THEATRE PREVIEWS - 2015 SEASON
Thoughts on the Stratford
Shakespeare Festival/Shaw Festival 2015 Seasons
By David Grapes – Arts
Journalist
January 20, 2015
Theatre patrons, who are
passionate about quality theatre here in the U.S., should consider a trip North
across the Canadian border into Ontario and spend some serious time exploring
North America’s two largest theatre festivals – The Stratford Shakespeare
Festival and The Shaw Festival. The American dollar appears to have stabilized
against the Canadian dollar, so the entertainment value when compared to the
costs of theatre tickets for Broadway ($150+ average) or in London is high. And
if you search the web, there are some excellent airfare deals for the upcoming
summer into Toronto’s Lester B. Pearson airport for about $500.00 to $800.00
from most major US airports. Rental cars are readily available at the Toronto
airport. (Try Hotwire.com for the best airport rental rates) Driving time from
the airport to either of the two festivals is less than two hours on four lane
highways. Remember – Passports are now REQUIRED for any border crossing!
2015 The Shaw Festival
Located in historic Niagara
on the Lake (30 miles North of Buffalo 120 Miles South of Toronto) along the
beautiful Lake Ontario shoreline The Shaw Festival is the only theatre in the
world that specializes exclusively in plays by George Bernard Shaw and his
contemporaries. During the last three decades, under the artful and highly
creative leadership of Christopher Newton and Jackie Maxwell, the Shaw not only
earned a reputation for innovative programming, stunning visuals, but also
become home to one of the finest acting ensembles in North America.
Director Maxwell, who has
announced that she will retire as Artistic Director at the end of the 2016
season, continues to produce excellent work as she explores the Festival’s
expanded artistic mandate, which now includes newer Broadway musicals (Sweet Charity) and modern classics (Light up the Sky) in addition to the
work of Shaw and his contemporaries. While many large theatres have struggled
in the sluggish economy, Maxwell continues to fill most of the seats, balance
the books and produce many great nights in the theatre.
As the Shaw Festival
celebrates its 55th season this year, audiences will be in for some real treats
including: another popular American musical Sweet Charity featuring Julie
Martell, the recent Off-Broadway sensation Peter
and the Starcatcher and a new play The
Devine: A Play for Sarah Bernhardt with the brilliant Fiona Reid in the
title role from Maxwell, Shaw’s early romantic comedy You Never Can Tell directed by longtime Shaw stalwart Jim Mezon, and
an all star cast production of Caryl Churchill’s Top Girls featuring Fiona Bryne, Tara Rosling, Catherine McGregor,
Claire Jullien, Laurie Paton, Julia Course, Tess Benger and directed by Vikki
Anderson. And last but not least, a production of Shaw’s seminal work Pygmalion from director Peter Hinton,
who many of you will remember from his magnificent production of Oscar Wilde’s Lady Windermere’s Fan a couple of
seasons back!
Another exciting development
over the past six years has been addition of an intimate fourth performance
venue – The Studio Theatre (which seats just under 200 patrons). The new
facility has hosted such diverse productions as John Osborne’s The Entertainer starring Benedict
Campbell, Caryl Churchill’s provocative contemporary play Serious Money, When the Rains Stops Falling, Topdog/Underdog, Helen’s Necklace, The
Mountaintop and the 2013 megahit production of Tom Stoppard’s theatrical
gem Arcadia, which transferred to
Toronto for an additional run in 2014. This year’s production will be Tony
Kusner’s controversial play The
Intelligent Homosexual’s Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the
Scriptures starring Jim Mezon, Kelly Fox and Steven Sutcliffe.
SHAW SEASON AT A GLANCE
Festival Theatre
Sweet Charity – April 17 to October 31
Pygmalion
– May 31 to October 24
Light up the Sky – June 25 to October 11
Royal George Theatre
Peter and the Starcatcher – April 8 to November 1
You Never Can Tell – April 26 to October 25
The Devine: A Play for Sarah Bernhardt – July 5 to October 11
Court House Theatre
The Lady from the Sea – April 30 to September 13
Top Girls
– May 23 to September 12
The Twelve-Pound Look – June 11 to September 12
Studio Theatre
The Intelligent Homosexual’s Guide to Capitalism
and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures – July 11 to October 10
Studio Underground
The Next Whisky Bar - A Kurt Weill Cabaret
August 21, 22, 28, 29 and
September 4, 5
David’s recommendations for the 2015 season!
Shaw’s Pygmalion - directed by the ever-inventive Peter Hinton
Peter and the Starcatcher (Directed by Jackie Maxwell)
Top Girls
– for its all-world cast
You Never Can Tell (Directed by Jim Mezon)
The Devine: A Play for Sarah Bernhardt – featuring the divine Fiona Reid
ALSO OF INTEREST AT OR NEAR THE SHAW FESTIVAL
Contemporary Play Reading
Series
Pre and Post-show Chats
Shaw Seminar and Symposium
Summer Camps
Teacher Days
Niagara Falls
Old Fort Erie/ Old Fort
Niagara
Wine country excursions
Lake activities
Theatre and Hotel Packages
PLAY INFORMATION
TICKET PRICES
Range from $25.00 can (student matinees) to $116.00 can (weekends and openings)
Rush seats are available day of show
$30 rate for patrons under 30 years of age at any theatre
There are also excellent student discounts and group rates
available
BOX OFFICE
1-800-511-7429
FAX
1-905-468-3804
ACCOMODATIONS
NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE
CHAMBER of COMMERCE RESERVATION SERVICE (CCA) 905-468-1950. In the Court House on Queen Street, Box 1043,
Niagara-on-the-Lake L0S 1J0. www.niagaraonthelake.com
Reservation service for 1700 plus rooms, representing every hotel
and a collection of approved inns, cottages and bed-and-breakfast homes. For a
quality experience, let our trained specialists help you select CCA (Chamber of
Commerce Approved) accommodation. All price ranges represented.NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE BED and BREAKFAST ASSOCIATION (BBA) 905-468-0123 or 1-866-855-0123. Box 1228, Niagara-on-the-Lake L0S 1J0. www.bba.notl.on.ca Members are identified by BBA in the listings. Call or visit our website for a free availability search or to book online. We maintain high standards and adhere to a code of ethics. Book with a member.
ABOUT HISTORIC BED and BREAKFASTS IN OLD TOWN CENTRE www.historicbb.com These private homes, built before 1850, are within 4 short blocks of a theatre, dining and shops. Visit our website or contact the following homes in the Bed and Breakfast section: Adam Lockhart’s Storrington House, Annette Twining House, Apple Tree Bed and Breakfast, Barrett Cottage, B&B’s “Pacific”, Blaney House, Burns House, Davy House, Regent House, The Rogers-Harrison House, Royal Manor, Saltbox 1820 Cottage, Schoolmaster’s House. Open year-round. Central air. Full breakfasts. Private parking. Smoke-free. All rooms have private en-suite bathrooms. $125-$225.
ACCOMMODATION ALTERNATIVES NIAGARA www.accommodationalternativesniagara.com A fine selection of licensed cottages, apartments and homes in Niagara, suitable to those who prefer privacy and self-catering accommodations. Nightly from $130, weekly from $750.
Check this blog in August for reviews of many of the 2015 Shaw Festival productions.
2015 Stratford Festival
Located in the bucolic hills
of Southern Ontario in the working class town of Stratford, The Stratford
Festival has grown from its humble beginnings in 1953 (two Shakespearean plays
produced in a tent) to one of the largest and most respected theatre festivals
in the world, now under the capable leadership of Antoni Cimolino.
Having completed of a 50
million dollar capital and endowment drive, long time patrons now enjoy
improvements at all four of the Festival’s theatre venues, upgraded electronic
services, and enhanced production quality on stage. Exciting indeed has been the addition of a
fourth stage known as the Studio Theatre located above the Avon Theatre. This
small flexible space, which opened four years ago, is now home to new work by
Canadian playwrights, workshops, productions, and for the first time in its
short history – Shakespeare. However,
the Studio Theatre only seats 260 patrons, so if you want to see a popular
production in the Studio Theatre, you need to purchase your tickets well in
advance.
Variety has always been a
hallmark of the Stratford Festival, where works by Shakespeare, Marlowe,
Moliere and Ibsen share the stage with Broadway musicals and the comedies of
Noel Coward and although Shakespeare did not dominate the large Festival Stage under
previous Artistic Director Des McAnuff, now that Director Cimolino is fully in
charge the Bard is once again the artistic heart of the festival and will
dominate the Festivals large Festival Theatre mainstage in 2015.
This year Shakespeare lovers
will feast on four productions including Hamlet
(Jonathan Goad), The Taming of the Shrew
(Ben Carlson and Deborah Hay), Love’s
Labour’s Lost (Mike Shera) and The
Adventures of Pericles (Evan Buliung). The 63rd season will also
feature a large scale American musical classic The Sound of Music (featuring Nashville/Broadway songbird Stephanie
Rothenberg) on the Festival Stage while another popular Broadway musical Carousel takes up residence at the Avon
Theatre.
There are many things to be
excited about for the 63rd anniversary season, including the return
of Chris Abraham to direct The Taming of
The Shrew, a timely production of The
Diary of Anne Frank under the direction of Jillian Keiley a Martha Henry
production of the rarely produced Restoration comedy She Stoops to Conquer featuring two of my personal favorites Lucy
Peacock and Joseph Ziegler and an all star production of Ben Jonson’s comic
romp The Alchemist under the steady
hand of Cimolino himself. Add in Oedipus
Rex, The Physicists, The Last Wife and Possible Worlds and you have 13 amazing reasons to visit North
America’s largest theatre festival this summer.
The US dollar has fluctuated
in recent years against the Canadian dollar and it has been rising again this
year, making the trip an outstanding value for 2015. And the US dollar has
shown some renewed this past year. With Broadway prices soaring to $150-$300+ a
ticket, it is hard to imagine that you could get more “bang for your
entertainment buck” anywhere in the world than in Ontario, Canada.
Festival Theatre
The Sound of Music – April 21 to October 18
Hamlet – May
1 to October 11
The Taming of the Shrew – May 11 to October 10
Love’s Labour’s Lost – July 30 to October 9
Avon Theatre
The Diary of Anne
Frank – April 22 to October 10
Carousel –
May 5 to October 11
She Stoops to Conquer – May 16 to October 10
Tom Patterson Theatre
The Adventures of Pericles - May 8 to September 19
The Physicists – May 12 to September 20
Oedipus Rex
– June 30 to September 18
The Alchemist – August 1 to September 19
Studio Theatre
Possible Worlds – July 1 to September 19
The Last Wife – July 30 to September 20
David’s recommendations for the 2015 season
Stephanie Rothenberg and Ben
Carlson in The Sound of Music (Directed by Donna Feore)
Hamlet
(starring Jonathon Goad) (Directed by Antoni Cimolino)
She Stoops to Conquer (starring Lucy Peacock and Joseph Ziegler) (Directed
by Martha Henry)
The Taming of the Shrew (Directed by Chris Abraham)
The Alchemist (Directed by Antoni Cimolino)
ALSO OF INTEREST AT STRATFORD
The Festival Forum
Family Series Events
Stageside Chats
Festival Tours
A Concert Version of Sondheim’s Passion featuring Cynthia Dale
Celebrated Writers Series
Night Music – Special
concerts each Monday evening June to August in the Festival Theatre
A wide assortment of
classes, workshops, special events.
PLAY INFORMATION
www.stratfordfestival.ca
TICKET PRICES
Range from $25.00 to $170.00 (Canadian $)
Rush seats are available day of show
There are also excellent student discounts and group rates
available
BOX OFFICE
1-800-567-1600
ACCOMODATIONS
1-800-567-1600
I recommend the Swan Motel
(Downie Street South)
Phone: 519-271-6376
Fax: 519-271-0682
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E-mail: info@swanmotel.ca
Watch my blog in August for reviews of many of the 2015 Stratford Shakespeare Festival productions.
David Grapes has been a theatre producer/director/playwright/educator and freelance theatre journalist for over forty years. He holds a BA in Theatre from Glenville State College and an MFA in Acting/Directing from the University on North Carolina at Greensboro. You can also read my work on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/TheatreNewsandReviews?ref=br_tf or on Twitter @davidgrapes.
