Gallathea by John Lyly, Poor Shadows of Elysium at Trinity Street Black Box Theatre, First Baptist Church, January 3 - 19, 2014

 



by Michael Meigs

Kevin Gates is intensely dedicated to the text of early modern English drama. In the same secret space where he was transformed into Shakespeare's Coriolanus just over a year ago, he has conjured up a graceful and whimsical staging of a work from the London of 1588 that you've not seen and probably have never heard of: John Lyly's Gallathea.

It's a pastorale that provides definitive evidence that Shakespeare wasn't the only dramatist whose plots sent young ladies disguised in men's clothing off to adventures, amorous and otherwise. Lyly's play was performed by the Children of St. Paul's for Queen Elizabeth on New Year's Day, Gates notes, and the Virgin Queen no doubt appreciated the many references to the 'virgins' in the leading roles: Gallathea and Phillida, whose fathers sent them off under manly cover in order to escape sacrifice to the god Neptune.

Rachel Steed-Redig, Kristin Hall (photo: Bridget Farias)

One amusing hitch to this strategem: the two sweet women fall in love with one another.

You've certainly seen other avatars of Gallathea, by the way, for in Greek mythology she was the sculpture carved by Pygmalion and endowed with life by Aphrodite. George Bernard Shaw's play Pygmalion was the basis for My Fair Lady. And pastoral scenes were dotted throughout early modern European literature. Gates cites a 1574 play by Torquato Tasso. It so happens that Miguel de Cervantes' first work, a verse compendium published in 1585, was La Galatea.

Lyly's story shares little with the legend or those literary works except for a pastoral setting where various Greek gods vie with one another to exert dominion over the small number of rustics inhabiting the forest. Lyly sends three plots spinning through this 90-minute performance: the flight of the virgins and their finding of one another; the misadventures of some penniless brothers in search of fortune or at least of regular employment; and Cupid's attempts to cast tricksy spells upon huntress Diana's band of vestals, an effort to entice them from chastity to the pleasures of love.

Click to read more at CTXLT.com . . . . 

Director Kevin Gates Discusses John Lyly's Gallathea, Poor Shadows of Elysium, January 3 - 19, 2014

On the theatre company's blog Kevin Gates discusses the upcoming second production of Austin's Poor Shadows of Elysium: Gallathea by John Lyly (ca. 1588), to be presented January 3 - 19 at the black box theatre of Trinity Street Players, 4th floor, First Baptist Church, 901 Trinity Street, Austin.

Tickets are $10, available in advance via

 

 

Director Kevin Gates talks about Gallathea

Torquato Tasso is best known for his poetry and his insanity. He died only a few days before he was to be crowned “king of the poets” by the Pope. His poetry is largely forgotten in the English-speaking world, but his legacy still lives in our collective consciousness. In 1573, Tasso’s play, Aminta, was performed before the Duke of Ferrara. This pastoral play is extremely difficult to stage effectively, because much of the dialogue describes action that occurred offstage. The play features nymphs and satyrs, Cupid and Venus. If I were to try to describe what the play is about in one sentence, it would be something along the lines of, “What is the true nature of love?”

Rachel Steed-Redig, Kristin Hall (photo: Bridget Farias)

In 1588, John Lyly’s play, Gallathea, was performed before Queen Elizabeth I by the Children of Paul’s. Gallathea features nymphs, Cupid, and Venus, and asks the same question. The action of the two plays are different, and Gallathea is much more English in its approach, since it features a comic subplot, but the theme, setting, and characters of the two plays are very similar.

I decided to direct Gallathea for Poor Shadows primarily because it was the opposite of our last production, Richard II, in many ways (it’s a comedy, in verse, with many substantial female roles). But possibly the most rewarding thing for me about digging into this text has been discovering the echoes of this play in later works by Shakespeare and his contemporaries. Scholars have compared parts of the play to The Tempest, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and As You Like It. Parts of this play also call to my mind Romeo and Juliet (the fathers remind me of Capulet and Montague), Love’s Labour’s Lost (lovers hiding and listening to another confess their love in a soliloquy), and Twelfth Night (Toby and Andrew discussing which signs of the zodiac rule which parts of the body). And obviously, the Alchemist and his boy, and their lists of spirits and bodies, call to mind Jonson’s play on the subject.

At first blush, Gallathea is very light and not very deep, but there’s one aspect of the play that I think defies that impression. (SPOILER ALERT) To escape the curse of Neptune, two young virgins are disguised by their fathers as boys. The two girls meet in the woods and, each thinking the other to be a boy, fall in love. In the final scene, when they discover they’re both girls, the reaction of the bystanders is predictable. But the reactions of the two girls are surprising. Diana tells them they must “leave these fond affections,” and Gallathea replies, “I will never love any but Phillida.” Phillida agrees. “Nor I any but Gallathea.” Their love is based on something deeper than gender. Although the social order might not approve (Venus says she’ll change one of them into a boy), neither of the girls cares, as long as they can be together. It’s the viewpoint of the two girls that I find so interesting in this play, and I’ve tried to enhance the focus on that element in our show.

The Early Modern English drama is my area of interest, so, of course, I find this play really interesting for many reasons. But I think our show will still be very entertaining for regular, non-nerdy people, too.

Video Promo Parody: (Mac)beth, City Theatre to November 3, 2013

A fond parody of 'Beth' by Kiss, using photos by Aleks Ortynsky, posted by rarestbean on YouTube,
using the






production of
Macbeth

by William Shakespeare
directed by Kevin Gates
featuring Brian Villalobos as Macbeth
and Heath Allyn as Banquo

October 10 - November 3, 2013
3823 Airport Rd., Austin - click for map

Auditions for Gallathea, Poor Shadows of Elysium, Dougherty Arts Center, November 4 and 5, 2013

(image via Wikipedia)

Poor Shadows announces AUDITIONS for GALLATHEA on November 4th (Monday) and November 5th (Tuesday) from 6-9 pm at the Dougherty Arts Center, 1110 Barton Springs Rd (click for map ).

After a very successful inaugural production of RICHARD II, Poor Shadows of Elysium is happy to announce that they are soon to hold auditions for their next production, GALLATHEA by John Lyly. Gallathea will be directed by Kevin Gates and runs January 3rd-19th at the Trinity Street Players studio theatre.

Auditions will be held Please email bridget.farias@gmail.com to set up an audition. Come prepared to perform an early modern monologue (no longer than two minutes) of your choice.

There are so many amazing roles in this show, and MANY FOR WOMEN! Here is a summary from Wikipedia (Kevin will be posting more specific information about our production soon). You'll see several familiar plot devices here that were later used by Shakespeare.

"A small village somewhere in Lincolnshire is forced by Neptune to sacrifice their most beautiful virgin to him every five years, or he will drown them all. The chosen virgin must be tied to a certain tree to await her fate at the hands of the Agar, a terrible monster. The fathers of the two most beautiful virgins of the village, Gallathea and Phillida, decide to disguise their daughters as boys until after the sacrifice. Both girls are then sent off into the woods. Meanwhile, in an almost completely unrelated subplot, three brothers, Rafe, Robin, and Dick, set off to seek their fortune. At the same time, the god Cupid is wandering through the forest when he happens upon a nymph of Diana. After a rebuff of his amorous advances, he resolves to trick all of the nymphs into falling in love, despite their vows of chastity. Predictably, all three of the nymphs who appear fall in love with either Gallathea or Phillida, whom Diana has forced to assist in her hunt. The rest of the plot revolves around the relationship between Gallathea and Phillida, who, each believing the other to be a boy, fall in love with each other. Cupid's punishment, substitute sacrifices of inferior virgins, brotherly reunions, divine reconciliations, a surprise ending, and the triumph of true love ensue."

MACBETH by William Shakespeare, City Theatre, October 11 - November 3, 2013

(3823 Airport Rd. at 38 1/2 St., behind the Shell station)
presents
Something wicked this way comes…


Opening City Theatre’s 8^th season

October 11 – November 3. Thursday - Saturday 8:00 p.m. Sunday 5:30 p.m.

The City Theatre. 3823 Airport Blvd. 78722 – east corner of Airport Blvd. and 38 ½ Street. 

General Seating $15. Guaranteed Front/2^nd Row Reserved $25.

Students $12. Thursday all seats $10. Group discounts are available.

Reservations 512-524-2870 or info@citytheatreaustin.org

www.citytheatreaustin.org


Ambition. Desire. Witchcraft. Blood. Murder. The City Theatre Company is excited to open its 8^th anniversary season with William Shakespeare’s darkest and most powerful tragedy Macbeth, coming to Austin this fall. The story of a Scottish king consumed by an evil, corrosive ambition for power will run October 11 thru November 3 at The City Theatre. It is directed by Kevin Gates and stars Brian Villalobos and Dawn Erin.
“Life ... a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”
Macbeth is the infamous chronicle of a Scottish hero’s fall from grace, through spellbound seduction and the pursuit of power. Shakespeare’s study of ambition leads us from battlefield triumph to bloody assassination as our title character gains the crown, but forfeits his soul. Spawned by three mysterious witches who offer him an intriguing prophecy and an ambitious wife urging murderous actions, Macbeth begins a maddening descent into war, insanity and death where nothing will ever be the same again. Superstitiously referred to as “the Scottish play,” Shakespeare’s Macbeth has enjoyed considerable success despite its notoriety as a cursed play, and CTC breathes new life into this wickedly brutal and chaotic tale.
The City Theatre is no stranger when it comes to producing Shakespeare’s plays as the company takes classical works geared towards bigger and bolder demands, such as Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet, and provides the challenge and opportunity in a more intimate, subtle approach. “What’s different about this production is that we're trying to present Macbeth in a very personal context,” mentions director Kevin Gates. “The themes of Macbeth are timeless with ambition and desire no less relevant today. Setting the play in a non-specific time and place is intended to put the focus on the text and the actors, rather than draw focus away from them. This makes the audience a part of the story.”
CTC has assembled an exciting cast for the show including two talented veterans of the City Theatre stage Brian Villalobos (The Crucible) and Dawn Erin (Agnes of God, The Miracle Worker.) The cast also includes Brad Hawkins, Clint Harris, Trace Pope, Heath Allyn, Dave Yakubik, Eric Daugherty, Tony Baker, Nick Kier, Brett Tribe, Darren Scharf, Levi Gore, Hallie Strange, Austen Cabler, Maria Latiolais, Nicole Oglesby, Cara Juan, Elly Stevens and Whitney Blake Dean. CTC is also thrilled to have as a first-time director, Kevin Gates, whose other directorial productions include Dr. Faustus with Last Act Theatre and Cymbeline with the EmilyAnn Theatre. He has also played lead roles in CTC’s productions of Romeo and Juliet and Much Ado about Nothing. The costume designer is Jessica Frymire with set design by Andy Berkovsky and fight choreographer Nick Lawson.
The City Theatre Company is an Austin-based not for profit arts organization and is sponsored in part by the Austin Creative Alliance and the Austin Cultural Arts Division. Founded in 2006, the company has been recognized by the Austin Critics Table Awards, the B. Iden Payne Awards and is twice voted “Best Theatre Company” by Austin-American Statesman’s Austin 360. CTC is dedicated in providing quality theatre experience and entertainment for Austin artist’s and its community.
(Click to go to the AustinLiveTheatre front page)

MACBETH by William Shakespeare, City Theatre, Austin, October 10 - November 3, 2013

City Theatre, 3823 Airport Rd. (behind the Shell station) - click for map

Performances Thursdays - Saturdays at 8 p.m.

Sundays at 5:30 p.m.

(Click to go to the AustinLiveTheatre front page)

Costumer wanted for 'Macbeth' at City Theatre

Witches, spirits, insane wives...City Theatre is looking for someone to help assist with MACBETH costumes. 

 Runs October 10 - November 3. 

Compensation is offered. Let us know if interested. 

info@citytheatreaustin.org

CYMBELINE by William Shakespeare, EmilyAnn Amphitheatre, Wimberley, September 6 - 28, 2013

[EmilyAnn Theatre and gardens, 1101 FM 2325, Wimberley - click for map]


presents
Cymbeline

by William Shakespeare

directed by Kevin Gates

One of Shakespeare's last plays, Cymbeline is a loving stroll down memory lane, including many of his best loved plot devices: mistaken identities, disguises, sleeping potions, betrayal, and long-lost relatives. The play also has a strong fairy tale element, with a virtuous maiden fleeing a wicked stepmother into the woods.

Join the EmilyAnn Theatre & Gardens, as we present Cymbeline, directed by Kevin Gates, September 6-28 (Friday and Saturday nights at 8 p,m). Featuring a cast of some of Austin and Wimberley's favorite classical actors.

CAST
Imogen - Angelina Castillo
Posthumus Leonatus - Tyler Haggard
Iachimo - Robert Deike
Pisanio - Heath Thompson
Cymbeline - Chris Casey
Queen - Leanna Holmquist
Cloten - Stephen Cook
Belarius - Andreas Stein
Guiderius - Colin Iliff
Arviragus - Carter Holland
Philario - Jennifer Fielding
Caius Lucius - Kevin Karwoski
Cornelius - Lorin Craft
Two Lords of Cymbeline's court - Becky Musser and Leah Pullin
Helen/Lady - Sara Billeaux 

(Click to go to the AustinLiveTheatre front page)

Auditions for Macbeth by William Shakespeare, City Theatre, August 4 & 5, 2013

CASTING CALL---AUDITIONS FOR SHAKESPEARE’S MACBETH AT CITY THEATRE August 4 and 5.

The City Theatre. 3823 Airport Blvd. Suite D. Austin, TX 78722 (click for map)
Sunday, August 4, 12:30 – 3:30 p.m. Monday, August 5, 6 – 10 p.m. Ten minute slots by appointment. Callback date TBA.

Show dates: October 10 – November 3 with rehearsals beginning end of August. Casting all roles.

If you are not able to make this audition time, please let us know. Directed by Kevin Gates.

Ambition. Desire. Witchcraft. Blood. Murder. It is Shakespeare's darkest and most powerful tragedies dramatizing the psychological and political effects produced when its protagonist chooses evil as the way to fulfill his ambition for power. Tempted by witches, apparitions and even his own wife, Macbeth is a man willing to sacrifice everything for his own gain, and his decisions push the sanity and humanity of all those living in his world.

Bring headshot, resume and a one minute prepared verse monologue. Scenes will also be performed if needed. 512-524-2870 or info@citytheatreaustin.org to set up an appt. For more show details, go to www.citytheatreaustin.org

Auditions for Macbeth at City Theatre, Austin, August 4 - 5, 2013

Ambition. Desire. Witchcraft. Blood. Murder. Kevin Gates will direct this production of Macbeth, which will run at City Theatre in Austin during the month of October, 2013. This play exists in a very dark world, and pushes the limits of the sanity and humanity of the people who live in that world.

Auditions Sunday, August 4 and Monday, August 5 at City. Callbacks, if necessary (and I expect they will be) will be Thursday, August 8.

ALL ROLES ARE OPEN.

Please prepare a one minute verse monologue from any early modern play except Macbeth. I want to see emotional intensity and levels.

I will update the event soon with exact times and contact information. In the meantime, you can email kevintgates@gmail.com with any questions.

Photos by Andy Berkovsky: Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare, City Theatre, June 13 - July 7, 2013

Photos by Andy Berkovsky for the

Nikki Zook, Kevin Gates (photo: Andy Berkovsky)

 




production of 

Much Ado About Nothing

by William Shakespeare

directed by Bridget Fairas,

June 13 - July 7, 2013

Thursdays - Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 5:30 p.m.

(3823 Airport Rd. at 38 1/2 St., behind the Shell station)
 

Shakespeare’s Sublime Battle of Wits and Wills.

Considered one of the most popular and charming comedies, Much Ado About Nothing features the classic couple Benedick, an arrogant and confirmed bachelor, and Beatrice, his favorite sparring partner, who would rather exchange scorching insults than sweet nothings. However, the pugnacious pair is forced to forge a partnership in order to defend house and honor, and salvage the true love of Hero and Claudio after deceptions destroy the lovers’ wedding day. Will the earnest endeavor to restore a young romance elicit an unexpected change of heart for the effort’s unlikely collaborators as well? Witty wordplay, passionate poetry and clever plot twists make this the perfect romantic evening to share love and laughter.

(photo: Andy Berkovsky)

Click to view additional, larger photos at AustinLiveTheatre.com. . . .

Auditions in Austin and Wimberley for Cymbeline by William Shakespeare, EmilyAnn Theatre, June 22 and 23, 2013

Auditions for Shakespeare's Cymbeline, directed by Kevin Gates, Saturday, June 22nd- Austin audition, Dougherty Arts Center, 1110 Barton Springs Drive, 10am-2pm (click for map) and Sunday, June 23rd- at the EmilyAnn Theatre, Wimberley, 1-3pm (click for map). All roles are open.

The EmilyAnn Theatre & Gardens will be holding auditions for this rarely done, but much loved play. Cymbeline, one of Shakespeare's last plays, features almost all of the Bard's usual tropes: cross dressing, a complicated love story, dismemberment, royalty, long-lost relatives, and even a potion that makes the living appear dead.

Please email bridget@emilyann.org to set up an audition appointment. You will need to memorize a one- to two-minute Shakespeare monologue for your audition. Please bring headshot and resume IF you have one available.Performance dates September 6-28 (Friday and Saturday evenings) at the EmilyAnn Theatre & Gardens, Wimberley's beautiful outdoor amphitheatre.

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING by William Shakespeare, City Theatre, June 13 - July 7, 2013

(3823 Airport Rd. at 38 1/2 St., behind the Shell station)

presents

Much Ado About Nothing

by William Shakespeare

directed by Bridget Fairas

June 13 - July 7, 2013

Thursdays - Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 5:30 p.m.

Shakespeare’s Sublime Battle of Wits and Wills.

Considered one of the most popular and charming comedies, Much Ado About Nothing features the classic couple Benedick, an arrogant and confirmed bachelor, and Beatrice, his favorite sparring partner, who would rather exchange scorching insults than sweet nothings. However, the pugnacious pair is forced to forge a partnership in order to defend house and honor, and salvage the true love of Hero and Claudio after deceptions destroy the lovers’ wedding day. 

Will the earnest endeavor to restore a young romance elicit an unexpected change of heart for the effort’s unlikely collaborators as well? Witty wordplay, passionate poetry and clever plot twists make this the perfect romantic evening to share love and laughter.

THE CAST

Don Pedro- Tyler Haggard
Don John- Heath Thompson
Claudio- Clay Avery
Benedick- Kevin Gates
Beatrice- Nikki Zook
Leonato- Mick D'Arcy
Antonia- Tracy Hurd
Balthasar- Chris Casey
Conrade- Maggie Bell
Borachio- Stephen Cook
Friar Francis- Casey Weed
Dogberry- Robert Deike
Verges- Toni Baum
First Watchman- Darren Scharf
Second Watchman- Eva McQuade
Sexton- Leigh Hegedus
Hero- Laura Ray
Margaret- Terah Zolman
Ursula- Leanna Holmquist
Messenger- Lindsay Palinsky

(Click to go to the AustinLiveTheatre front page)

Richard II by William Shakespeare, Poor Shadows of Elysium at the Curtain theatre, February 21 - March 9, 2013

by Michael Meigs


This company, the Poor Shadows of Elysium, is newly established but its principals and associates are well known to the curious collection of Shakespeare enthusiasts in Austin. After appearing in recent years as Oberon, Prospero, Mercutio, and Marcus of Titus Andronicus, Kevin Gates surrendered to the lure of Renaissance drama and enrolled in a Ph.D. program at Texas State. His partner and executive producer Bridget Farias has been running the EmilyAnn Theatre in Wimberley with summer "Shakespeare under the Stars" for young persons and an annual Shakespeare play by adult actors in the fall.


Aaron Black has played Austin stages as Hamlet and as Brutus since his arrival here several years ago. Director Christina Gutierrez had done dramatugy for Austin Shakespeare and others, co-founded the 7 Towers Theatre Company, directed John Ford's Tis Pity She's a Whore at the Cathedral of Junk, and has just turned in her Ph.D. thesis for UT's Program of Performance as Public Practice.

(Kevin Gates, Aaron Black, Stephen Price (rear)(photo: Shawn McHorse)

This Richard II is additionally garlanded with Austin acting regulars Suzanne Balling, Travis Bedard, David Boss, Robert Deike and D. Heath Thompson, so if you've seen any Shakespeare at all in this town outside of the 40 acres or other educational confines, you'll probably see some familiar faces on these chilly evenings at Richard Garriott's reduced-scale Elizabethan-style theatre on the north shore of Lake Austin.


The company's title suggests the degree of its devotion to the bard and to the craft. Kevin Gates is an adamant advocate of fidelity to the texts as a way of realizing the intents of the playwrights, so perhaps it's appropriate to search out the phrase, which comes from Act IV of Cymbeline, within a deus-ex-machina scene rare for Shakespeare.

Click to read more at AustinLiveTheatre.com. . . .

Video: Austin Live Theatre Interviews Aaron Black and Kevin Gates, Protagonists of 'Richard II,' Poor Shadows of Elysium, February 21 - March 9, 2013

Austin Live Theatre interviews Aaron Black and Kevin Gates, who both play Richard II and his antagonist Bolingbroke. The choice of role will be decided each night by a coin toss at Poor Shadows of Elysium's presentation of William Shakespeare's

Richard II
 

Directed by Christina GutierrezFebruary 21st- March 9th, Thursdays, Friday, Saturdays- 8pm

To be performed at the Curtain Theatre-7400 Coldwater Canyon Drive Austin,TX 78730 (click for map)

Kevin Gates and Aaron Black will play Richard and Bolingbroke, butwhich actor plays which part will be determined by an onstage coin toss at the start of each performance.

  Tickets $16.52 via

RICHARD II by William Shakespeare, Poor Shadows of Elysium at the Curtain Theatre, February 22 - March 9

Poor Shadows of Elysium
presents

William Shakespeare's

Richard II

Directed by Christina Gutierrez
 February 21st- March 9th
Thursdays, Friday, Saturdays- 8pm
To be performed at the Curtain Theatre-7400 Coldwater Canyon Drive Austin,TX 78730

Kevin Gates and Aaron Black will play Richard and Bolingbroke, but which actor plays which part will be determined by an onstage coin toss at the start of each performance.


Tickets $16.52 via


 



(Click to go to the AustinLiveTheatre front page)

Coriolanus by William Shakespeare, Trinity Street Players, November 2 - 18

by Michael Meigs


In his March 2010 profile of Austin theatre for World Theatre Day, Austin Chronicle arts editor and theatre artist Robert Faires noted that certain works, including Shakespeare's 'Scottish play' and A Midsummer Night's Dream, "circle round again and again like pop songs in heavy rotation. In fact, Austin theatre companies have a curious tendency to remount all kinds of plays that were staged in the area within the past 10 or so years, as if it were part of the city’s recycling effort."

That hasn't changed, as least as far as those Shakespeare stalwarts are concerned. Since that time Austin Live Theatre has noted stagings of Macbeth and Macbeth take-offs by Philip Kreyche, the Sam Bass Youth Guild, a 20-minute version by Robert Deike for the 2012 FronteraFest, the Proxy Theatre in San Antonio, a 1930's gangster style version at the EmilyAnn Theatre in Wimberley and -- now entering its final weekend -- Trouble Puppet Theatre company's Toil and Trouble in which Zac Crofford speaks for the Macbeth puppet as he animates the bloody thane.

In like wise, there's been a surfeit of cavorting of the original rude mechanicals on their midsummer nights: following those of the Baron's Men at the Curtain Theatre in September, 2010, in 2011 there came Shakespeare in Winedale, Playhouse Smithville, the Weird Sisters Theatre Collective, and Actors from the London Stage. This year has seen the rudes riffed in Will Hollis Snider's Messenger #4 and a wheeled outdoor production by the Austin Bike Zoo; San Antonio's Woodlawn Theatre will do it next year. High school productions were offered in Dripping Springs and Cedar Park, and Austin High School's Red Dragon Players are doing A Midsummer Night's Dream this week.

 

But now we're seeing a more adventurous exploration of the Shakespeare canon, thanks to Kevin Gates and a determined band of relatively young Austin Shakespearians. Gates has the lead as Caius Marcus Coriolanus in a vigorous modern dress production about to wind up a three-weekend run at the black box theatre at the First Baptist Church used by the Trinity Street Players. 

And auditions have just been held for the equally infrequently performed Richard II, to be staged at the Elizabethan-style outdoor Curtain Theatre in February-March, 2013. Gates and Aaron Black will both play protagonist Richard and antagonist Bolingbroke, with each night's assignment of roles to be determined by a coin toss. The ad hoc company calls itself The Poor Shadows of Elysium -- from the epithet used in Act V of Cymbeline by Jupiter as he descends from the heavens, seated on an eagle and throwing a thunderbolt.

Does this all sound a bit too obscure and brainy for the Austin public? Perhaps -- but given the evidence provided with Coriolanus, directed by Bridget Farias, the Gates/Black head-to-head promises to be thrilling, both for the plebes seeking entertainment and the patricians enamored of Shakespeare's language and vast inventiveness. 

Directing Richard II will be Christina Gutierrez, Ph.D candidate at UT who has done dramaturgy for Austin Shakespeare and others, including this production, and who directed the late Elizabethan revenge tragedy 'Tis Pity She's A Whore by John Ford, staged last year at the Cathedral of Junk. Gates, seeing the writing on his personal wall, has begun a Ph.D. program at Texas State University, commuting for classes but working in Austin, where he just directed Marlowe's Doctor Faustus for the Last Act Theatre Company. These are serious and capable folks, people who know how to interpret and deliver classic drama.

Read more at AustinLiveTheatre.com . . . .

Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe, Last Act Theatre Company, October 12 - 28

by Michael Meigs

Faustus, why do you torment me so? This production of the work of the mercurial Christopher Marlowe, an exact contemporary of Shakespeare, stabbed to death in a tavern at the age of 29, held me at an uneasy distance despite its robust verse and stark dilemma.


Austin's Last Act Theatre Company, just over a year old, demonstrates its art and vaunting ambition in daring to take on this text. Their productions for love of the art have been low-budget stagings in a succession of found locales around town. Doctor Faustus is presented, appropriately enough, behind a tavern -- the Pour House on Burnett Road -- in an edifice in stone that must have been used as a garage, judging from the stout girders, chains and decommissioned hoist overhead. Lengths of black curtain mask the corners. The audience is seated in the depth of the room and the principal entrances are through the same wide doorway that gave spectators access to the space. Props are few and simple; director Kevin Gates relies on his cast of 13 to create this work in the style that it would have been done in a tavern courtyard or a church portico.

Karen Alvarado, Ben McLemore (image: Jim McKay)

In theme and presentation Doctor Faustus is directly in the tradition of the medieval mystery plays. Few texts of them are extant. Those works may have been largely improvised, but both the French and English manuscripts that remain confirm the traditions of staging Bible pageants to communicate to the people the stories mostly sealed up in the impenetrable Latin of Jerome's Vulgate. The struggle to translate the Bible into vernacular languages didn't really begin until the mid-1500's. 


Marlowe wrote this text, his second drama, in about 1588 (before Shakespeare had produced anything he could put his name to). It was probably based upon a German text of about that date, registered in English translation only in 1592. To complicate matters further, Marlowe's work exists in two variants, the first printed in 1604 and the second printed in 1616. Theatre entrepreneur Philip Henslowe recorded in his account book for 1602 that he had paid two dramatists for additional scenes to be added to Doctor Faustus. The drama continued to be produced up until 1642, shortly before Cromwell and the Puritans closed the theatres.

Read more at AustinLiveTheatre.com . . . .
 

Upcoming: Coriolanus by William Shakespeare, November 3 - 18

William Shakespeare’s

Coriolanus

William Shakespeare’s Coriolanus - Opens November 2^nd at Black Box Theatre!

War is hell, but politics may be worse. And when one becomes the other, no one walks away unscathed.

In this season of political warfare and warring politics, experience Trinity Street Players’ production of William Shakespeare’s Coriolanus starting November 2^nd at Blackbox Theatre at Ninth and Trinity in downtown Austin. 

Believed to be written by Shakespeare between 1605 and 1610, the play’s themes of class privileges and general unhappiness with government remains relevant today in our own sound-bite society as they were in the riotous streets of the Roman Republic.

The play begins with Coriolanus, a respected and feared general who is at odds with his City and his people. Pushed by his highly determined and calculating mother to seek the prestigious position of Consul, Coriolanus gives into his mother’s wishes but ultimately finds himself banished and raging with vengeance.

Coriolanus is directed by Bridget Farias, an award-winning actress and director, who is currently the full-time Artistic Director at the EmilyAnn Theatre in Wimberley, Texas. Farias holds Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees in both Acting and Directing and has recently played Catherine in Proof with Trinity Street Players and Lady Macbeth in Macbeth at the EmilyAnn Theatre.

The brilliant cast features Kevin Gates as “Coriolanus.” Gates is a Master of Fine Arts theatre student at Texas State University. He recently played Giovanni in Tis Pity She's a Whore and is directing Dr. Faustus for Last Act Theatre. Sam Mercer will play “Aufidius.” Mercer was recently nominated for two B.Iden Payne Awards, having played in Austin Shakespeare and Two Towers. Austin favorite Charles Stites will play “Menenius.” Stites is a past B.Iden Payne Award Nominee and a well-known and respected local actor and director.

A show with important societal themes, Coriolanus will leave you asking, “Who is worthy to lead? What role do we all have in the success or failure of our government? What is the price of power? And how far, really, are we willing to go to get what we want?”

Opening night is Friday, November 2^nd at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are free to the public, but reservations may be made at http://trinitystreetplayers.com/reservations or by calling 512-402-3086. Donations are appreciated.

(Click to go to the AustinLiveTheatre front page)

Auditions for Richard II by William Shakespeare, Poor Shadows of Elysium, November 14 - 15

Auditions for supporting cast of Richard II, at the Dougherty Arts Center on Nov. 14-15, from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. For an audition slot, contact Emily Toothman at etoothman@gmail.com.

In 1973, John Barton directed a production of Richard II in which two actors, Ian Richardson and Richard Pasco, each prepared both the roles of Richard and Bolingbroke, and alternated these roles in performance. For its inaugural production, Poor Shadows of Elysium will undertake the same challenge, with Kevin Gates and Aaron Black in the lead roles, directed by Christina Gutierrez. 

Which actor will play which role on a given night will be determined by a coin flip, on stage, immediately before the show begins. The show will be performed at Richard Garriott’s Curtain Theatre February 21 - March 9 (with performances on Thursdays through Saturdays).

The production will take up the questions of chance and identity that are at the center of the story, exploring, as does Shakespeare, how a seemingly small act can change the nature of history. Similarly, the doubling and rehearsal process will allow the actors and director a sustained examination of the process of making choices and creating a role. Obviously, this production will require actors who are engaged at all times, since every scene involving Richard or Bolingbroke may be radically different any given night. This is an acting challenge for the entire cast.

Auditions -- RICHARD II, by William Shakespeare

Public Event · By Kevin Tiberius Gates

Suggested Guests

• 
  

  Invite

  Pam Fletcher Friday
• 
  

  Invite

  Scott Poppaw
• 
  

  Invite

  Shrewds Austin
• See More Suggestions

People You May Know

See All

People You May Know

Susan Dillard

5 mutual friends

Add Friend

Sponsored

Create an Ad

Sponsored

The Middle

The Hecks are back! Watch the The Middle TONIGHT at 8/7c on ABC!

Like · 1,086,307 people like this.

Domy Books - Austin

The most unique independent book store and gift shop in Austin. Discover something new.

Like · Lynn Johnson likes this.

Internet, unleashed

Surf faster with AT&T Internet for less than $30/mo for 6 months. No home phone required.

Toni Bravo likes AT&T.

Zoogma LIVE at Stubb's

stubbs.frontgatetickets.com

See them October 20th at Stubb's BBQ in Austin! Click here to get your tickets.

Take a Look!

yearbookarchives.com

It's free to browse yearbooks!

Replace your to-do list

Move into Conservatory at Wells Branch Retirement and say "Toodle-loo" to your to-do list!

13 people like Conservatory Senior Living at Keller Town Center.

• • November 14 at 6:30pm until November 15 at 9:00pm in CST

• In 1973, John Barton directed a production of Richard II in which two actors, Ian Richardson and Richard Pasco, each prepared both the roles of Richard and Bolingbroke, and alternated these roles in performance. For its inaugural production, Poor Shadows of Elysium will undertake the same challenge, with Kevin Gates and Aaron Black in the lead roles, directed by Christina Gutierrez. Which actor will play which role on a given night will be determined by a coin flip, on stage, immediately before the show beg ins. The show will be performed at Richard Garriott’s Curtain Theatre February 21 - March 9 (with performances on Thursdays through Saturdays). Auditions for the rest of the cast will be held at the Dougherty Arts Center on Nov. 14-15, from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. For an audition slot, contact Emily Toothman at etoothman@gmail.com. The production will take up the questions of chance and identity that are at the center of the story, exploring, as does Shakespeare, how a seemingly small act can change the nature of history. Similarly, the doubling and rehearsal process will allow the actors and director a sustained examination of the process of making choices and creating a role. Obviously, this production will require actors who are engaged at all times, since every scene involving Richard or Bolingbroke may be radically different any given night. This is an acting challenge for the entire cast.