King Lear Actor Blog

King Lear with Tony Amendola (Lear) and Kelly Rogers (Cordelia)

Tony Amendola as King Lear

Tony Amendola is back with the Festival, playing King Lear. He was last here as Shylock in The Merchant of Venice in 2010. Kelly Rogers is enjoying her first season here and plays Cordelia. She’s finding the Festival to be “like a Shakespeare fairyland." And is excited to be working with so many talented actors. Here are their thoughts on their roles in this many-layered play.

Tony, why do you think Lear decides to divide his kingdom?

Tony:      It’s simultaneously a wise and bad choice. That’s the mystery of it. There’s no real good answer. He is getting old, and he can sense the strife between the two older daughters. He thinks “Do this now and make it clear so there’s no strife in the future.”

Kelly, why do you think Cordelia refuses to say how much she loves her father?

Kelly:    I think she’s very thrown by that question. It’s safe to assume she still lives with Lear. She is watching him age. Tony has this great idea that I was brought up to be like him. I’m the son of the daughters. I went hunting with him. If we were out in the middle of a hunt and had just killed something together, that’s when I’d tell him that I loved him. Not in a ceremonious place with people holding crowns on pillows. I think Cordelia is just not used to that.  It’s just about how you love.

It’s not out of pride or rebellion. That’s how I have to rationalize it. I don’t like the idea of a Cordelia who’s just prideful. He has not taught her “the glib and oily art.” I feel the pressure of wanting to be honest. Honesty can be defined so many ways. I think Regan and Goneril feel their answers are true as well. I have to tell you the truth here. This is the only answer I have.

Tony:      For Lear, in the human aspect, he’s late in life and he needs to hear it. How many parents have been in the same situation?

Tony, talk to us about the “madness” in this play.

Tony:      It’s really about becoming a human being. He’s separated from power, separated from status. He becomes more human as he’s in jeopardy. As a ruler who’s been ruling forever he suddenly has epiphanies about social justice that Shakespeare could only put in the mouth of a mad person.

Kelly Rogers as Cordelia

Kelly, what’s your take on the father/child relationships in this play?

Kelly:     What I walk away with, even though Cordelia dies and Gloucester is blinded, there is some sort of catharsis. The children who were banished are redeemed and reconciled. And people fight for Lear. I fight with a sword in this play for my father. Edgar does as well. He kills Oswald. That redemption of fighting for the parent who has banished you – that love is so powerful and so moving for me. You gotta love your parents.  The patience of understanding – people get older. They get angry and scared as they approach death. The way to treat that is not with anger. You don’t throw them out into a storm. You take them in and you love them regardless. And you fight for them regardless.

King Lear opens in preview on June 27 and plays through September 4. You can purchase tickets online at www.bard.org or by calling 800-PLAYTIX.

You can learn more about this play and our production at http://www.bard.org/plays/2015/king-lear where you’ll find study guides, complete casting, costume designs and director interviews.

Company Spotlight: Vicki Smith and Anthony Simone

Vicki Smith, Set designer for the Adams theatre

Have you ever worked at the Festival before?
I was set designer for the Adams last season.

Where’s your home base?
Minneapolis

What’s your education/training background?
I was an art major as an undergraduate at Reed College.  I have two MFAs from the University of Washington, one in sculpture, one in technical theatre.  I was an intern for one season and then the associate set designer for two seasons at the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco

What brought you to your field and what keeps you doing your craft?
I’ve wanted to be a visual artist since I was a young child. After graduate school, I was a studio artist and found theatre by working on a clay animation film.  The sets were built by technical theatre students, so I decided to give that a try. I found I liked it better than sculpture for several reasons:  1) The audience actually knows what you’re talking about.  As a sculptor, I often felt I was talking to myself.  2) I love the research part of my job; it’s a constant surprise.  3) The final product is deeper than what I did as a sculptor, because it’s associated often with some of the best literature the western tradition has to offer and because it’s the collective product of many minds who think quite differently.  4) Theatre demands I do a lot of things that I don’t quite know if I can do, but I have to figure it out. Usually, that’s a good thing. 5) To my ongoing surprise, I’ve actually managed to make a living in theatre for 35 years, which I couldn’t really do as a sculptor.

How will you spend your time off while here?
Hiking, of course.

What does the Festival Experience mean to you?
It’s very intense and very ambitious in the scale of what the Festival does. Working in the Adams poses a different set of problems than I’ve ever worked with before:  generally, shape is a major element of set design, but working in the Adams means trying to make the space look and feel different for 3 very different shows without being able to significantly alter the shape.  It’s quite challenging.

If it applies, do you have a favorite memory of working in the Adams Theatre?
I am particularly fond of the automated tumbleweed we used in Comedy of Errors last season.  It may be the dumbest thing I’ve ever seen on stage in one of my shows - I even loved it when it broke down because it was so completely silly. Fortunately, that was absolutely in character with the show.   I had tears rolling down my cheeks a couple of times watching it make its cross.

Anthony Simone, Actor

Have you ever worked at the Festival before?
This is my 2nd year at the Festival-Last year I was Pompey inMeasure for Measure, Valentine/Officer in Twelfth Night and Ensemble in Sherlock Holmes.

Where’s your home base?
New York City, Manhatthan

What’s your education/training background?
I was originally a pre med major back in undergrad.  But after meeting my mentors Margaret and Peter Larlham by fate one day, in the midst of my Sophomore year, I decided to try double majoring.  And after graduating I took a year off before I was accepted into UC Irvine’s MFA Acting program.

What brought you to your field and what keeps you doing your craft?
As a child, I often would get lost in my imagination spending hours as an astronaut trying to explore new parts of the universe or roaming through the pride lands as Simba the mighty King. So as you can imagine I jumped at every chance to perform both at schools as well as church in plays, as I grew older I started to take more of a liking to singing and dancing.  

But, in terms of why I keep doing my craft? I would say it’s because I love the challenge(s) that every show presents as well as the things I constantly get to learn about myself and humanity as a whole.

How will you spend your time off while here?
I plan on spending time training for my first marathon - that I hope to run next year. (Wish me luck!)  I also plan to go hiking and taking in the beauty of the area. I’ll also be sleeping and trying to find my next job.

Do you have a favorite memory of working in the Adams Theatre?
I have two favorite moments with the Adams.

The first occurred the first time I walked onto the Adams stage, during rehearsal last year, and instantly felt butterflies in my stomach.  I was so moved, honored and terrified to be on the same stage as many great actors before.

The 2nd time was one night during Measure for Measure and it started to rain and the beauty of seeing the audience (who were being pelted with rain) stay still and fully invested in the show.  I walked off stage and was like - those are real troupers!

If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be?
I’d want to be able to fly.  Or better yet stop time so I can finally catch up on all my Netflix videos and books I want to read.

If you had a time machine, where would you like to visit?
There are way to many but I’d love to see the first production of Shakespeare’s Cannon.

Festival Reunion Weekend Announced!

Come Back and Say Goodbye to our Dear Old Friend

All past employees of the Utah Shakespeare Festival are invited for a special reunion weekend to celebrate the closing of the Adams Shakespearean Theatre from August 13 - 15. Employees can get $4 off tickets that weekend with the coupon code: FONDFAREWELL.

There will also be a reception in the Adams Courtyard on August 15 after the evening shows. 

Amadeus Actor Blog

Amadeus – David Ivers (Salieri) and Tasso Feldman (Mozart)

Amadeus, winner of a Tony-award for best play and the academy award for best film, is a provocative, intriguing, beautifully breathtaking work by Peter Shaffer.  Overshadowed by the young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, court composer Antonio Salieri struggles to escape his own obscurity. In his quest to be remembered, he lies and cheats. But against the background of the world’s greatest music, did he also murder?

Tasso Feldman (Mozart)

We were able to snag a few minutes with David Ivers, who plays Salieri and Tasso Feldman, who plays Mozart to discuss their views on this gripping and powerful play.

Tell us your thoughts about the play.

David: It’s an event, it’s like an opera in the sheer size and scale of the piece. The music is like the third lead. Peter Shaffer, constructs the play and text that work in harmony with Mozart’s music, it’s brilliant how music is woven in. There’s all this underscoring when certain events are being talked about.

And even though we have heard so many of these compositions by Mozart, in the play, Salieri is hearing them for the first time. That’s what so wonderful about it. That’s also what’s challenging.

Talk about the contrast in your character’s personalities?

Tasso:   He’s someone who doesn’t want to conform. Maturity is societal – it’s all about constraints. People say “you should behave.”  When you’re a newborn, you’re free, but society wants to snuff you out- sacrifice the child in us. People put you in a box. That’s what society is trying to do to Mozart. “Know your place.”  “You should be better behaved.” It’s constant. Mozart says “it’s all about my music. If I behave I lose the music.”

David Ivers (Salieri)

David:   Salieri made a bargain with God. If he served God and was rigorous in his virtue, then he would be blessed with the ability to serve mankind through his music. What he finds is that God touched somebody else, who wasn’t virtuous and doesn’t care about rigorously serving mankind, in Salieri’s opinion.

It’s not just that Salieri is jealous of Mozart’s talent. It’s that he possesses the ability to hear meticulously how brilliant it is. He says in the play, “I was born a pair of ears.” He understands from the composer’s point of view and to not be able to do that yourself…that’s why he feels “why not me?”

What are some discoveries you’re making with this play?

Tasso: The name Amadeus means to be loved of God and this play is about our relationship with the divine. Through Mozart’s musical talents he’s an open channel to God, essentially God’s voice into the world. 

David:  The idea of creating perfection inside of imperfection (and the reverse) is unsettling. Here Mozart can put God’s voice on paper, but when he opens his mouth it is not godlike.

It’s also an amazing case study in absolute convictions one way or the other. There’s something sinister about it. The play is packed with reactionary, emotional responses. Both characters share an emotional response to the universe. It’s thrilling.

Amadeus opens in preview on June 25 and plays through September 5.

You can learn more about the play, including complete cast, director interviews and costume designs at  http://www.bard.org/plays/2015/amadeus

You can purchase tickets at www.bard.org or 800-PLAYTIX.

Military Appreciation Days at the Utah Shakespeare Festival

Military Appreciation Days at the Utah Shakespeare Festival

Allie Babich as Ensign Nellie Forbush in the Utah Shakespeare Festival’s 2015 production of South Pacific.

The Utah Shakespeare Festival will be celebrating our Armed Forces on Saturday, July 4 by offering four free tickets for military personnel and their families to the opening performance of South Pacific at 2 p.m. The Festival appreciates the sacrifices of the men and women who serve and wants to recognize their dedication and commitment to this country.

The Festival will be proud to welcome Utah’s 222nd National Guard and any other active or inactive service personnel, as well as their families. A valid military ID is required.

One of the most beloved musicals of all time, South Pacific is a sweeping story of love threatened by the dangers of prejudice and war, all set to songs such as “Some Enchanted Evening,” Younger Than Springtime," and “Bali Ha’i.”

Additionally, military personnel are eligible to receive four free tickets to The Taming of the Shrew on August 13 at 2 p.m. and Charley’s Aunt on September 29 at 8 p.m.

The Taming of the Shrew portrays one of literature’s greatest screwball couples, Kate and Petruchio, hell-bent on confusing and outwitting each other—right up to the play’s hilarious, but revealing, final scene.

A quiet luncheon turns into a corset-busting masquerade in Charley’s Aunt, when two college chums go to great lengths to woo a pair of charming young ladies, including persuading their wacky friend to pose as an aunt from Brazil—where the nuts come from.

A valid military ID will be required to pick up the tickets, and there is a limit of four tickets per family per show.  Space is limited, so call soon to reserve your seats.  

The Glories of Playing Falstaff by John Ahlin

Chasing the Whale of a Man

Thank goodness for the petrified log, or I’d be the oldest thing in this picture.

BLOG # 1  Hello!

I begin this blog with a tribute to the granddaddy of electronic communications; the phone call.  These days a phone call is way down the list of ways to communicate, after text and blog and Twitter and Facebook and whatever else has been invented in the time it took me to type this sentence (I hear even emails are old fashioned now),  but once upon a time the phone call was it.  Mail, you know, the postman slogging through the sleet and dead of night thing, was how you got bills and letters (please refer to the history books to find out what a letter is), but to a years-ago young actor, pounding pavement in New York, the phone call presented infinite possibilities.  And you had to be by your phone, or have an answering service.  We didn’t realize we were inconvenienced by not having our phone in our back pocket.  Having the phone attached to the wall of our very immobile apartment building was just fine. The sardonic wit Dorothy Parker used to sneer upon hearing the phone ring; “What fresh Hell is this?”, but to an actor, the moments from the first ring until you answered was fantasy land.  “What career-changing for the better opportunity is this?”    Surely it’s the offer for a movie role long dreamed of, or some voice-over booking that will lead to riches, or an audition at a first class regional theater.  In those days phones just rang and didn’t display who or what was calling, so you truly did think big thoughts as you crossed the room, not knowing who was calling until they identified themselves.  And conversely if you were expecting a call about a callback, or an offer, a quiet phone was a ringing condemnation of your career.  Acting is the profession where you find out you didn’t get the job by silence…forever.  So an actor loves a phone call out of the blue.  And my fancy new Samsung Droid ringing (actually playing some tune called Meadow Sunrise), while sitting on a bench in St. Augustine, Florida, America’s oldest city, in mid-March of this year, filled me with that same “What fresh Heaven is this?” hope.  I was driving home from doing Shakespeare in Orlando, contemplating the fact that I was, at the moment unemployed for the entire rest of my life (ironically, an actor losing his job a lot means he’s working a lot) when it was Brian Vaughn, co-artistic director of the Utah Shakespeare Festival, calling with the opportunity to ascend the Shakespeare mountain again, this time in the heavenly state of Utah.  These are the phone calls that keep actors going.

My view of New York

I live 36 floors above the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of New York City, so named because back over a century ago one particular block was so dangerous and hot that a rookie cop supposedly likened it to Hell, when a veteran cop corrected, saying it was hotter than Hell: it was Hell’s Kitchen.  It’s not so hellish anymore, but coming from there to Cedar City,Utah is what we used to call on the wrestling team a ‘reversal’.  I had been prepared for the heavenliness of Utah and the kindliness of Utahans (Utahns? Tahn Tahns?), having worked at the Pioneer Theater in Salt Lake City a year and a half ago; but, if possible, Cedar City is even more beautiful and the people even nicer.  Lovelier than Heaven, Cedar City is Heaven’s Back Porch.  And to be here for the first time, working on Shakespeare, with a company whose reputation I have long heard of, is, for this very veteran actor, a “pinch me” moment.

With all the breathtaking vistas of flying over the Rockies and the scenic drive from the diminutive St. George airport (where we arrived at Gate One), and the breathtaking thinness of the Cedar City fresh air, the thing that amazed me the most in my first days was to see how big and bustling the Utah Shakespeare Festival Company is.  I never cease marveling at how many people love to do Theatre, and how out of a group of hundreds I can never have met but one person (Brian Vaughn) and yet we all share the same passion and speak the same language.  I was immediately awash with the feeling of wanting to do my best, for the sake of this group, and help in any way I can.    

Hence this blog.  This first is just hello, so “hello”, but over the Summer I hope to share some of the insights and discoveries on being with the Festival and putting on the shows, from my point of view.  I work as a playwright as well as an actor, and the beauty part of playwriting is you are not shackled by grammar and sentence construction; you simply write as people speak.  Consequently, my prose here might be snaky, and my narrative meandering, but this is the benefit of living in the Blog Age.  You can post anything, whereas in the old days you had to get past editors and publishers, who insisted on higher quality.  So I hope not to abuse this freedom, and come up with something of modest interest.

Getting notes in rehearsal from Director Brian Vaughn

And foremost I hope to give some thoughts on playing what some might call Shakespeare’s greatest clown, Falstaff.  But I would disagree with that. Doesn’t Falstaff belong alongside Shakespeare’s greatest characters; Othello, Rosalind, Macbeth, Lear and Hamlet?  That is the question.  I hope to address that idea and also explore a mystery, that’s right a Shakespearean mystery involving Falstaff and Shakespeare, and what really happened way back then.  I may not find the answer but I want to play detective.  And by way of confession this will be my 11th Falstaff, but since there are 3 different plays in which he appears, I’ve mathematically only done each play three and a third  times, so I am not at the point of dragging out the same old tired performance.  On the contrary, playing Sir John Falstaff only gives me the glimpse of what a Universe this Globe of a Man is, spinning magnificently in the larger Universe of Shakespeare.  There is so much more and so much new to playing Falstaff, that, being here, now and exploring him anew, I can say I am as excited as any time in my long career.

Stay tuned for my next blog - # 2: Rehearsing.     

Playmakers Summer Shakespeare Open for Registration

Playmakers Summer Shakespeare Open for Registration

The thirteenth annual Playmakers Summer Shakespeare Program is now open for registration at the Utah Shakespeare Festival. This program is a wonderful opportunity for students to receive one-on-one training from theatre professionals and the Festival’s Education Director Michael Bahr.

The Playmakers Summer Shakespeare Program is for beginners and advanced students. Registration is open for youth 6-17 and is only $90. Classes run on weekdays from 1 to 3 p.m. from June 15 to 27.

Students can expect to learn Shakespearean scene work, songs and the essential building blocks for theatre performance. The workshop culminates in a performance of selected scenes and musical numbers handpicked based on individuals’ levels in the group. Included in the registration fee is a free ticket to see the Festival’s production of The Taming of the Shrew.

Playmakers was created by Bahr in 2002 as a way to extend the Festival’s educational offerings to the community year-round. Playmakers provides fundamental training in acting and performance skills. Teachers work with each student and adapt to their needs. Not only do students learn about theatre, but also about teamwork, problem solving and creative thinking.

Bahr commented, “Playmakers is designed to be diverse and flexible to the individual training needs for each student. It is accessible, affordable and we strive to achieve artistic excellence each summer.”

For more information or to register call (435) 865-8333 or email usfeducation@bard.org.

Utah Shakespeare Festival Mourns the Passing of Board Member and LDS Leader L. Tom Perry

Utah Shakespeare Festival Mourns the Passing of Board Member and LDS Leader L. Tom Perry

The Utah Shakespeare Festival joined last week with others around the world in mourning and paying tribute to L. Tom Perry, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and of the Festival’s honorary board of governors.

Elder Perry died on May 30 in Salt Lake City at the age of 92. He was recently diagnosed with thyroid cancer. His funeral was June 5 in the Tabernacle on Temple Square in Salt Lake City.

Elder Perry was asked to serve on the Festival’s advisory board starting in 1989 and has served since then until his passing on Saturday. “He was always accessible to us when we needed advice or counsel,” reminisced Fred C. Adams, Festival founder and a friend to Elder Perry. “He represented us in so many different circles through his twenty five years.  We will sorely miss him. He brought such a calming energy to so many of our difficult decisions. “

Perry was the oldest member of the church’s top 15 leaders and was one of the four leaders to meet with President Barack Obama during his recent Utah trip. Perry was a staunch supporter of the arts in Utah and a tremendous advocate. It was an honor to have him serve so many years in the advisory board. 

Known for his affability and optimism, L. Tom Perry will be vastly missed at the Festival.

More on L. Tom Perry: http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/elder-l-tom-perry-dies-at-age-92

Festival Receives National Endowment for the Arts Grant

Utah Shakespeare Festival Receives National Endowment for the Arts Grant

CEDAR CITY, UT – In May the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA)awarded 1,023 grants totaling $74,326,900 to nonprofit arts organizations in all 50 states plus five U.S. jurisdictions. From that, twelve Utah groups received over $1 million in funding with the Utah Shakespeare Festival receiving $35,000 for its production of William Shakespeare’s Henry IV Part Two as part of the larger History Cycle initiative.

NEA Chairman Jane Chu said, “The NEA is committed to advancing learning, fueling creativity, and celebrating the arts in cities and towns across the United States. Funding these new projects represents a significant investment in both local communities and our nation’s creative vitality.”

In an effort to explore and exemplify all of William Shakespeare’s works Complete the Canon was launched in 2011 by the Festival. Within the Complete the Canon project sits an additional undertaking to produce all of Shakespeare’s history plays in chronological order. Beginning with King John, the History Cycle will play out over the course of several seasons, concluding with Henry VIII. Currently three plays into the cycle, the 2015 offering will be Henry IV Part Two; a play produced only once within the Festival’s fifty-three year history.

“The generous support we received from the NEA makes such initiatives possible,” said Festival Artistic Director Brian Vaughn. “As we continue to bring the work of William Shakespeare to the forefront of the world’s ever expanding entertainment options, it is crucial that our commitment to classical theatre continues to be enriched by such important programs.”

The NEA grant will be used to support the production of Henry IV Part Two. This production is the second installment in the three-play trilogy that will be produced throughout a three-season period, using a select group artists and designers. The Festival has created elements of consistency within each production to further establish a common thread from one show to the next. Performances will be accompanied by discussion events produced by the theater’s education department.

“It is important to present Shakespeare’s theatrical chronicle of England and its kings in order,” said Vaughn. “It’s a big family drama that spans a long length of time. Telling the stories in order gives familiarity to audience members and helps people stay connected to these characters and their journeys. Presenting Shakespeare’s less frequently produced plays is the Festival’s purpose with this charge: to reveal to the audience the scope and power of these magnificent works, that currently sit on the periphery of public awareness.”

Henry IV Part 2 Actor Blog

Henry IV Part 2 – Larry Bull (King Henry IV) and Sam Ashdown (Prince Hal)

This season, we continue the History Cycle and the Complete-the-Canon Project with Henry IV, Part 2. The play begins shortly after the Battle of Shrewsbury (which was at the end of Part 1), with messengers coming from the battle. So there is a sense of immediacy from the end of Part 1.

Larry Bull, who played Bolingbroke in Richard II and Henry IV in Part 1, continues his role as King Henry IV. Sam Ashdown, whom we met in Part I, continues as Prince Hal. On a sunny day (finally!), we met them both to talk about their thoughts on Part 2 – how their characters have evolved.

We discussed the mood of this play versus Part 1.

Sam:       Part 2 starts with a weariness; I say “Before God, I am exceeding weary”. The king is much sicker than in Part 1. The country is decaying. Falstaff is having physical issues. There’s a sense of disease and decay in the country because of the prolonged civil war.

Larry:     There’s a lot of cheer that’s developed in Part 1 – lots of fun. This is the other side of that coin. If Part 1 is a night of drinking, Part 2 is the hangover.

When Henry IV became king, he had great expectations. By the time of this play, he’s worn down and sick. We asked if Henry thought it would be this hard when he became king.

Larry:     No, I think he expected a calmer world – he had so much support at the time and so much wealth and power through his family. It was the elusive nature of that legitimacy (as king) that has dogged him ever since the coronation. He’s always batting away rebellions. As far as the reign, I can’t imagine he perceived this much difficulty. He dies at 47.

How does the relationship between father and son evolve in this play?

Sam:       I think that I, Hal, know that I’m going to be king from the beginning. I believe I have it in me. But as it gets closer I stop fitting in the world I’ve been in and I still don’t fit in the world I’m going to. So Part 2 is a transition phase where I’m out of love of both of those worlds.

Larry:     There are fits and starts. In this play there’s much more reconciliation than there was in the last play. The last play was more about the immediacy of the rebellion and how Henry needed a unified front and the prince is a huge element of that. This play is more about the legitimacy of the crown and being able to pass that intact to Hal.

How about the relationship between Hal and Falstaff – how does that evolve?

Sam:       The sad truth is that there’s no room for Falstaff in this new life. In Part 2, my commitment turns from friends and even family to the people, my country, the citizens. There are too many lives on the line to have room for anything that’s not for them.

And why do you think Hal turns to the Lord Chief Justice after Henry dies?

Because he’s impartial and honest. Growing up, he sent me to jail. He certainly didn’t flatter me; I got no special treatment. He always upheld the law and looked after my father. As frustrating as that was as a young prince, it’s what I would want as a king.

Henry IV, Part 2 opens in preview on June 26 and plays through September 5.

You can learn more about the play, including complete cast, director’s notes and costume designs at http://www.bard.org/plays/2015/henry-iv-part-two

Tickets are available online at www.bard.org or by calling 800-PLAYTIX.