, all making their WTF debuts.

Caitlin O’Connell will take part in the Nicholas Martin-directed Pygmalion (running July 17 – 27, 2013) on the Main Stage, joining Heather Lind (‘Eliza Doolittle’), Robert Sean Leonard (‘Henry Higgins’), Patricia Conolly, Don Lee Sparks, and Paxton Whitehead.

Additional casting for the World Premiere of the new musical The Bridges of Madison County (playing August 1-18, 2013) includes Daniel Jenkins (Mary Poppins; Billy Elliott), Jennifer Allen (Sister Act), Michael X. Martin (Catch Me If You Can). and Laura Shoop (Jerry Springer The Opera; Thoroughly Modern Millie). As previously announced, Elena Shaddow will play ‘Francesca’ opposite Steven Pasquale as ‘Robert Kincaid,’ in a cast that also includes Nick Bailey, Cass Morgan, Whitney Bashor, and Caitlin Kinnunen.

On the Nikos Stage, Omar Metwally joins the cast of the World Premiere of Bess Wohl’s American Hero (June 26 – July 7, 2013). Metwally, who received a Tony award nomination for Sixteen Wounded and whose several film credits include Rendition and Steven Spielberg’s Munich, joins previously announced stage and screen favorite Ari Graynor and Erin Wilhelmi. WTF veteran James Waterston (WTF’s Children and The Torch-Bearers) returns to the Festival in the show, replacing Josh Stamberg.

Obie Award-winning actor Reed Birney (Circle Mirror Transformation) will replace James Cromwell in Tom Stoppard’s Hapgood (playing July 10 – 21, 2013) on the Nikos Stage. The full Hapgood cast includes Kate Burton, Jason Butler Harner, Jake Weber, and Victor Williams.

Additional casting for the new musical Johnny Baseball includes Tony Award nominee De’Adre Aziza (Passing Strange), Andrew Kober (Hair), Kelly Karbacz (Get Smart with Steve Carell), and WTF regular Brooks Ashmanskas (The Producers; WTF’s She Stoops to Conquer and Last of the Red Hot Lovers). Tom McGowan (“Fraiser”; Wicked) replaces Burke Moses. Previously announced cast includes James Snyder, Joe Cassidy, Alan H. Green, and Roger Robinson. Johnny Baseball runs July 24 – August 3, 2013 on the Nikos Stage.

And the entire Off-Broadway company of The Debate Society’s Blood Play, including Paul Thureen, Michael Cyril Creighton, Hannah Bos, Hanlon Smith-Dorsey, Birgit Huppuch and Emma Galvin, reunite for the Williamstown Theatre Festival premiere of the acclaimed play, closing out the Nikos Stage season, from August 7 – 18, 2013.

L. ARNOLD WEISSBERGER AWARD FOR PLAYWRITING

Dominique Morisseau’s Paradise Blue is the recipient of the 2013 L. Arnold Weissberger Award for Playwriting. Morisseau’s other plays include Detroit ’67, Sunset Baby, and Follow Me To Nellie’s. Morisseau, the 2012 PoNY (Playwrights of New York) Fellow, is an alumna of the Public Theater Emerging Writer’s Group, the Women’s Project Playwrights Lab, and Lark Playwrights Workshop.

The Williamstown Theatre Festival administers the L. Arnold Weissberger Award for Playwriting on behalf of the Anna L. Weissberger Foundation. Championed for the Festival in 1998 by late Trustee Jay Harris, the award honors noted theatrical attorney and avid theatre supporter L. Arnold Weissberger who passed away in 1981, and is designed to recognize excellence in playwriting. The recipient is awarded a $10,000 grant, and the winning script receives a reading produced by Williamstown Theatre Festival, as part of the Fridays@3 reading series, as well as optional publication by Samuel French, Inc. Each year, invitations are sent out to theatres, agents, and playwriting programs across the country requesting script nominations. Finalists are then chosen by the Festival and read blindly by a select panel of industry judges. The 2012 panel of judges was composed of May Adrales, David Hyde Pierce, and Clint Ramos.

2013 WTF Friday@3 Series schedule

Every Friday, July 12 – August 16 at 3 PM

The Festival’s weekly reading series offers playwrights and audiences alike the chance to hear new works by America’s most exciting playwrights read by WTF company actors. The experience is also beneficial to writers who can add the prestige of a reading at WTF to the work’s pedigree. Plays selected for Fridays@3 are frequently under consideration for a future production on WTF’s Nikos Stage. Recent Fridays@3 playwrights include Christopher Durang, Nick Payne, Katori Hall, Angus MacLachlan, and Craig Wright. Fridays@3 is supported by the Dramatists Guild Fund.

The Bay of Fundy by Sherry Kramer
July 12, 2013
In The Bay of Fundy, written by former Weissberger Award-winner Sherry Kramer, May eats dinner every night on the most valuable antique table in the world, but her husband wants to sell it. A troubled marriage, a mysterious malaise, and where is all that water coming from? How high will it have to get before someone does something about it? A play about American money and the American dream of a table big enough to feed the world.

Understanding Artichokes by Maria Tucci and Mary Tannen
Friday, July 19, 2013

Understanding Artichokes, written by WTF longtime actor/writer/director Maria Tucci and novelist and New York Times writer Mary Tannen, revolves around a character who never appears: Mischa Kaminsky, a deceased film director. Mischa’s only daughter and a famed American director pay a surprise visit to his former mistress at her apartment in Rome to try to track down a rumored lost masterpiece. Their memories and fantasies converge and diverge, propelling them toward new insights into themselves, each other and the enigmatic Mischa. The reading will feature Tony Award nominee Jessica Hecht, James Naughton, and Maria Tucci.

Paradise Blue by Dominique Morisseau
Friday, August 2, 2013
Winner of the 2013 L. Arnold Weissberger Award for Playwriting, Paradise Blue by Dominique Morisseau is set in 1949 in Detroit’s Blackbottom neighborhood, where an old jazz spot and rooming house known as Paradise Club stays alive thanks to its resident bebop band. Headed by troubled trumpeter Blue, the band and club struggle to survive the city’s plans for urban renewal. When a mysterious woman comes to Blackbottom with her own money and a walk that drives men crazy, she proposes a different kind of renewal that no one is prepared for. Not the city. Not the club. And certainly not Blue.

Cousin Bette adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher from Honoré de Balzac’s novel
Friday, August 9, 2013
Cousin Bette, adapted from Honoré de Balzac’s novel by renowned playwright and screenwriter Jeffrey Hatcher, chronicles a poor woman’s attempt to destroy her extended family. A beautiful unhappy courtesan, a dashing Polish Count-cum-destitute artist, and a lecherous, debt-ridden paterfamilias with an angelic wife who’s sought after by a perfume manufacturer are all caught in a ménage à dix (at least!). Set in Paris in the mid-19th century, Hatcher’s sublime adaptation is a thrill-ride of violent jealously, lust, and revenge. Jeanie Hackett will direct and Jessica Hecht will play the title role.

Important Hats of the Twentieth Century by Nick Jones
Friday, August 16, 2013

In acclaimed Off-Broadway playwright and performer Nick Jones’ Important Hats of the Twentieth Century, Sam Greevy is the toast of 1920s women’s apparel, until the maverick fashion designer Sam Roms springs his radical creations on the world. The Sweatshirt, The Track Suit, Skater Pants: the clothes he comes up seem like they’re from another dimension, and maybe they are. Meanwhile, as Greevy tries to adapt to rapidly changing fashions, a teenage stoner in 1996 Albany keeps losing articles of clothing – a man keeps bursting out of his closet and taking them.

Fridays@3 asks a $5 suggested donation upon entrance. Reservations are strongly recommended and can be made by phone at 413-597-3400 or in person at the ’62 Center for Theatre and Dance, 1000 Main St. (Route 2), Williamstown, MA 02167. Fridays@3 are presented every Friday in the Paresky Center on the Williams College Campus starting July 12 and continuing through August 16 at 3pm.

An additional Fridays@3 reading on Friday, July 26 will be announced at a later date.

FAMILY FRIDAY WORKSHOPS
Every Friday, July 5 – August 9 from 4 – 6 PM

Young people aged 8-14 and their families can enjoy a series of free afternoon workshops that explore the many artistic and technical components that make up the creative life of the Williamstown Theatre Festival. These fun, hands-on afternoons are curated by Story Pirates member and Jr. Explorer’s Club founder John Dixon and involve professional Festival artists supported by members of the talented WTF Apprentice Company. Reservations are recommended for all workshops and can be made through the WTF Box Office starting June 4. WTF’s Family Friday Workshops are supported by the Harris Family Foundation

Following the afternoon workshops, families are encouraged you to enjoy a picnic on the theater lawn before attending an evening performance. For Friday evening Main Stage performances, families can get one FREE ticket for a child 18 or under with each full-price adult ticket purchased.

2013 WTF Family Fridays schedule

Friday, July 5
Superheroes Unite!
Discover your own strengths and weaknesses in this action-packed afternoon, celebrating the different kinds of heroes that make up our wonderful world. We will develop power moves, form super squads, and work together to solve everyday problems… as well as very unusual challenges, which might require us to combine all of our powers!

Friday, July 12
Crackers & Soup: Comedy inspired by the Marx Brothers
With a nod to the WTF production of Animal Crackers, Family Fridays presents an all-ages comedy workshop, designed to help bring out your inner Marx Brother. Using slapstick, wordplay, and other elements of farce, participants will explore comedy in supremely silly style.

Friday, July 19
Special Effects on Stage
From fight choreography to creative sound design, the magic of theatre often depends on special effects. Together we will explore the elements of a stage production that you won’t see from the audience, but that bring the fantastical to life.

Friday, July 26
The Mystery of the Missing Mystery!
Participants will come up with a fun and interesting mystery that has happened in Williamstown. Then, using games and activities, we will work together to find clues, and solve the mystery!!

Friday, August 2
The Things They Carry: Exploring Props
During this workshop, we will explore the importance of objects in storytelling. When, and why, does the right object make all the difference? This will include a visit to the Williamstown Theater Festival properties room – a once in a lifetime experience!

Friday, August 9
Musical Workshop: Creating a Finale
To celebrate a full summer of Family Fridays, WTF musicians and choreographers will help the participants create and perform their very own Grand Finale! You will write the lyrics, help with the music, and develop the dance moves before performing the closing number and becoming part of the Festival’s legendary history.

WTF TICKETS AND SCHEDULE

Tickets for all Williamstown Theatre Festival productions can be purchased online at wtfestival.org, by phone at 413-597-3400, or in person at the ’62 Center for Theatre and Dance Box Office at 1000 Main St (Route 2), Williamstown, MA 02167.