The Shakespeare Theatre Company explores William Congreve's The Way of the World through its discussion series Classics in Context.  This podcast features STC Director of Education Gregory Smith; Amanda Maddox, Associate Curator at the Corcoran; blogger John Aravosis from AmericaBlog; and Peter DiMuro, Director of Dance/MetroDC.  The Way of the World runs September 30 to November 16, 2008.

Director Rebecca Bayle Taichman discusses her production of William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night.  One of Shakespeare's greatest comedies, Twelfth Night ponders love lost and found.  A shipwreck separates twins Viola and Sebastian, but tragedy quickly turns to comedy when they wash up in a land turned upside-down by love.  With raucous antics, ravishing language and rich characters, Shakespeare creates a bittersweet tale of laughter and longing.  Rebecca Bayla Taichman returns after her "chic, funny and marvelously actedâ€� production of The Taming of the Shrew (The Washington Post).  Veanne Cox will play Olivia, following her role in The Way of the World, and will be joined by STC favorites Floyd King and Nancy Robinette.  The production runs December 2, 2008, to January 4, 2009, in the Shakespeare Theatre Company's Sidney Harman Hall (610 F St. NW).

The Shakespeare Theatre Company explores William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet through its discussion series Classics in Context.  This podcast features STC Director of Education Gregory Smith; Amanda Maddox, Associate Curator at the Corcoran; blogger John Aravosis from AmericaBlog; and Christopher Morgan, Resident Choreographer at CityDance.  Romeo and Juliet ran September 9 to October 18, 2008.

Shakespeare Theatre Company Literary Associate Akiva Fox discusses the historical context of restoration comedy and the place of William Congeve's The Way of the World within the genre.

Director Michael Kahn discusses his production of William Congreve's The Way of the World.  Featuring witty repartee in the grand tradition of The Country Wife and The Beaux' Stratagem, Congreve's delicious comedy of manners sends up courtship and marriage. Amid the gossip and frivolous love affairs of fashionable London society, the clever and conniving lovers Millamant and Mirabell are determined to pursue "a marriage of true minds." But Millamant's jealous guardian stands in their way. The only way to achieve their goal is to beat the fops, the fools and the resentful rivals at their own game—through double-dealing and outrageous deception.  The productions runs September 30 to November 16, 2008, in the Shakespeare Theatre Company's Lansburgh Theatre (450 7th St. NW).

Director David Muse discusses his production of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.  The world’s greatest and most enduring love story, Romeo and Juliet follows its star-crossed lovers as they hurtle from their first shy glances to their last heartrending kiss. Caught between their feuding families, Romeo and Juliet desperately struggle to build a world insulated from the violence, but their love races toward a final confrontation with fate. Inspired by the Elizabethan tradition of all-male casts, Muse stages this poetic masterwork as Shakespeare would have, with men playing all of the roles.  The productions runs September 9 to October 12, 2008, in the Shakespeare Theatre Company's Sidney Harman Hall (610 F St. NW).

The Shakespeare Theatre Company explores Moliere's The Imaginary Invalid through its discussion series Classics in Context.  This podcast features James Collins, Professor of History, Georgetown University, and Heather Nathans, Associate Professor of Theatre, University of Maryland.  The Imaginary Invalid ran June 10 to August 2, 2008.

The Shakespeare Theatre Company Windows program offers audience members background information on the play by inviting local scholars and members of the artistic staff to discuss their connections to the production. Discussion participants for Windows on The Imaginary Invalid were: Akiva Fox (STC Literary Associate), director Keith Baxter and Peter Shoemaker (Associate Professor of French at the Catholic University of America). The Company's production of The Imaginary Invalid runs June 10 to August 2, 2008.

Director David Muse discusses his production of William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. As swift and enthralling as a political thriller, Julius Caesar portrays the life-and-death struggle for power in Rome. Fearing that Caesar's growing strength and ambitions threaten the Republic, a faction of politicians plots to assassinate him. But when Caesar is killed, chaos engulfs Rome. In Caesar, Brutus and Mark Antony, Shakespeare created three fascinating, dynamic characters. The productions runs April 27 to July 6, 2008, in the Shakespeare Theatre Company's Sidney Harman Hall (610 F St. NW).

Director Michael Kahn discusses his production of William Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra. Featuring some of the most sublime poetry of love and loss ever written, Antony and Cleopatra is a dark portrait of an ill-fated love affair. The play begins almost a decade after the events of Julius Caesar, with civil unrest roiling imperial Rome. the aging Mark Antony, one of the empire's three rulers, lives a decadent life in Egypt, carousing with Queen Cleopatra. As Rome reasserts its claim on him, Antony struggles between his sense of duty and his love for Cleopatra. The production runs from April 26 through July 6, 2008, at the Shakespeare Theatre Company's Sidney Harman Hall (610 F St. NW).

The Shakespeare Theatre Company's Theological Discussions provide audience members another lens through which to examine the plays of our season. This discussion explores George Bernard Shaw's Major Barbara in a discussion titled Blessed Are the Poor. The discussion features STC Literary Associate Akiva Fox with Reverend Roger A. Ferlo, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Lifetime Theological Education at Virginia Theological Seminary. The discussion was presented in conjunction with the Company's production of Major Barbara, which ran February 19 to March 23, 2008.

The Shakespeare Theatre Company Windows program offers audience members background information on the play by inviting local scholars and members of the artistic staff to discuss their connections to the production. Discussion participants for Windows on Major Barbara included: STC Literary Associate Akiva Fox; Ethan McSweeny, director of Major Barbara; and Christopher Wheatley, Professor of English, Catholic University of America. The Company's production of Major Barbara ran February 19 to March 23, 2008.

Director Ethan McSweeny discusses his production of George Bernard Shaw's Major Barbara. Full of Shaw"s signature shrewd, urbane wit, Major Barbara depicts timeless tensions between wealth and charity, government and religion, business and family. At the center of the play is the rebellious but naively idealistic Barbara Undershaft. A major with the Salvation Army, Barbara finds the foundation of her beliefs rocked when the charity accepts a donation from her long-estranged father, a millionaire arms dealer.  Often called Shaw's greatest play, Major Barbara offers a provocative discourse on poverty, faith and justice, while entertaining us with vivid characters, intriguing plot twists and a hefty dose of pure fun. Ethan McSweeny returns for the first time since his production of The Persians, which The Washington Post proclaimed "stunning … acutely theatrical.â€? The production runs February 19 to March 23, 2008, at Sidney Harman Hall (610 F St. NW, Washington, D.C.).

The Shakespeare Theatre Company's Classics in Context program explores Argonautika. This podcast features STC Literary Associate Akiva Fox; Victoria Urubshurow, Associate Professor of Humanities, University of Maryland University College; and Joseph Scholten, Associate Professor of Classics, University of Maryland. The Company's production of Argonautika ran January 15 to March 2, 2008.

The Shakespeare Theatre Company's Windows program offers audience members background information on the play by inviting local scholars and members of the artistic staff to discuss their particular connection to the production. Discussion Participants for Windows on Argonautika were: STC Literary Manager Akiva Fox; Argonautika writer/director Mary Zimmerman; and Alexander Sens, Professor of Classics, Georgetown University. The Company’s production of Argonautika runs January 15 to March 2, 2008.

 

The Shakespeare Theatre Company's Classics in Context program explores playwright Christopher Marlowe in a discussion titled The Man of Fame.  This podcast features STC Literary Associate Akiva Fox; Jennifer Paxton, Medieval Historian, Georgetown University; and Professor Marshall Grossman, Expert Renaissance Literature, University of Maryland. This discussion was presented in conjunction with the Company’s Marlowe Repertory. Featuring productions of Christopher Marlowe’s Tamburlaine and Edward II, the Marlowe Repertory ran October 27, 2007, through January 6, 2008. 

Classics in Context explores the Shakespeare Theatre Company's production of The Taming of the Shrew in depth, as a literary text, a performance script and in production. Through the discussion, learn about production histories, social and cultural contexts, and approaches while examining the relevancy of the production in its own time and ours. Participants included:

Shakespeare Theatre Company Literary Associate Akiva Fox

Deborah Tannen, Professor of Linguistics, Georgetown University

Amy Froide, Associate Professor of History, University of Maryland Baltimore County

This production of The Taming of the Shrew ran from September 25 to November 25, 2007, at the Lansburgh Theatre (450 7th St. NW, Washington D.C.).