Play On Shakespeare, the not-for-profit organization dedicated to exploring the world of Shakespeare in performance through translation and adaptation, today announces their Spring 2023 Season.
Spring 2023 Season:
Building upon Play On Shakespeare’s mission to enhance the understanding of Shakespeare’s plays in performance, Play On Podcasts bring timeless tales directly to modern audiences. The series – presented by Next Chapter Podcasts in partnership with Play On Shakespeare – has released Macbeth, Pericles, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Coriolanus, King Lear, Twelfth Night, Henry V, Measure for Measure and The Winter’s Tale over the last two years.
On April 10, Play On Podcasts will release episode 1 of Kenneth Cavender’s The Tempest, with star actor Jay O. Sanders as Prospero. Director Andy Wolk says of the series: “In 1611, Shakespeare ventured into a territory he had never gone before, writing a wholly original play – The Tempest – about someone who could be him; a playwright manipulating characters, stage-managing spectacle, and spinning a fantastic story of love and revenge.”
Additional 2023 titles will be announced shortly.
Coriolanus
Actors’ Shakespeare Project
Modern verse translation by: Sean San José
Directed by: A. Nora Long
Dates: March 29 – April 23, 2023
Location: Boston, MA
A political drama and war epic, this play tells the story of general Caius Martius Coriolanus as war and famine threaten to destroy the Roman republic. Political plots arise and Coriolanus must win over the voice of his people—but will his pride stand in the way? José’s translation allows us to clearly see the impact of violence on marginalized populations.
Tickets and further information here.
Romeo and Juliet
Two River Theater, in partnership with NAATCO
Modern verse translation by: Hansol Jung
Co-directed by: Hansol Jung & Dustin Wills
Original music composed by: Brian Quijada
Dates: April 8 – April 30, 2023
Location: Red Bank NJ
In this world premiere, Hansol Jung’s contemporary modern verse translation of Shakespeare’s tragic love story amplifies Shakespeare’s humor, allowing audiences a deeper connection into this timeless tale. Tickets and further information here.
Romeo and Juliet
NAATCO, in partnership with Two River Theater
Modern verse translation by: Hansol Jung
Co-directed by: Hansol Jung & Dustin Wills
Original music composed by: Brian Quijada
Dates: May 9 – June 3, 2023 [opening night May 14]
Location: New York, NY
Moves directly Off-Broadway to Classic Stage Company (136 East 13th Street, NYC). Performances will run May 9th through June 3rd only. Tickets and more information can be found here.
Mia Katigbak, NAATCO Co-Founder: “I had the great fortune to be introduced to Play On Shakespeare almost seven years ago, when they asked me to participate in a reading of Cymbeline, translated by Andrea Thome. Over the next couple of years, I did readings of seven translations, and was a member of the company for the Play On Festival in the summer of 2019. I was impressed that on March 25, 2020, within a couple of weeks of lockdown, Play On was already experimenting with how to do readings on Zoom. From the get-go, I was intrigued by the project, stimulated by the discussions around language, contemporization, contextualization, and dramaturgy that the translations inspired. Romeo and Juliet was the last reading I did before the festival, and I absolutely fell in love with it. I aggressively pursued obtaining the performing rights, and fortune was with me again when Hansol Jung, the translator, agreed and when Play On wholeheartedly and generously gave its support to NAATCO. I’ve always believed that Play On’s spirit is one founded on its being a labor of love, passion, and rigorous scholarship. This spirit is compatible with NAATCO’s, and our presenting R&J with an all-Asian American cast fills me with joy and gratitude.”
Richard II; Henry IV Part 1; Henry IV Part 2; Henry V
Modern verse translations by: Naomi Iizuka (Richard II); Yvette Nolan (Henry IV Parts 1 & 2); and Lloyd Suh (Henry V)
Produced by: Shakespeare Dallas
Dates: April 20 – 30, 2023
Location: Dallas, TX
Following the success of presenting Shakespeare’s first tetralogy (“The Wars of the Roses”) in 2021, Shakespeare Dallas will host staged readings of The Henriad at the outdoor Samuell-Grand Amphitheatre.
Richard II: April 20 & 27 (Thursdays)
Henry IV Part 1: April 21 & 28 (Fridays)
Henry IV Part 2: April 22 & 29 (Saturdays)
Henry V: April 23 & 30 (Sundays)
Tickets and further information here.
ACMRS Press [Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies] continues releasing Play On Shakespeare’s translations in print. All 39 titles will be published over the next several years.
MORE ON PLAY ON SHAKESPEARE:
Play On Shakespeare is a non-profit company promoting and creating contemporary modern translations of Shakespeare’s plays. Since its inception in 2015, Play On has commissioned dozens of contemporary playwrights and translators to translate 39 Shakespeare plays into modern English, with a majority of the commissions being helmed by BIPOC and womxn playwrights. Far from a paraphrasing exercise, each playwright was tasked with matching Shakespeare’s linguistic rigor as they approached the text, preserving rhyme, rhythm, metaphor, meter, imagery, symbolism, rhetoric, and the structure that make Shakespeare’s plays engaging and accessible to today’s audience. Play On partners with artists and organizations across the globe to deliver and advocate for these translations through different channels, including theatrical productions, podcasts, publications, and film. For more information, visit playonshakespeare.org. Play On Shakespeare is made possible through generous support of the Hitz Foundation.
ABOUT PLAY ON SHAKESPEARE’S SPONSOR, THE HITZ FOUNDATION:
The Hitz Foundation has projects in science, the arts, and the environment throughout the world. In addition to Play On Shakespeare and Play On Podcasts, the foundation also supports several archaeological projects in northern Guatemala and funded the largest LiDAR mapping ever undertaken for archaeological research to support these projects (discovering 60,000 new Mayan structures). The foundation funds Global Digital Heritage which captures state-of-the-art 3D models of museum collections and heritage sites and shares them with the world at no cost. The foundation also supports several environmental projects including the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust, which protects the ecosystems and biodiversity of East Africa through conservation efforts that directly benefit wildlife, wilderness and the local Maasai communities.
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