 |
|
|
|||
|
News
|
|||
|
News
|
Dateline: 24th March, 2011
Winter at the RSC As part of its 50th birthday celebrations, the Royal Shakespeare Company has announced its programme from October 2011 to March 2012, including world premieres of three new plays, two new Shakespeare productions, a major events programme exploring the legacy of the last five decades, and two national tours – one to large scale theatres and one to schools and local venues, playing to children in the daytime and their families in the evenings. The first large-scale family show in the new Royal Shakespeare Theatre will be The Heart of Robin Hood, written by RSC Associate Director David Farr and directed by Gisli Örn Gardarsson, co-founder of Iceland’s Vesturport Theatre. It opens in November 2011 and plays in a straight run over Christmas (17th November to 7th January 2012), telling the tale of the notorious Robin Hood and his band of outlaws, who rob from the rich but fail to share with the poor. It is down to Marion to convince Robin to listen to his heart if they are to save the country from the wicked King John who plots to steal his brother’s crown. This will be followed, from19th January to18th February 2012, by a new production of The Taming of the Shrew directed by Lucy Bailey. It will then go on a six week national tour (dates and venues to be announced). In the Swan Theatre from 27th October 2011 to 10th March 2012, the company will present David Edgar's new play Written on the Heart which tells the story behind the King James Bible, which celebrates its 400th anniversary this year. It will be directed by Greg Doran. Playing in rep with Written on the Heart until March 2012 will be Measure for Measure, directed by Roxana Silbert, whch opens on 17th November, and The Heresy of Love (2nd February to 9th March 2012) by Helen Edmundson, directed by Nancy Meckler. It tells the story of Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz, the writer of House of Desires (which Meckler directed for the RSC in 2004), whose gift for writing is celebrated by the court, but her success creates fear and jealousy within the church. Her life of faith and learning crumbles around her as the things she holds dear are cruelly destroyed. Alsi in the Swan for three performances in February will be Song of Songs, inspired by the rich and erotic verse of the Song of Solomon in the King James Bible and devised by RSC Head of Movement Struan Leslie. The rolling programme of RSC 50 play readings, talks and special events continues. Further highlights include an on stage discussion with Willy Russell on Educating Rita, a celebration of the RSC’s musicals, past and present, Howard Davies in conversation about the creation of the Warehouse, a screening of Peter Brook’s production of US, a celebration of Nicholas Nickleby as well as David Edgar’s original work and a birthday party for Harold Pinter. Playwrights Tanika Gupta and Mark Ravenhill each host a weekend exploring the RSC’s back catalogue of plays and there will be a play reading of Christopher Hampton’s Les Liaisons Dangereuses. From September 2011, the RSC’s current ensemble will take its YPS Shakespeare production of Hamlet, adapted by Tarell Alvin McCraney and Bijan Shebani and directed by McCraney, on a six week tour to schools and local theatre venues, who will work together to programme a mixture of daytime and evening performances. The tour will include:
Michael Boyd, RSC Artistic Director, said, "It’s been an extraordinary first few months in our new home. Actors and audiences alike have warmed to the new spaces in ways we had hardly dared dream of. We’re looking forward to the first new productions designed specifically for the new Royal Shakespeare Theatre and improved Swan Theatre stages which open our 50th Birthday Season. "The celebrations continue throughout the year with our winter season which we announce today. I’m especially proud that we’ve been able to put new work at its heart – by revealing hidden riches of our back catalogue and by new commissions. Great writers and directors have always been at the core of the company, shaping our future while being inspired by the classical repertoire, and this season is no exception. "In these challenging times, collaboration is more important than ever. We will continue to share skills and expertise wherever we can with the amateur sector and other smaller companies and we will support artists’ R&D through our RSC Studio projects, as we plan one of the biggest collaborations in our history, the World Shakespeare Festival, in 2012."
Please note that all three Archive indices are very long and will therefore take some time to download.
|
||
|
|
