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)

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

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• • 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.