Tickets on sale now for outdoor productions of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, King Lear and Lauren Gunderson’s The Book of Will
MAY 30, 2023– Santa Cruz, CA – Santa Cruz Shakespeare (SCS), a nationally recognized professional repertory theater company celebrating its 10th anniversary, today announced cast and production team for its 2023 Summer Festival productions of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, King Lear and Lauren Gunderson’s The Book of Will.
All productions will take place July 8 – Aug. 27, 2023, under the trees and stars in the Audrey Stanley Grove at Santa Cruz’s DeLaveaga Park. Ticket prices range from $20 to $70.
“Our 2023 festival honors what’s come before, and celebrates all the future holds for Santa Cruz Shakespeare,” said co-artistic director Charles Pasternak. “Our wonderful cast and crew will enable patrons to gain a greater appreciation for Shakespeare’s plays after seeing them performed live in the Audrey Stanley Grove.”
“From the raucous comedy of The Taming of the Shrew to the powerful majesty of King Lear to the miraculous joy of The Book of Will, we have something for everyone,” said co-artistic director Mike Ryan. “For all patrons, we promise to thrill and delight! This year’s stories are still incredibly relevant, moving and hilarious, and they have great meaning for our contemporary lives and experiences.”
PRODUCTIONS OF SANTA CRUZ SHAKESPEARE’S 2023 “A SUMMER OF LEGACY”
The 2023 season, “A Summer of Legacy,” takes place during the 400th anniversary of the creation of the first printed collection of Shakespeare’s works, preserving his legacy forever. Santa Cruz Shakespeare is a repertory company, where actors play parts in most (or all) of the productions offered in any given season.
THE TAMING OF THE SHREW BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
Director: Robynn Rodriguez
Opening Night: July 14, 2023, 8p.m.
THE TAMING OF THE SHREW CAST:
M.L. Roberts: Petruchio
Kelly Rogers: Katarina
Yael Jeshion-Nelson: Bianca
Jeremy Helgeson: Hortensio
Patty Gallagher: Grumio
David Kelly: Gremio
Amy Kim Waschke: Widow/Tailor
Annamarie MacLeod: the Merchant
Junior Nyong’o: Lucentio
Derrick Lee Weeden: Baptista
Sophia K. Metcalf: Tranio
Peter Hadres: Vincentio
River Navaille: Biondello
Cayden McCoy: Curtis
THE TAMING OF THE SHREW PRODUCTION TEAM:
Costume Designer: Pamela Rodrìguez-Montero
Lighting Designer: Marcella Barbeau
Sound Designer/Composer: Barry G. Funderburg
Scenic Designer: Michael Schweikardt
Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s production of one of Shakespeare’s most raucous–and controversial–comedies will explore deeply complex characters as they struggle against the roles they have been prescribed, whether by gender, class or age. While the results of these struggles provide hilarious moments, they also provide opportunities for deep reflection on questions about the human cost of maintaining the status quo. Thorny, funny and deeply human, Kate and Petruchio are two of Shakespeare’s most fascinating characters.
From Director Robynn Rodriguez:
“The Taming of the Shrew is a play that is rife with misogyny. The world we live in today is rife with misogyny. What was true for women in Shakespeare’s time is true for women in 2023. One could argue that Shakespeare was a man of his time who wrote about the “taming” of an unruly, demanding woman, who must learn to conform to the domestic and societal rules of a controlling patriarchy,” said Director of Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, Robynn Rodriguez. “OR….one could argue that Shakespeare, a man of his time, wrote a “comedy” rife with irony; that he wrote of a woman who is misunderstood because she dares to speak truth to power; a woman who is misunderstood by her own family in addition to her community; a woman who is ridiculed and punished because she refuses to conform,” Rodriguez said.
KING LEAR BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
Director: Paul Mullins
Opening Night: July 28, 8p.m.
KING LEAR CAST:
Paul Whitworth: King Lear
Paige Lindsey White: Goneril
Kelly Rogers: Regan
Yael Jeshion-Nelson: Cordelia
Charles Pasternak: Cornwall
Rex Young: Albany
Derrick Lee Weeden: Gloucester
Junior Nyong’o: Edgar
M.L. Roberts: Edmund
Patty Gallagher: Kent
Jeremy Helgeson: Burgundy
Jono Eiland: France
Sophia K. Metcalf: Fool
Allie Pratt: Oswald
Peter Hadres: Doctor
Mariana Garzon Toro, Cayden McCoy, Miles Blue: Ensemble
KING LEAR PRODUCTION TEAM:
Costume Designer: B. Modern
Lighting Designer: Marcella Barbeau
Sound Designer/Composer: Barry G. Funderburg
Scenic Designer: Michael Schweikardt
This thrilling and powerful interpretation stars Paul Whitworth, former Shakespeare Santa Cruz Artistic Director and Royal Shakespeare Company actor, in a not-to-be-missed tour-de-force performance. Charting a king’s disturbing descent into madness, this play explores how the craving for power can shatter both kingdoms and families.
From Director Paul Mullins:
“King Lear is Shakespeare’s masterpiece. A family drama with epic scope,” said Paul Mullins, director of Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s King Lear. “We have an incredible company of actors telling this story, led by Paul Whitworth as Lear. Santa Cruz folks may know Paul best as a former Artistic Director of the festival and UCSC professor, but I am excited for all the audience members who will get to discover (or rediscover) his work as a brilliant actor. The world of Lear can feel bleak and violent, but one of the things I love about this play is its relentless search for meaning, affirmation, and renewal – and how even in despair we can find glimpses of beauty and moments of grace.”
THE BOOK OF WILL BY LAUREN GUNDERSON
Director: Laura Gordon
Opening Night: July 13, 2023, 8p.m.
THE BOOK OF WILL CAST:
Mike Ryan: Heminges
Charles Pasternak: Condell
Jono Eiland: Ralph/Barman/Compositor/Francisco
David Kelly: Johnson/Barman 2/Edward
Amy Kim Waschke: Rebecca/Anne
Allie Pratt: Alice/Susannah
Paige Lindsey White: Elizabeth/Emilia
Rex Young: Burbage/Jaggard/Horatio
Mariana Garzon Toro: Boy Hamlet/Marcus/Crier
Miles Blue: Ed/Isaac
THE BOOK OF WILL PRODUCTION TEAM:
Costume Designer: B. Modern
Lighting Designer: Marcella Barbeau
Sound Designer / Composer: Barry G. Funderburg
Scenic Designer: Michael Schweikardt
A love letter to William Shakespeare, this moving and joyful comedy tells the story of the two actors, friends of Shakespeare’s, who raced against the clock to preserve his plays and legacy seven years after his death. 2023 marks the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s First Folio, the first printed edition of Shakespeare’s collected plays. This mission-impossible production co-stars in-coming Artistic Director Charles Pasternak and out-going Artistic Director Mike Ryan.
From Director Laura Gordon:
“This year marks the 400th anniversary of the printing of Shakespeare’s First Folio…a topic that sounds fairly dry. But when you consider that it’s kind of a miracle that the compilation ever happened, the story gets pretty compelling,” said Laura Gordon, director of Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s The Book of Will. “Lauren Gunderson is the most produced playwright in the country (with the exception of Shakespeare!), and she has brought these figures from history to life in all their complicated, flawed, heroic, messy, hilarious splendor. It will fascinate, amuse, and move you. Not only is it a love letter to Shakespeare, but also to generations of actors, theater makers and audiences.”
EXIT PURSUED BY A BEAR BY LAUREN GUNDERSON (THE FRINGE SHOW)
Director: Rebecca Haley Clark
Performance Dates: Aug. 16, 2023, at 7:30 p.m. and Aug. 22, 2023 at 7:30 p.m.
EXIT PURSUED BY A BEAR CAST:
Cayden McCoy: Simon Beaufort
Miles Blue: Kyle Carter
Yael Jeshion-Nelson: Sweetheart/Peaches/Superkyle
Mariana Garzon Toro: Nan Carter
EXIT PURSUED BY A BEAR PRODUCTION TEAM:
Prop Master: Christina Garafola
Lighting Designer: Asta Baker
Sound Designer: Paul Rhoads
Lead Stage Manager: Midge Makowski
Costume Design Intern: Imogen Jeffords
Assistant Stage Manager: Bette Vajda
Assistant Stage Manager: Emily Salcido
The Fringe Show, a Santa Cruz Shakespeare intern production, features another Lauren Gunderson play. This raucous revenge comedy is about one woman doing whatever it takes to get out of an abusive relationship.
From Director, Rebecca Haley Clark:
“I’m excited to direct our Santa Cruz Shakespeare summer interns in The Fringe Show for the second year,” said Rebecca Haley Clark, director of The Fringe Show and Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s Director of Education. “I am thrilled to work with this new group of interns, who will also be playing supporting and key roles in our three main productions. Exit Pursued By a Bear, a play based on the famous stage direction by Shakespeare in The Winter’s Tale, is a comedy but at its core it tackles themes such as misogyny and violence, but shows how friendship, a belief in one’s self and a common bond of Shakespeare can help us persevere. I can’t wait for our audience to see it.”
TICKET SALES
Tickets can be purchased at santacruzshakespeare.org/season-2023.
The seasonal Box Office opens for phone orders beginning June 6. Box office hours will be Tuesday through Thursday from 12p.m. to 4p.m. Call 831-460-6399.
About Santa Cruz Shakespeare
Featuring professional actors from around the country and inspired by deep local roots that go back more than 40 years, Santa Cruz Shakespeare stages bold productions of the plays of Shakespeare and other great playwrights that stimulate audiences’ senses and spark their imagination. For more information about SCS, visit santacruzshakespeare.org, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
