American Shakespeare Center Comes to IUPUI and Indianapolis
The IU School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI will welcome the American Shakespeare Center's Piercing Eloquence Tour to Indianapolis February 25, 2008, through March 2, 2008.
During a residency that includes performances for the general public and high school students as well as workshops for area students and actors, the American Shakespeare Center (ASC) will present three of William Shakespeare's most controversial plays: The Taming of the Shrew, The Merchant of Venice, and Henry V.
ASC actors will stage six events: two special free performances for high schools in Indianapolis and Kokomo; three public performances at the Christian Theological Seminary; and a special scene performance co-sponsored by the Jewish Law Society, a student organization at the IU School of Law-Indianapolis at Inlow Hall on the IUPUI campus.
The ASC, one of the country's most acclaimed acting troupes, will recreate original Shakespearean production techniques—such as a stage surrounded by the audience on three sides—demonstrating authentic Elizabethan theater.
In addition to performing live, the ASC will make its residency at IUPUI a complete learning experience by conducting workshops that explore Shakespeare's themes of leadership in Henry V, bigotry in The Merchant of Venice, and women's liberation in The Taming of the Shrew. The ASC will also offer workshops for actors such as "Stage Combat" and "Shakespeare on Your Feet."
A Boston Globe reviewer describes the Piercing Eloquence Tour as "simply fresh, fine theatre."
"Its combination of intelligence, spirit, and sheer kinetic energy is profoundly exciting. This is pure Shakespeare, richly alive. The play's indeed the thing, and, thanks to the (ASC on Tour), what a glorious, vibrant, living thing it is," the reviewer said.
All ASC performances are free to IUPUI faculty, staff and students; ID must be presented at the door.
Public performances (Tickets are $10):
• Henry V, Thursday, 7 p.m., February 28, 2007, and Saturday, March 1, 2008 at the Christian Theological Seminary, 1000 West 42nd Street, Indianapolis—directed by Giles Block of London's Globe Theatre.
• The Merchant of Venice, 2 p.m., Sunday, March 2, 2008, at the Christian Theological Seminary, 1000 West 42nd Street, Indianapolis —directed by P.J. Paparelli, artistic director of Alaska's Perseverance Theater and former associate director of the Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington, DC.
Special public performance (Tickets are $10):
• "Shakespeare in the Courtroom: The Nature of Justice and the Art of Anti-Semitism", 5:30 p.m., Tuesday, February 26, 2008, at Wynne Moot Courtroom, Inlow Hall, IU School of Law-Indianapolis, 530 W. New York St., on the IUPUI campus. Featuring the courtroom scene from Merchant followed by a discussion featuring distinguished professors and activists who will react to the scene, and then take questions from the audience.
High school performances:
• The Taming of the Shrew, (Special free performances for Indiana high schools) Monday, February 25, 2008; and Friday, February 29, 2008, —directed by the American Shakespeare Center's Artistic Director Jim Warren.
Since its inception in 1988, the American Shakespeare Center on Tour has visited 47 states and six countries. In 2001, the ASC put down roots when it opened the Blackfriars Playhouse, the world's only re-creation of William Shakespeare's indoor theatre. The ASC seeks to make Shakespeare accessible to all through its performances and extensive education programs.
The residency is made possible, in part, by a grant from the New Frontiers in the Arts and Humanities Program, which is supported by the Lilly Foundation and administered by IU Office of the Vice-President for Research.
Additional support comes from the IU School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI its Department of English and WFYI, TV 20/FM 90.1,
For ticket and reservation information, please contact Wanda Colwell, English@iupui.edu or (317) 274-9841.
Visit http://liberalarts.iupui.edu/shakespeare for more information.
To learn more about ASC, please visit http://www.americanshakespearecenter.com/.
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