[Cast of Characters]
the house of york
king edward iv --- bix bettwy
queen elizabeth; his wife --- clare barron
george, duke of clarence; his brother --- david thier
richard, duke of gloucester; his brother --- alex borinsky
duchess of york; their mother --- jenny nissel
prince edward; son of king edward iv and elizabeth --- clare barron
young york; their second son --- maya kazan
boy; son of clarence --- dara lind
girl; daughter of clarence --- maya kazan
the house of lancaster
queen margaret; widow of king henry vi --- christine garver
lady anne; widow of king henry vi's son --- maya kazan
the court
earl of rivers; queen elizabeth's brother --- hugh baran
marquess of dorset; her son --- david thier
lord grey; her son --- jenny nissel
duke of buckingham --- adam horowitz
lord hastings --- andrew ash
lord stanley --- dara lind
sir richard ratcliff --- david thier
sir william catesby --- hugh baran
duke of norfolk --- andrew ash
the rebels
henry, earl of richmond --- bix bettwy
sir james blunt --- christine garver
sir walter herbert --- adam horowitz
the clergy
archbishop of york --- david thier
bishop of ely --- christine garver
the others
sir richard brackenbury; liutenant of the tower --- bix bettwy
sir james tyrrel --- christine garver
first murderer --- jenny nissel
second murderer --- dara lind
lord mayor of london --- bix bettwy
citizens --- andrew ash, hugh baran, david thier
messengers --- jenny nissel, dara lind, maya kazan, clare barron
[Production Team]
director --- sara holdren
producer --- elizabeth st. victor
stage/house manager --- leah franqui
production assistant --- alexandra cavoulacos
costume design --- sara holdren
costume crew --- tricia emlet, alexandra cavoulacos, leah franqui, ned fulmer, david their, adam horowitz, maya kazan, dara lind, jenny nissel, alex borinsky, christine garver, elizabeth st. victor, sara holdren
props managers --- elizabeth st. victor, leah franqui, alex cavoulacos
composer --- bram wayman
musicians --- david their, andrew ash, jenny nissel, clare barron, bix bettwy
graphic design --- sara holdren
[Special Thanks]
tricia emlet, alexandra cavoulacos, jenny mcnee, richard starck and the toy store on audubon, evan’s toy shop, the amazing riser-moving dream team (ben, clarence, taiwan and stan), rorie fitzsimmons, master miller and saybrook college, carolyne davidson, master judith krauss, joann young, professor maria rosa menocal, professor benjamin foster, jane nowosadko of yale british art center, ned fulmer, jim brewczynski, eric kubo, mark villani, saybrook orchestra, campus customs, the holdren family, the control group, the obel!sk team, brock forsblom, lesley larsen, colleen sullivan, ben curns, amanda mccraven
[Director's Note]
last year i was lucky enough to see one of the most amazing productions of my life: edward hall's rose rage, a five-hour adaptation of all three of shakespeare's henry vi plays, a trilogy whose historical plot-line immediately precedes that of richard iii. the minute the lights went down, i knew i wanted to continue that story. i had to direct richard iii.
that was in october 2004. and now suddenly i find myself here: another october, the same play, 365 days of ideas, images, sketches, scribbles and notes. i can hardly believe this project has finally come to fruition and i am overjoyed to see it do so.
as for the show itself, well, to steal the words of its title character, "what shall i say more than i have inferr'd?" i’ve been told that directing is like parenting, and a great part of Being A Director has indeed proved for me to be a long, loving process of letting go. so with that in mind, i'll leave you with these characters and their story -- you're in their hands now. (sara holdren / october 23, 2005)
[A Note on Original Staging]
"original staging" refers to the practice of mounting shakespeare's plays as near as possible to the performance conditions their actors would have used in shakespeare's day. the main tenets of original staging are as follows...
1) universal lighting: since shakespeare's plays would have been performed by sunlight or candlelight, light would have fallen on audience and actors alike, eliminating the fourth wall and allowing for greater audience interaction.
2) thrust staging: shakespearean stages were surrounded by audience on three sides, a condition that allows for multiple (and more intimate) views of a play and for a more three-dimensional acting space.
3) doubling: richard iii has more than 35 characters. shakespeare's companies had 10 to 15 actors, so almost all the actors played more than one (and often multiple) parts. the practice of doubling aims at forging a truly ensemble spirit and energy within a tight-knit group of performers.
4) cross-gender casting: since men and boys played all roles, female and male, in shakespeare's day, we're preserving the spirit of gender-switching but (thank you, women's rights, nell gwynn, etc.) mixing it up a little.
other conditions of original staging involve minimal sets and the use of live music (here we're cheating just a bit, though we'd like to think shakespeare would approve). in reviving original staging for richard iii we hope to achieve the vitality, accessibility and fun of shakespearean performance on the elizabethan stage.
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