News From the Festival
The Play That Goes Wrong: A Bit Like a Clown Car
The Utah Shakespeare Festival is thrilled to announce the cast members for this summer’s comedy, The Play That Goes Wrong, which features both new and returning actors.
For those who enjoy hilarious farces, this show is described by director Geoffrey Kent as if “Noises Off drank a case of Red Bull.” It is a play within a play, put on by a group of amateur actors where practically nothing goes as planned and everything falls apart…including the set. It is “one of the more complex shows that the [Festival] has staged in recent memory.” Its scenic elements are “a bit like a clown car”: just when you think there aren’t any more tricks to be seen, it will surprise you over and over!
The cast is as follows:
Jeffrey Marc Alkins is new to the Festival this year and is performing the roles of Jonathan in The Play That Goes Wrong and George and Moving Man in A Raisin in the Sun. He has worked on Broadway in Mr. Saturday Night and off-broadway as Richard of Gloucester in Richard III at The Flea, Planchet in The Three Musketeers at Classical Theatre Harlem, Orderly in Me and the Girls: A Noel Coward Musical at Mary MacArthur, and many more. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Nazlah Black is making their Festival mainstage debut as Sandra in The Play That Goes Wrong and Mrs. Johnson in A Raisin in the Sun. They toured in the Festival’s 2023 Shakespeare in the Schools production of Othello as Emilia and Bianca. Black played Viola in Twelfth Night for Emit Theatre, Cordelia in King Lear at Barefoot Shakespeare, and Gwendolyn in The Importance of Being Earnest at Encounters Theatre. They also played Rosalind in the film As You Like It, presented by Shakespeare in the Woods.
Laura Brennan performed with the Festival’s Shakespeare in the Schools education tour of Much Ado About Nothing in 2022. This season will be her mainstage debut as well, playing Stage Hand in The Play That Goes Wrong and Harriet Smith and Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical. She has also performed with Hoosier Shakespeare Festival, Texas Shakespeare Festival, Cider Mill Playhouse, and First Folio Theatre, among many others.
Rhett Guter returns to the Festival, playing Chris in The Play That Goes Wrong and Mr. George Knightley in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical this season. He has performed in over twenty Festival productions between 2005 and 2021, including Ragtime, The Pirates of Penzance, Peter and the Starcatcher, The Music Man, and The Greenshow. He is also a magician and prolific choreographer, having choreographed numerous productions here. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Blake Henri will play the role of Robert in The Play That Goes Wrong and Karl Lindner in A Raisin in the Sun and is new to the Festival. He played The Poet in The Iliad at Oklahoma Shakespeare, Murray in The Odd Couple at WaterTower Theatre, Boddy in Clue at Dallas Theater Center, and much more. Henri has appeared in film and television on Love and Death, American Underdog, Great Plains, and more.
Chris Mixon returns for his eleventh season at the Festival since 2002. This time he will be playing Dennis in The Play That Goes Wrong and Mr. Woodhouse and Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical. His theatre work includes the national Broadway tour of How to Succeed in Business Without Trying, world and NYC premieres at Pearl Theatre Company, and productions at Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Pioneer Theatre Company, Geva Theatre, Orlando Shakespeare Theatre, and Alabama Shakespeare Theatre, among many others. He also has film and television credits including The Rosa Parks Story (CBS), All My Children (ABC), One Life to Live (ABC), and Law & Order (Wolf Films/Universal TV). He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Melinda Parrett returns as Annie in The Play That Goes Wrong and Miss Bates and Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical. She has performed in nearly twenty productions at the Festival since 2007, including as Mrs. White in Clue, Elsa Schraeder in The Sound of Music, Titania and Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Adelaide in Guys and Dolls, and Reno Sweeney in Anything Goes. Other theatres she has worked at include Denver Center, Goodspeed Opera House, Geva Theatre, Santa Cruz Shakespeare, and Oregon Cabaret Theatre. She is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Jim Poulos returns for his fourth season at the Festival, having previously played Ross in Macbeth, Henry VI and Ensemble in Henry VI Part One and The Conclusion of Henry VI: Parts Two and Three, and The Duke and Ensemble in Big River. This season he will perform as Max in The Play That Goes Wrong and Mr. Elton and Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical. Other theatres include American Repertory Theatre, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Geva Theatre, Denver Center, and Great River Shakespeare Festival, among others. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Cameron Vargas is new to the Festival and will perform the roles of Trevor in The Play That Goes Wrong and Robert Martin and Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical. He has also acted in Dogfight at Sierra Repertory Theatre, West Side Story and Little Women at Granbury Theatre Company, Indivisible With… and Julius Caesar at Milwaukee Rep Project, and several others at PCPA.
Grace Wissink is also new to audiences at the Festival. This season she will perform as Stage Hand in The Play That Goes Wrong and Elizabeth Martin and Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical. Previous experience includes Hamlet at Playmakers Repertory Company, Nia and Dance Nation at Kenan Theatre Company, Fun Home at Company Carolina, and The Birthday Party at LAB! Theatre.
The 2023 season of the Utah Shakespeare Festival runs from June 21 to October 7 and includes Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical, A Raisin in the Sun, The Play That Goes Wrong, Timon of Athens, and Coriolanus, as well as all the experiences surrounding the plays, such as The Greenshow, seminars, orientations, and backstage tours. Tickets and information are available by calling 800-PLAYTIX or visiting bard.org.
Festival Throws 22nd Annual Bard's Birthday Bash
The Festival celebrated William Shakespeare’s 459th birthday in April with a three-day bash! The Bard is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the English language, as well as one of its most revered and studied dramatists, and we love involving the community––and especially students––when we celebrate him. The Bard’s Birthday Bash took place on April 19-21 this year.
Since the Festival was founded in 1961 by the late Fred C. Adams, we have celebrated the genius, magic, brilliance, and importance of Shakespeare’s works and continue to recognize him as the cornerstone of our mission.
“It’s a way to celebrate Shakespeare and theatrical performance, and to get a taste of theatre, dance, and youthful energy and optimism,” Interim Managing Director Michael Bahr said.
The 22nd annual event targets local elementary school students, in order to build excitement and connection to Shakespeare at a young age. Community members were also welcome to attend.
The celebration took place on the grounds of Southern Utah University and consisted of jousting, dancing the Maypole, performances in the Adams Memorial Theatre, theatre games, and birthday cake with Queen Elizabeth. This year, the bash was even more special––an extra day was added to the schedule to make room to celebrate with even more students, teachers, and community members.
“Celebrating The Bard with young people is one of the highlights of the year. These students come with such enthusiasm and joy, while participating in both performative and physical activities,” Associate Education Director Stewart Shelley said.
“As the 2023 school year comes to a close, it is wonderful to see students out-of-doors, laughing, playing, and enjoying this birthday celebration together,” Shelley added.
A cadre of volunteers from the Festival’s education department, Guild of the Utah Shakespeare Festival, and SUU Play Team members ran the event.
“Students rotated through the different activities and shared in the celebratory festivities,” Shelley explained. “Many schools were able to perform a brief piece of Shakespeare’s literature with us on the Adams stage, and others who didn’t bring a piece had the opportunity to learn and perform some lines while here.”
To register for next year’s Birthday Bash, email usfeducation@bard.org with the name of the school, the teachers, contact information, and the approximate number of students. For information about the Festival’s upcoming season and to purchase tickets, visit bard.org or call 1-800-PLAYTIX.
Othello and Every Brilliant Thing Tours Come to a Close
The Festival has been in the midst of two touring productions since January of this year–– Othello and Every Brilliant Thing––and these productions recently came to a close.
“We are so pleased to report that both the Shakespeare in the Schools and Every Brilliant Thing tours returned home safely to Cedar City on Saturday, the 22nd of April,” Associate Education Director Stewart Shelley said.
Othello, directed by Cordell Cole, toured for the Shakespeare in the Schools education program which was funded by the National Endowment for the Arts/Arts Midwest, Utah State Office of Education, and Ally Bank, and Every Brilliant Thing was funded by the Utah State Legislature. While the audiences were similar, the goals for each show were different.
Othello was designed for audiences to have a condensed yet complete theatrical experience, with lights, costume, and sound design. Every Brilliant Thing was a much smaller production with only one actor that aimed to reach students with important messages about mental health and hope.
Othello
Shakespeare in the Schools is a program that “brings quality Shakespeare performances and workshops to schools and communities throughout the West,” and has been doing so for twenty-nine years. This year was no exception. This time the touring company performed for nearly 10,000 students and 600 teachers and staff.
Since January 30, a team of ten members traveled across Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, and Utah to bring timely messages of the dangers of jealousy, racism, and manipulation found in Othello to primarily middle and high school students. The team consisted of Tour Manager Abby Nakken, Stage Manager Lindy Rublaitus, Technical Director April Salazar, and actors Nazlah Black, Darin Earl II, Ian Geers, Rachel J. Jones, Shay Jowers, Noah Ratgen, and Nic Sanchez.
View photos from the Othello tour here.
Every Brilliant Thing
Filled with humor and inventiveness, the plot explored hope and depression, change and uncertainty, relationships and risk, guilt and forgiveness.
Also directed by Cordell Cole, the traveling company consisted of just four members: Tour Manager Jordan Simmons, Stage Manager Kathryn Whilden, and actors Kat Lee and Jeremy Thompson, who took turns playing the role.
Beginning February 13, the tour traveled to numerous schools and communities in Utah. The production was free to any school in Utah that was interested and was performed for almost 2,000 students and 500 adults.
View photos from the Every Brilliant Thing tour here.
On the Road
The touring season presented challenges, such as record snowfall and incredibly emotional shows that required a lot from the teams. But the company members of the two tours were pleased to reach so many people.
“We had incredible responses from our audiences with thought provoking and exciting questions during our talkbacks after the shows,” Shelley said. “We are sad to see our team depart, but incredibly proud of the work they have done over the past four months.”
2024 Tours
Although the tours recently had their last performances this year, touring will continue in the spring of 2024.
The title for next year’s Shakespeare in the Schools was recently announced by the Festival’s education staff.
“2024 will be the 30th Anniversary of the Festival’s Shakespeare in the Schools program! To mark this milestone, we are thrilled to be presenting Shakespeare’s incomparable Hamlet for schools across the region,” Education Director Katherine Norman said.
“In addition to our immense gratitude for the work of these two tours, we are also excitedly looking forward to next year! 2024 will be the third iteration of Every Brilliant Thing throughout the state of Utah,” Norman said. “We are thrilled to be able to bring this hopeful and life-saving message to even more students.”
For more information about next year’s educational touring productions, please reach out to the Festival’s education department at usfeducation@bard.org.
5th Annual Make A Scene Fundraiser a Successful, Fun Event
The Utah Shakespeare Festival hosted the fifth annual Make A Scene fundraising event on April 19 at the West Valley City Performing Arts Center in northern Utah. The one-night-only gala featured dinner and a comedic performance of Romeo and Juliet, directed by Festival actor Quinn Mattfeld.
Additional Festival actors Michael Doherty, Melinda Parrett, and Rhett Guter brought laughter and magic––literally––to the night, with Mattfeld, Doherty, and Parrett onstage, and Guter performing magic tricks throughout the evening.
Utah State University actress Mia Gatherum also hit the stage, and with Mattfeld, the duo played Juliet and Romeo.
“Quinn, my team, and I knew that an evening of laughter, food, and fun would be the perfect kick-off to the upcoming 2023 season,” said Director of Development and Communications Donn Jersey. “We really had a great time putting it all together.”
Development Associate Emily Cacho noted that the event was filled with friends and supporters, both old and new.
“We had a fantastic turnout, with around 200 people in attendance,” Cacho said. “We had many new fans of the Utah Shakespeare Festival in attendance as well as many tried-and-true patrons of our organization. Overall I would say we had a very successful event!”
Additionally, over $60,000 was raised at the event to support the Festival’s endeavors.
“There were many special guests in attendance, including Utah state legislatures and civic leaders, as well as our friends from Pathway and Associates,” Cacho said.
Interim Artistic Director/Director of New Play Development Derek Charles Livingston seconded Cacho’s remarks, calling the event a “terrific and fun-filled evening.”
He also expressed his gratitude to the supporters and performers who made the evening possible.
“We are so fortunate to have such wonderful supporters who will ‘play’ along with us, and such a great family of actors to make a whole evening come alive,” Livingston said.
Ultimately, the evening represented what the Festival stands for: “This whole event was an example of what makes the Festival a special organization – the spirit, the storytelling, the camaraderie, the magic.”
Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical: A Heartfelt Celebration
The Utah Shakespeare Festival is excited to announce the cast members for this summer’s production of Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical, including familiar faces to Festival audiences as well as new company members making their first appearance here.
As an ardent Jane Austen fan, director Valerie Rachelle says she is thrilled to bring this story to the stage, and especially as a musical because Austen’s characters are so “comedic, loving, laughable, and heartfelt”. She compares the show to champagne, as she hopes audiences will enjoy the sparkle, celebration, elegance, joy, and humor, all based on Jane Austen’s beloved novel. This is a perfect production for the whole family to enjoy
The lead cast is as follows:
Allie Babich returns to the Festival after eight years. This season she plays Emma Woodhouse in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and Balthasar in Romeo and Juliet. Festival audiences may remember her as Ensign Nellie Forbush in South Pacific, Ela Delahay in Charley’s Aunt, and Vixen/Ensemble in Dracula. She has also performed with First Stage, Milwaukee Opera Theatre, American Shakespeare Center, Door Shakespeare, Guthrie Theatre, and in an international Disney on Classic: A Magical Night Tour to Japan. She is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Laura Brennan performed with the Festival’s Shakespeare in the Schools education tour of Much Ado About Nothing in 2022. This season will be her mainstage debut, playing Harriet Smith/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and Stage Hand in The Play That Goes Wrong. She has also performed with Hoosier Shakespeare Festival, Texas Shakespeare Festival, Cider Mill Playhouse, and First Folio Theatre, among many others.
Rhett Guter returns to the Festival, playing Mr. George Knightley in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and Chris in The Play That Goes Wrong this season. He has performed in over twenty Festival productions between 2005 and 2021, including Ragtime, The Pirates of Penzance, Peter and the Starcatcher, The Music Man, and The Greenshow. He is also a magician and prolific choreographer, having choreographed numerous productions here. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Chris Mixon returns for his eleventh season at the Festival since 2002. This time he will be playing Mr. Woodhouse/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and Dennis in The Play That Goes Wrong. His theatre work included the national Broadway tour of How to Succeed in Business Without Trying, world and NYC premieres at Pearl Theatre Company, and productions at Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Pioneer Theatre Company, Geva Theatre, Orlando Shakespeare Theatre, and Orlando Shakespeare Theatre, among many others. He also has film and television credits including The Rosa Parks Story (CBS), All My Children (ABC), One Life to Live (ABC), and Law & Order (Wolf Films/Universal TV). He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Melinda Parrett returns as Miss Bates/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and Annie in The Play That Goes Wrong. She has performed in nearly twenty productions at the Festival since 2007, including as Mrs. White in Clue, Elsa Schraeder in The Sound of Music, Titania/Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Adelaide in Guys and Dolls, and Reno Sweeney in Anything Goes. Other theatres she has worked at include Denver Center, Goodspeed Opera House, Geva Theatre, Santa Cruz Shakespeare, and Oregon Cabaret Theatre. She is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Jim Poulos returns for his fourth season at the Festival, having previously played Ross in Macbeth, Henry VI/Ensemble in Henry VI Part One and The Conclusion of Henry VI: Parts Two and Three, and The Duke/Ensemble in Big River. This season he will perform as Mr. Elton/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and Max in The Play That Goes Wrong. Other theatres include American Repertory Theatre, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Geva Theatre, Denver Center, and Great River Shakespeare Festival, among others. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Gilberto Saenz performed with the Festival’s Shakespeare in the Schools education virtual tour of Julius Caesar in 2021 and makes his mainstage debut this season as Mr. Frank Churchill/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet. He has also performed with AhHa Broadway as Ernst Robel in Spring Awakening, The Tank NYC as Avery the Amazing in Amazing, and Milwaukee Rep as Indio in West Side Story. He has also appeared in the films Voyeur and Untitled Tenderness Project.
Marissa Swanner is new to the Festival and will play Mrs. Elton/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and is a Featured Performer in The Greenshow. Previous experience includes directing and choreographing Tick, Tick… BOOM! at Lyrique Music Productions, The King and I with Drury Lane Theatre, South Pacific and All Shook Up at Flat Rock Playhouse, Breakfast at Tiffany’s at Dinah Washington Center, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Amazon Prime.
Additional members of the cast are:
Evelyn Carol Case makes her Festival debut as Mrs. Bates/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and Prince Escalus in Romeo and Juliet. She has appeared with Prague Shakespeare Company, Shakespeare Orange County, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, The Laguna Playhouse, and ten seasons as a resident artist with the Alabama Shakespeare Festival.
Tim Fullerton is returning to the Festival after appearing as Judge in last season’s Sweeney Todd and Cornwall in King Lear. Audiences can see him this season as Mr. Weston/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and Capulet in Romeo and Juliet. Productions with other theatre companies include Poirot: Murder on the Links with Oregon Cabaret Theatre, The Book of Will with Texas Shakespeare, Mamma Mia! with Pacific Conservatory Theatre, and he was part of the original cast recording of The Three Musketeers with American Musical Theatre.
Kat Lee returns to the Festival, coming directly from this year’s Every Brilliant Thing Utah touring production. This season she will play Mrs. Weston/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and Lady Montague/Paris page in Romeo and Juliet. Additional roles with the Festival include two seasons as a Featured Performer in the The Greenshow, Harlem Woman in Ragtime, and Angel-ett/Ensemble in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, among others. She has also performed at the Denver Center, Short North Stage, and Lyric Repertory Theatre.
Cameron Vargas is new to the Festival and will perform the roles of Robert Martin/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and Trevor in The Play That Goes Wrong. He has also acted in Dogfight at Sierra Repertory Theatre, West Side Story and Little Women at Granbury Theatre Company, Indivisible With… and Julius Caesar at Milwaukee Rep Project, and several others at PCPA.
Grace Wissink is also new to audiences at the Festival. This season she will perform as Elizabeth Martin/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical and Stage Hand in The Play That Goes Wrong. Previous experience includes Hamlet at Playmakers Repertory Company, Nia and Dance Nation at Kenan Theatre Company, Fun Home at Company Carolina, and The Birthday Party at LAB! Theatre.
The 2023 season of the Utah Shakespeare Festival runs from June 21 to October 7 and includes Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical, A Raisin in the Sun, The Play That Goes Wrong, Timon of Athens, and Coriolanus, as well as all the experiences surrounding the plays, such as The Greenshow, seminars, orientations, and backstage tours. Tickets and information are available by calling 800-PLAYTIX or visiting bard.org.
10 Fascinating Facts about Jane Austen's Emma The Musical
This novel-to-play adaptation is based off of the popular book by Jane Austen and is known for its “handsome, clever, and rich” heroine, as its famous first-line describes. The Festival’s production, directed by Valerie Rachelle, promises to be sweet, intelligent, and buoyant, fun for the whole family, and is one not to be missed!
About Jane Austen’s Novel
- Unlike Austen’s other beloved female characters faced with the dilemma of marrying for status, Emma is not concerned about marriage. Instead, she is worried about boredom! Although this received criticism at the time, this is something many readers now love most about Emma.
- Elizabeth Bennet, from Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice, was seen as “a delightful creature.” The author set out to create Emma as a main character that “whom no one but myself would much like.” However, it turned out the realism and lack of perfection that Austen illustrated in the supposedly unlikeable heroine became one of her most popular characters.
- Austen is known profoundly for her strong female characters and bold writing. The Guardian wrote “Female self-worth could have been invented by Jane Austen; no wonder we still value her.” However, this didn’t make the author immune to her own insecurity, and it is said that she had anxiety over how Emma would be received by the public. “My greatest anxiety at present, is that this fourth work should not disgrace what was good in the others. . . I am strongly haunted by the idea that to those readers who preferred Pride and Prejudice it will appear inferior in wit, and to those who have preferred Mansfield Park*, very inferior in a good sense.”*
- Austen needn’t have worried, as Emma has garnered praise both now and during its time. The Prince Regent loved Austen’s novels so much that his librarian pushed her to dedicate a work to him. You can find this dedication to him at the beginning of Emma: “To His Royal Highness the Prince Regent, this work is, by His Royal Highness’s permission, most respectfully dedicated to His Royal Highness by His dutiful and obedient humble servant, the Author.”
- The author called Lord Byron’s publisher a “rogue” and chose to pay for advertising and its initial print of the novel herself.
Jane Austen and Music
- Austen would have been thrilled with this musical adaptation, as she played the piano herself from the age of ten. Along with manuscripts, her family inherited some of her sheet music.
- Judging by the music from her collection, it’s speculated that Austen would have been a soprano and would accompany herself on the piano.
- Austen illustrated her love of music by portraying many of her female characters as musicians as well. Some of these characters include Marianne in Sense and Sensibility, Catherine Morland in Northanger Abbey, and Elizabeth and Mary Bennet in Pride and Prejudice.
The Musical
- The musical was compared to candy, with Talkin’ Broadway saying Emma is “a bonbon to satisfy the sweet tooth of theater-goers.”
- The famous American musician, composer, and producer Paul Gordon wrote the music. He was a keyboardist and guitarist in the bands The B-52’s and New Radicals. Gordon also worked with clients such as Prince, Natasha Bedingfield, Lisa Maria Presley, and the Goo Goo Dolls.
To purchase tickets to Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical, visit bard.org or call 800-PLAYTIX. The play previews June 22 at 2 p.m. and opens July 1 at 2 p.m. in the Randall L. Jones Theatre, and plays through October 7.
10 Interesting Facts about Romeo and Juliet
By Liz Armstrong
It’s no secret that Romeo and Juliet is one of of Shakespeare’s earliest tragedies. Rivaled perhaps only by Hamlet, it is speculated that this is Shakespeare’s most performed and adapted play to date.
- Directing Romeo and Juliet is a dream come true for Besty Mugavero. “I am humbled and honored to have the opportunity to work with some of the most talented collaborators in the country on a play that is so very dear to me,” Mugavero said. What makes Mugavero directing the play even more exciting is that the last production of Romeo and Juliet at the Festival in 2017 featured her as Juliet.
- Romeo and Juliet has been produced eight times at the Festival, including in 1968, 1977, 1982, 1990, 1998, 2005, 2011, and 2017. This means that on average, Romeo and Juliet hits Festival stages every seven years.
- This play has influenced many movies, such as Disney’s Lion King II: Simba’s Pride and Gnomeo and Juliet. The popular musical West Side Story, adapted into a 1961 and 2021 film, is another retelling.
- Romeo and Juliet is known for being lyrical and beautifully told, so it makes sense that an overwhelming amount of it––90 percent––is told in verse, with only 10 percent in prose.
- Although Romeo’s exact age is never revealed, Juliet is only 13 years old when she meets her lover for the first time. This may seem startlingly young to us, but during her time, this was a perfectly marriageable age.
- Spoiler alert: the tragic ending of the play is actually revealed to the audience in the form of a sonnet in the prologue!
- Although Shakespeare wrote the play between 1591 and 1596, women were not allowed on stage until nearly a century later. Mary Saunderson became the first woman to professionally play Juliet in 1662.
- Although Shakespeare is credited with the tale, he most certainly based Romeo and Juliet off of Arthur Brooke’s The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet, which was written in 1562. However, it’s said the story was told even earlier, first printed in 1476 in an Italian version called Mariotte and Gianozza.
- It actually wasn’t Shakespeare to first mention the Montagues and Capulets, but Dante. Between 1308 and 1321, Dante wrote The Divine Comedy, a long narrative poem that mentioned the warring families.
- Perhaps the most iconic scene in the play is the balcony scene when the two declare their love for each other after Romeo overhears Juliet speaking of him. How ironic that Shakespeare wrote that Juliet really appeared in a window, and Elizabethan England wouldn’t have even been familiar with the term “balcony.” The famous balcony scene gained its popularity after an adaptation in 1679, in Thomas Otway’s play he retitled The History and Fall of Caius Marius. The idea of the balcony stuck––and this romantic scene is featured in our play artwork by our Creative Director Clare Campbell this season.
To purchase tickets for the play, visit bard.org/plays/romeo-and-juliet/.
For more information on the play, characters, synopsis, and a longer summary, visit our study guide here.
Romeo and Juliet: Love and Woe
The Utah Shakespeare Festival announces the cast members for this summer’s production of Romeo and Juliet, directed by Betsy Mugavaro who is making her directorial debut of a mainstage production at the Festival.
The cast features both returning and brand new actors to the Festival to tell this story of love and woe. Mugavero says “These performers have incredible skill with language combined with access to enormous emotional depth.” She also expressed how excited she is to work with them and see how the actors “develop who these [characters] are and how they tell the story through the prism of their personalities. This combination of talents will leave our audiences breathless and inspired.”
The lead cast is as follows:
Cassandra Bissell is returning to the Festival, this time in the roles of Lady Capulet in Romeo and Juliet as well as Hippolyta/Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. She has appeared with Actors’ Theatre of Louisville in Memory Play, Arizona Theatre Company in Outside Mullingar, Cleveland Play House in Noises Off, and Milwaukee Repertory Theater in My Name is Asher Lev, among many others. She was last seen at the Festival in 2017 as Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Rosalind in As You Like It, and Rosalind in The Tavern. She is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Aamar-Malik Culbreth is new to the Festival and will be appearing as Benvolio in Romeo and Juliet as well as Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Past roles include Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors, Benvolio in Romeo and Juliet, and Ken in Ain’t Misbehavin’ at Idaho Shakespeare Festival, Tiny in the regional premiere of Kill Move Paradise at Dobama Theatre, and others.
Ty Fanning returns to the Festival, this time as Romeo in Romeo and Juliet and Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. He was last seen at the Festival in 2018 as Charles in Henry VI Part One, Fenton in The Merry Wives of Windsor, and Solanio in The Merchant of Venice. Among numerous other roles, he has performed as Adam/Drummer in the world premiere of Lindiwe with Steppenwolfe Theatre Company, Guildenstern in Hamlet and The Poet in An Iliad at American Players Theatre, and Oberon in A Midsummer Night’s Dream with Chicago Shakespeare Theatre. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Tim Fullerton is returning to the Festival after appearing as Judge in last season’s Sweeney Todd and as Cornwall in King Lear. Audiences can see him this season as Capulet in Romeo and Juliet and Mr. Weston/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical. Productions with other theatre companies include Poirot: Murder on the Links with Oregon Cabaret Theatre, The Book of Will with Texas Shakespeare, Mamma Mia! with Pacific Conservatory Theatre, and was part of the original cast recording of The Three Musketeers with American Musical Theatre.
Nathan Hosner, new to the Festival, will appear as Friar Lawrence in Romeo and Juliet and Egeus in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. He has a prolific resume including playing Lord Aster in the first national tour of Peter and the Starcatcher, Polixenes in The Winter’s Tale at Goodman Theatre, Captain Ahab in Lookingglass Theatre’s Moby Dick, Albany in King Lear at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Agamemnon in American Players Theatre’s Troilus and Cressida, and Hamlet in Hamlet for Alabama Shakespeare Festival. He has also performed in film and television on Chicago Med, Girls of Summer, Empire, and Chicago P.D. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Alex Keiper returns this season as Nurse in Romeo and Juliet and Petra Quince in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Festival patrons will remember her as Luciana in The Comedy of Errors and The Smiths in The Comedy of Terrors in 2021. She has also performed as Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing at Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Mrs. Wormwood in Gretna Theatre’s Matilda!, Lizzie in Lizzie Borden at 11th Hour Theatre Company, and Martha in The Secret Garden for the Arden Theatre Co., among many others. She is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Naiya McCalla is new to the Festival and will be seen as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet and Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream this season. She has performed as Josephine in Pink Morph Suits at The Tank, Mark Antony in Julius Caesar at Actors Company of Natick, Ophelia in Hamlet at the Scranton Shakespeare Festival, and Izzy in Forward Motion at Out Front Theater Company, among many others. She is also a trained ballet dancer and choreographer.
Ryan Ruckman is appearing for the first time at the Festival as Mercutio/Apothecary in Romeo and Juliet and Snug in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. He has also been in productions of Ring ‘Round the Moon as Messerschmann, bobrauschenburgamerica as Curator, and The Human Comedy as Henry, all for Nevada Conservatory Theatre; Macbeth as Banquo/Macduff for Indianapolis Shakespeare Company; and 1984 as Winston for NoExit, among others.
Gilberto Saenz performed with the Festival Education Virtual Tour of Julius Caesar in 2021 and makes his mainstage debut this season as Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet and Frank Churchill/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical. He has also performed with AhHa Broadway as Ernst Robel in Spring Awakening, The Tank NYC as Avery the Amazing in Amazing, and Milwaukee Rep as Indio in West Side Story. He has also appeared in the films Voyeur and Untitled Tenderness Project.
Additional members of the cast are:
Allie Babich returns to the Festival after eight years. Audiences may remember her as Ensign Nellie Forbush in South Pacific, Ela Delahay in Charley’s Aunt, and Vixen/Ensemble in Dracula. This season she plays Balthasar in Romeo and Juliet and Emma in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical. She has also performed with First Stage, Milwaukee Opera Theatre, American Shakespeare Center, Door Shakespeare, Guthrie Theatre, and an international Disney on Classic: A Magical Night Tour to Japan. She is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Evelyn Carol Case makes her Festival debut as Prince Escalus in Romeo and Juliet and Mrs. Bates/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical. She has appeared with Prague Shakespeare Company, Shakespeare Orange County, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, The Laguna Playhouse, and ten seasons as a resident artist with the Alabama Shakespeare Festival.
Max Gallagher is new to the Festival and will be appearing as Peter in Romeo and Juliet and Philostrate/Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Other professional roles include Mrs. Bumbrake in Peter and the Starcatcher and Steve in She Kills Monsters at DCTC, 8 in the world premiere of ALiEN8 at Ignition Arts, Mike in Wabi Sabi for Almost Adults.
Luke Sidney Johnson returns to the Festival as Sampson in Romeo and Juliet. Previously he has played numerous roles here including Baron Elberfeld/Ensemble in The Sound of Music, Ensemble in Sweeney Todd, King of France/Captain/Ensemble in King Lear, and Younger Brother in Ragtime. He has also performed at Pioneer Theatre Company, Playmill Theatre, Simon Fest Theatre Company, and Alabama Shakespeare Festival.
Zina Johnstun comes to the Festival for the first time as Ensemble in Romeo and Juliet and Musician Fairy in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. They have performed in productions of White Liars & Black Comedy, Henry V, and Mother Courage and Her Children at Southern Utah University, and appear courtesy of the SUU Fellowship Program.
Kat Lee returns to the Festival, coming directly from this year’s Every Brilliant Thing touring production. This season she will play Lady Montague/Paris page in Romeo and Juliet and Mrs. Weston/Ensemble in Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical. Additional roles with the Festival include two seasons as a Featured Performer in the The Greenshow, Harlem Woman in Ragtime, and Angel-ett/Ensemble in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, among others. She has also performed at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Short North Stage, and Lyric Repertory Theatre.
Jarod D. Lewis appears for the first time at the Festival as Gregory in Romeo and Juliet. Previous roles include Malcolm in Macbeth, Ferdinand in The Tempest, and Ensemble in Mother Courage and Her Children, all with Southern Utah University’s Theatre and Dance Department. He is appearing courtesy of the SUU Fellowship Program.
Avery Peterson is new to Festival audiences and appears courtesy of the Southern Utah University Fellowship Program, and will be seen as Ensemble in Romeo and Juliet. She has appeared as Sister Mary Hubert in Nunsense, Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Ariel in The Little Mermaid, and Gertrude McFuzz in Suessical.
Paul Michael Sandberg will perform this season as Montague/Friar John/Capulet Cousin in Romeo and Juliet, returning after five years. His previous roles at the Festival were Julius Caesar in Julius Caesar, Roy in The Odd Couple, Captain Smollett in Treasure Island, and Egeus in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, among others. He has also performed at the Court Theatre in Chicago, Steppenwolf Theatre, Cleveland Playhouse, and the Illinois Shakespeare Theatre.
Marco Vega returns to the Festival, this time as Paris in Romeo and Juliet and Snout in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Festival audiences may remember him from numerous productions during the 2014-2017 and 2021 seasons, including The Comedy of Errors as Antipholous of Ephesus, Pericles as Leonine, A Midsummer Night’s Dream as Demetrius, and Much Ado About Nothing as Hugh Oatcake. He has also performed at Texas Shakespeare Festival, The Old Globe, and The Reduced Shakespeare Company.
Braedon Young is returning to the Festival as Abram in Romeo and Juliet and Starveling in A Midsummer Night Dream. He was seen in last season’s All’s Well That Ends Well and King Lear. At the Manhattan School of Music, he has performed in She Loves Me as Georg Novak, Don’t Stop Me as Roger Dickson, and The Drowsy Chaperone as Gangster 2. He has also performed at Carnegie Hall.
The 2023 season of the Utah Shakespeare Festival runs from June 21 to October 7 and includes Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical, A Raisin in the Sun, The Play That Goes Wrong, Timon of Athens, and Coriolanus, as well as all the experiences surrounding the plays, such as The Greenshow, seminars, orientations, and backstage tours. Tickets and information are available by calling 800-PLAYTIX or visiting bard.org.
A Midsummer Night's Dream: "A Gift of Love"
The Utah Shakespeare Festival announces the cast members for this summer’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, including actors Festival audiences will be familiar with, along with those making their first appearance here.
Director Jessica Kubzansky says she hopes this show will be “ultimately a gift of love,” which perfectly ties into the Festival’s new Believe Campaign. It tells a story about [characters] undergoing “fantastical, magical, mischievous, illogical, nightmarish, hilarious adventures…and the power of true, authentic love to make the world a kinder, more generous place.”
The lead cast is as follows:
Cassie Bissell is returning to the Festival, this time in the roles of Hippolyta/Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, as well as Lady Capulet in Romeo and Juliet. She has appeared with Actors’ Theatre of Louisville in Memory Play, Arizona Theatre Company in Outside Mullingar, Cleveland Play House in Noises Off, and Milwaukee Repertory Theater in My Name is Asher Lev, among many others. She was last seen at the Festival in 2017 as Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Rosalind in As You Like It, and Rosalind in The Tavern. She is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Aamar-Malik Culbreth is new to the Festival and will be appearing as Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream as well as Benvolio in Romeo and Juliet. Past roles include Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors, Benvolio in Romeo and Juliet, and Ken in Ain’t Misbehavin’ at Idaho Shakespeare Festival, Tiny in the regional premiere of Kill Move Paradise at Dobama Theatre, and others.
Topher Embrey is also new to the Festival, appearing this season as Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Bobo/Moving Man in A Raisin in the Sun. Past regional theatre roles include Christmas Present in A Christmas Carol at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Sicinius Veletus in Coriolanus at the Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Sir Toby in Twelfth Night at the Nashville Shakespeare Festival, and Dromio of Ephesus in The Comedy of Errors at the American Shakespeare Center, among numerous others. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Ty Fanning returns to the Festival, this time as Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Romeo in Romeo and Juliet. He was last seen at the Festival in 2018 as Charles in Henry VI Part One, Fenton in The Merry Wives of Windsor, and Solanio in The Merchant of Venice. Among numerous other roles, he has performed as Adam/Drummer in the world premiere of Lindiwe with Steppenwolfe Theatre Company, Guildenstern in Hamlet and The Poet in An Iliad at American Players Theatre, and Oberon in A Midsummer Night’s Dream with Chicago Shakespeare Theatre. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Max Gallagher is new to the Festival and will be appearing as Philostrate/Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Peter in Romeo and Juliet. Other professional roles include Mrs. Bumbrake in Peter and the Starcatcher and Steve in She Kills Monsters at DCTC, 8 in the world premiere of ALiEN8 at Ignition Arts, Mike in Wabi Sabi for Almost Adults. They are also trained as a musician and in circus aeriels.
Corey Jones is returning to the Festival and will perform in the roles of Theseus/Oberon in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Walter Younger in A Raisin in the Sun. He performed at the Festival in 2017 as Tate in How To Fight Loneliness and King John in King John; and Caliban in The Tempest in 2013; and Aaron in Titus Andronicus and Rev. Sykes in To Kill a Mockingbird in 2012. Among his many roles, he has played The General in the first and second national Broadway tours of The Book of Mormon, Bruce Laird in the world premiere of A Distinct Society at Pioneer Theatre Company, Captain Markinson in A Few Good Men at La Mirada Theatre, Dr. Gibbs in Our Town at South Coast Repertory, and Creon in Oedipus at American Players Theater. He has performed on film and television in Trigger, 11/11/11, Franklin and Bash, A Letter from Birmingham Jail, and Checkout. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Kayland Jordan is making her Festival debut as Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Ruth Younger in A Raisin in the Sun. She has been seen as Annabelle “Belle” Pierson in Mirrors at NYTW, Louella in Fancy Maids at Teatro SEA, Lady in Red in For Colored Girls…, and Jo in Thorns for African American Museum. She has also performed in numerous films and television shows, including Betty (HBO), In Ice Cold Blood (OXYGEN), Emergence (ABC), and Keep Me At Bay (MICA). She has also been a member of the Society of American Fight Directors.
Naiya McCalla is also new to the Festival and will be seen as Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Juliet in Romeo and Juliet this season. She has performed as Josephine in Pink Morph Suits at The Tank, Mark Antony in Julius Caesar at Actors Company of Natick, Ophelia in Hamlet at the Scranton Shakespeare Festival, and Izzy in Forward Motion at Out Front Theater Company, among many others. She is also a trained ballet dancer and choreographer.
Other members of the cast are:
Ashley Aquino, new to the Festival, will perform as Mustardseed in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and as a Featured Performer in The Greenshow. She was recently seen as Lucy in You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown at Southern Utah University, Janet in The Drowsy Chaperone and Baker’s Wife in Into the Woods with Broadway Bound, and Glory/Marvalyn/Rhonda in Almost Maine with Simon Fest Theatre Company. She is appearing courtesy of the Southern Utah University Fellowship Program.
Maureen Azzun is also new to the Festival and will appear as Cobweb in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and as Beneatha in A Raisin in the Sun. She has performed as Louise/Ruby/Etta in More Than a Maid with Black Ensemble Theater, Friend in Queen C at Trap Door Theatre, and Emerson in First Date on the Brain with Drawing Cats Productions. She was also in the films Erick and Alisha, Rosemary, and Five-Finger Discount.
Dylan Fleming is performing the role of Flute in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Joseph Asagai in A Raisin in the Sun, and is new to the Festival. He has performed as Omari in Everyman Theatre’s digital release of Pipeline, as Isa in Kill Move Paradise with Rep Stage, and as T.T. Williams in The Member of the Wedding with 1st Stage.
Taylor Hendricks, who is also new to the Festival, will be seen as Moth in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and as a Featured Performer in The Greenshow. He recently performed as Michael/Doctor in Matilda! for Syracuse Stage, Barnaby Tucker in Hello, Dolly! by Douglas Morrisson Theater, and Robert Martin in The Drowsy Chaperone for Los Positas Theater.
Nathan Hosner, new to the Festival, will appear as Egeus in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and as Friar Lawrence in Romeo and Juliet. He has a prolific resume including playing Lord Aster in the first national tour of Peter and the Starcatcher, Polixenes in The Winter’s Tale at Goodman Theatre, Captain Ahab in Lookingglass Theatre’s Moby Dick, Albany in King Lear at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Agamemnon in American Players Theatre’s Troilus and Cressida, and Hamlet in Hamlet for Alabama Shakespeare Festival. He has also performed in film and television on Chicago Med, Girls of Summer, Empire, and Chicago P.D. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Zina Johnstun comes to the Festival for the first time as Musician Fairy in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Ensemble in Romeo and Juliet. They have performed in productions of White Liars & Black Comedy, Henry V, and Mother Courage and Her Children at Southern Utah University, and appear courtesy of the SUU Fellowship Program.
Alex Keiper returns this season as Petra Quince in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Nurse in Romeo and Juliet. Festival patrons will remember her as Luciana in The Comedy of Errors and The Smiths in The Comedy of Terrors in 2021. She has also performed as Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing at Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Mrs. Wormwood in Gretna Theatre’s Matilda!, Lizzie in Lizzie Borden at 11th Hour Theatre Company, and Martha in The Secret Garden for the Arden Theatre Co., among many others. She is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Ryan Ruckman is appearing as Snug in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Mercutio/Apothecary in Romeo and Juliet, performing for his first time at the Festival. He has also been in productions of Ring ‘Round the Moon as Messerschmann, bobrauschenburgamerica as Curator, and The Human Comedy as Henry, all for Nevada Conservatory Theatre; Macbeth as Banquo/Macduff for Indianapolis Shakespeare Company; and 1984 as Winston for NoExit, among others.
Marco Vega returns to the Festival, this time as Snout in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Paris in Romeo and Juliet. Festival audiences may remember him from numerous productions during the 2014-2017 and 2021 seasons, including The Comedy of Errors as Antipholous of Ephesus, Pericles as Leonine, A Midsummer Night’s Dream as Demetrius, and Much Ado About Nothing as Hugh Oatcake. He has also performed at Texas Shakespeare Festival, The Old Globe, and The Reduced Shakespeare Company.
Matthew Wangemann is new to the Festival as Thistleweed in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and a Featured Performer in The Greenshow. He appears courtesy of the Southern Utah University Fellowship Program, and has performed in such productions at SUU as Falsettos, Into the Woods, Macbeth, and Radium Girls. He has also been in productions at Hale Center Theatre (Orem), Pickleville Playhouse, and Catalyst Theatre.
Deseree Whitt comes to the Festival as a new company member and will play Peaseblossom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. She has performed in productions such as Dryland, The Beaux Stratagem, Little Shop of Horrors, bobrauschenbergamerica, and The Bluest Eye. She has also done film, television, modeling, voiceover, and stand up comedy work.
Braedon Young is returning to the Festival as Starveling in A Midsummer Night Dream and Abram in Romeo and Juliet. He was seen in last season’s All’s Well That Ends Well and King Lear. At the Manhattan School of Music, he has performed in She Loves Me as Georg Novak, Don’t Stop Me as Roger Dickson, and The Drowsy Chaperone as Gangster 2. He has also performed at Carnegie Hall.
The 2023 season of the Utah Shakespeare Festival runs from June 21 to October 7 and includes Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical, A Raisin in the Sun, The Play That Goes Wrong, Timon of Athens, and Coriolanus, as well as all the experiences surrounding the plays, such as The Greenshow, seminars, orientations, and backstage tours. Tickets and information are available by calling 800-PLAYTIX or visiting bard.org.
Local Volunteers Help with Props for 2023 Productions
By Liz Armstrong
Over the last couple of weeks, around 15 local volunteers came to the Utah Shakespeare Festival to assist in set design and props for the 2023 productions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Greenshow.
Working closely with Properties Director Ben Hohman, Assistant Properties Director Marielle Boneau, and Assistant Guest Services Manager Kris Bahr, these generous volunteers glued over 700 trim rosettes for the mossy forest walls in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. On other days, they helped build prop fairies for Appalachian Night of The Greenshow.
“Quite often we have an idea from a director or designer that is beyond the scope of the labor we have allotted to us, but the idea is such a good one that we want to find a way to make it happen,” Hohman said.
These volunteers were the answer! Hohman estimated that nearly 300 hours of volunteer labor went into making the rosettes for the set, while 100 hours went into the making of over 200 small fairies. These fairies will be given out over the course of the season to some of the younger guests during the Appalachian Greenshow.
“We have an amazing group of volunteers who are always willing to pitch in and help out with any aspect of the Festival,” Hohman said gratefully. “We sent out a call and they answered in droves!” Since it has been three years since volunteers gathered to help due to pandemic restrictions, it was a welcome group.
“We cannot express enough gratitude to these unsung heroes,” Bahr lovingly expressed. They were Myra Nelson, Jeannie Rowe, Jim Shammot, Jayne Banks, Sherry Price, Shari Tagney, Linda Tagney, Michelle Decker, Bev Mudd, Jim Mudd, Marva Huntington, Mindy Kropf, Lynn Rogers, and Marilyn Smith.
Hohman expressed that these two projects simply would not have happened if not for the amazing, talented, and dedicated local volunteers who are always ready and willing to help the Festival.
“We are so grateful that they stepped up and allowed both of these productions to have a more complete design due to their efforts,” Hohman said.
To see the hard work that goes into set and prop design, visit bard.org to purchase tickets to this 2023 season.
