"RS has done [Henry V] proud..a fine evening of entertainment." Review, STYLEWeekly

King Me

Richmond Shakespeare’s “Henry V” proves sequels can improve on the originals. by Mary Burruss

Princess Katherine (Sarah Jamillah Johnson) is wooed by Henry (Phillip James Brown) and his authentic English accent in “Henry V.” Photo by Bruce Parker

Anglophiles, history buffs and drama nerds rejoice! It is summer and the long-awaited Richmond Shakespeare production of “Henry V” has opened. For those of you not listed in the aforementioned categories of the anticipatory, the excitement is akin to the release of the next “Harry Potter” or “Twilight.” But unlike some sequels, this production is wonderful.

“Henry V,” the fourth installment of Shakespeare’s tetralogy chronicling the reigns of Richard II, Henry IV and Henry V, is the best of the four and Richmond Shakespeare has done it proud. Director James Alexander Bond has selected a stellar cast of local actors and directed deftly around the central figure, played by London-based actor Phillip James Brown, who returns to Richmond for the third summer to take his crown as King Henry (the sovereign formerly known as Prince Hal). The actors are planets that revolve around Brown’s handsome sun. He makes as fine a warrior motivating his troops in the famous St. Crispin’s Day speech as he makes a nervous beau courting Princess Katherine.


In sharp contrast to Brown’s regal Henry is Bob Jones’ equally savvy incarnation of the comedic Captain Fluellen. Jones makes the larger-than-life character believable and multifaceted, while including wild gestures and a hilarious overblown Welsh accent, making Shakespeare’s jibe on Welshmen all the funnier.


Joseph Carlson masters his portrayal of Pistol this season, deftly executing comic bits and pouncing about the stage in Vanessa Passini’s excellently choreographed fight scenes. He has matured as an actor in the past year, turning last year’s great performance into an outstanding one this season.


This play has something for everyone: humor, battle scenes, romance and a winning underdog. “Henry V” is a fine evening of entertainment for anyone who can stay up past 10:30. “Henry V” plays June 11- 28, Thursday-Sunday at 8 p.m. at Agecroft Hall. Tickets are $13-$25. Visit http://www.richmondshakespeare.com/ or call 866-BARD-TIX.

"The Peak Theatrical Experience in Richmond Is Back" Henry V Review, Richmond Times Dispatch

‘Henry V’ ends cycle on passionate, comedic note

HENRY V
Theater review
At: Agecroft Hall, 4305 Sulgrave Road Through: June 28 Tickets: $25 (16 and under $13) Info: 866-BARDTIX

SUSAN HAUBENSTOCK SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
Published: June 15, 2009

The peak theatrical pleasure to be had in Richmond is back: summer Shakespeare at Agecroft Hall.

It's a happy mystery how hot, humid days can switch to cool evenings just as the Elizabethan verse gets going, but it seems to happen every time.
This season's opener is "Henry V," the culmination of three years pursuing the Henry cycle. James Alexander Bond has directed all three plays, and Phillip James Brown has played the younger Henry throughout, granting audiences a marvelous artistic continuity.

And again Bond, aided by Master of Verse Cynde Liffick, has brought us a rousing and gripping production, full of action (including Vanessa Passini's fight direction and Cecile Tuzii's movement coaching), passion and comedy.
The formerly roguish Prince Hal is now King Henry, and the English clergy are urging him to seize France as rightfully his. The French dauphin insults him, and Henry prepares for war.

There are combat scenes and interludes of diplomacy; there are remarkable moments when Henry goes incognito among his soldiers on the eve of battle. And there are stirring moments when Henry exhorts his troops -- "Once more unto the breach" and "We few, we happy few, we band of brothers."

Though there are comic and touching diversions, "Henry V" has no Falstaff, so Henry himself is the clear focus -- and Brown is powerful and magnetic enough to keep us riveted throughout. He shows just a few signs of the slacker he was; Brown is regal with a common touch. Wonderfully musical with the verse, he's also an inspiring leader, a steely judge, and a warm and awkward suitor in his final scene with the French princess.

Bond has balanced the production by emphasizing Shakespeare's varied comedic turns. The strongest of these is Bob Jones' Fluellen, the Welsh captain. Jones delights with his mastery of language and his unexpected physicality. Joseph Anthony Carlson, returning as Pistol, is a delightfully comic blusterer, and the pair of Phillip Reid and Thomas L. Cunningham as Bardolph and Nym amuse as well.

The cast of 19 performs 37 roles, with particularly strong supporting performances by Brandon Crowder, Nicholas Aliff, Tim Saukiavicus, Alan Sader, Joseph Sultani, Jamie Rees, Sarah Jamillah Johnson, Jeffrey Cole, Michael Hamilton and Jacqueline O'Connor. J. David White's lighting is dramatic, and the reliable Rebecca Cairns and Ann Hoskins contribute wonderfully detailed costumes.

This "Henry V" is a fully satisfying end to the saga.

RTD PREVIEW: "The Bard is Back at Agecroft"

Shakespeare Festival kicks off with “Henry V”
BY MELISSA RUGGIERI TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITERPublished: June 11, 2009

Richmond Shakespeare Festival Productions: "Henry V" (tonight-June 28); "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (July 2-12); "Hamlet" (July 16-Aug. 2) Where: Agecroft Hall, 4305 Sulgrave Road. Gates open at 7 p.m., and the Festival Young Company entertains on the grounds; all performances begin at 8 p.m. Tickets: http://www.richmondshakespeare.com/ or 1-866-227-3849

With a trio of productions this summer and only three more months until its new permanent indoor home, Richmond CenterStage, is ready, the folks at Richmond Shakespeare are understandably excited.

On his desk, Artistic Director Grant Mudge even has a mini version of the CenterStage countdown clock currently facing Broad Street.
But before that fall season launches -- it will mark the 25th year of Richmond Shakespeare -- its popular summer shows on the grounds of Agecroft Hall will commence tonight.

This season, the group is tackling "Henry V," "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and "Hamlet," which Mudge is also directing.
Last year, "Henry IV, Part 2," was the centerpiece production. Mudge said the cycle of Shakespeare's histories will be completed by 2012.
"The stories are universal," he said of Shakespeare's ongoing appeal. "They're personal stories, personally told, and doing them at Agecroft really is something special. It's 500 years old and came from England, so we play in the courtyard just as Elizabethan actors would."

Starring in the role of King Henry in "Henry V" is London-born actor Phil Brown, who played Prince Hal the past two summers in "Henry IV, Part 1" and "Part 2."

Brown came to Richmond two years ago after being recruited by director James Bond -- who also is helming this year's "Henry" -- and the self-described "Shakespeare geek" said playing King Henry is tricky yet rewarding.

"When Shakespeare was writing 'Henry V,' one of his challenges was that he was writing about the king, the be all and end all of great kings. He had two tasks: to present the king in a way that wouldn't get him into trouble with Elizabeth and also to write a real human character facing real problems," Brown said last week.

"In 'Henry V,' the crown almost acts like a mask. The prince becomes the man, and the man has to deal with the responsibilities of the crown. In that respect, it's very complex, because you're trying to find where the voice is the king and where the voice is the prince and where to find the human balance."

Brown trained for three years at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York, where he participated in many Shakespearean workouts.
"A good drama school training gives you the solid foundation, and every professional play you do after that, you learn more as you go along," said Brown, who, along with the rest of the cast, has been rehearsing the past five weeks, including rigorous fight scenes.

"Our choreographer, Vanessa [Passini], has been putting us all through our paces with sword drills," Brown said. "Hopefully, fingers crossed, the sword fighting will look quite cool."

Though Brown and his wife, Emily, plan to move back to New York at the end of the summer, he is still looking forward to CenterStage opening.
"Hopefully, once it's established, it's the kind of thing that breeds more art, essentially," he said.

But for the next couple of weeks, the only art Brown will be concentrating on his nightly portrayal of Henry.

"James [Bond, the director] says that Shakespeare is the most muscular form of theater," Brown said. "It kind of forces you to use your technique more than anything else. I believe if you can do Shakespeare well, you can do anything well."

Two Sets of Auditions

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM
Director: Andrew Hamm Saturday, February 21, 1pm., at Tabernacle Baptist Church, 1925 Grove Avenue. (at Meadow & Grove) Those auditioning should prepare a 1-minute monologue, and come prepared to move. Seeking women, aged 20-60, for the downtown season finale. Experience with Shakespeare required. Show runs at 2nd Presbyterian Church April 16-May10. Phone 804-232-4000 or E-mail info@richmondshakespeare.com for an appointment.

HENRY V (The History Cycle)
Director: James BondMonday & Tuesday, February 23 and 24, 6-9pm, at 2nd Presbyterian Church, 5 North Fifth Street. (A few steps up from Fifth & Main) Those auditioning should prepare a 1-2 minute monologue. Seeking men, aged 20+, for the summer festival opener. Rehearsals start April 27, and the show opens at Agecroft Hall June 12. Phone 804-232-4000 or E-mail info@richmondshakespeare.com for an appointment.

James Bond on Letterman!

James Alexander Bond, my dear friend and director of many Richmond Shakespeare hits, is going to be on David Letterman on Monday night!

He's reading the top ten list, which is James Bond-themed. Apparently, the producers called James Bonds in New York to audition on Friday, and James lives 10 blocks from the studio. Also his middle name starts with "A," so he wasthe first one in the phone book.

There exists the possibility that the producers will pull him at the table read, but the gig is currently his. Don't miss it!

Now Playing: "Henry IV, Part 2"

Preview performances begin Thursday, July 17 for the latest installment in the History Cycle, Henry IV, Part 2, opening Saturday, July 19.

Beginning mere minutes after the events of Part 1 (performed last summer), the production features the returns of Phil Brown as Prince Hal and Daryl Clark Phillips as the incomparable Sir John Falstaff, and the addition of David Bridgewater as King Henry. The cast is a talented mix of Richmond Shakespeare Festival veterans and newcomers. It all happens under the direction of Master of Play James Alexander Bond, who has directed many of Richmond Shakespeare's best-received shows (Julius Caesar, Henry IV, Part 1, and Measure for Measure), and Master of Verse Melissa Carroll-Jackson, a remarkably gifted newcomer to the company.

Last summer's Part 1 may have been the most acclaimed production in Richmond Shakespeare's 23-year history, but you don't need to have seen the first part to appreciate the excitement, the hilarity, and the emotion of Part 2. It absolutely stands on its own, and is in fact even bawdier than its predecessor.

Performances are Thursday through Sunday nights at 8:00 through August 3. Visit our website or call 1-866-BARD-TIX for your tickets.

Times-Dispatch: Andrew Hamm is "Cultivating Richmond Theater"

From the Richmond Times-Dispatch:

Cultivating Richmond theater
An insider is devoted to fostering a vibrant local art scene

Sunday, Apr 13, 2008 - 12:03 AM

By CELIA WREN
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

"There's no shame in wanting to be a big fish in a small pond," observes Richmond Shakespeare's new associate artistic director, Andrew Hamm, "if you recognize that a big fish in a small pond has big responsibilities to care for the pond."

An intense 35-year-old with a shaved head, glasses and an earring, Hamm is sitting in the theater company's quiet office in the Fan, drinking coffee and discussing, among other matters, the importance of nurturing a vibrant local theater scene. It is a subject he feels strongly about: His voice is emotional, almost tremulous, as he deplores the inclination of certain big fish (talented Richmond thespians) to relocate to a larger pond (New York City).

"Smaller-city and small-town art scenes need great artists to stay there: That is what makes art healthy," the Virginia native stresses.

Since he began working with Richmond Shakespeare in 2004 -- his first freelance assignment was to supervise music for a production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" -- Hamm has done his part to cultivate the pond that is Richmond theater.

For 18 months, until his promotion in March to associate artistic director, he served as Richmond Shakespeare's director of training, coordinating career-enrichment classes (such as the upcoming clowning intensive) aimed at local actors. "I felt a responsibility to do what little I can, not only to put on a good show, but to help the other artists in town to put on good shows," he says, explaining his perspective on the job.

He has also directed for the company, most recently mounting "As You Like It," running at the Second Presbyterian Church through April 20. Hamm has followed the five-actor template that's a Richmond Shakespeare hallmark: Between a clothes rack and a flower-draped piano, the performers ricochet from character to character, frantically donning hats, aprons and the like to signal their identity.

"I've been calling it a love letter to the five-actor format," says Hamm. "We're not trying to hide the costume changes or the character changes -- we're absolutely glorifying in them!"

All the same, he'll be expanding the cast, to a dozen or so, for the comedy's run at Agecroft Hall July 3 through July 13.

In addition to directing "As You Like It," Hamm has written the production's incidental music, and he serves as pianist for the montage of 1980s pop songs (Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time," etc.) that introduces Act I. "Once alternative and grunge became mainstream, you couldn't have love songs without irony," Hamm said, of the choice of tunes.

"The '80s were really the last time in history where you could have love songs that were really just kooky love songs." (His Virginia Commonwealth University graduate thesis was a theater piece built from Joe Jackson albums.)

As if he didn't have enough to do, Hamm also depicts Hymen in the production, adding that tiny role to a list of previous Richmond Shakespeare acting credits.

"He has a great energy," said James Alexander Bond, the New York-based artist who directed Hamm in "Measure for Measure" and in "Julius Caesar."

"He does his work fast and well, and if something's not going in a direction that feels right, he has no problem letting go and trying new things. He's very specific -- and the more specific a character is, the better it is."

Grant Mudge, the company's artistic director, is equally enthusiastic. "He can work as a teaching artist, he can work as an actor -- his versatility is incredibly valuable to me, " he said. "At any small not-for-profit theater company, if you've got someone who can handle more than one area of emphasis, that's incredibly valuable."

If Mudge sounds a note of pragmatism, Hamm takes an idealistic view of his work. "I view this thing of art-making as mission and vocation," he said.

And for that mission, he thinks, Richmond is an ideal location. "You can perform in front of bigger houses if you wish, in bigger towns," said Hamm. "But I guarantee: You're going to touch people so much more deeply here."

New York Auditions This Week

Richmond Shakespeare Auditions in New York

March 27, 2008

By appointment, Ripley-Grier Studios, 520 Eighth Avenue, 10am-1pm

RS will hold auditions for 2008 outdoor summer festival and 2008-2009 indoor season. Minorities encouraged to apply. Seeking 15 men, aged 30-70, and 10 women, aged 25-70. Prefer actors with Richmond (Va.) connection who can provide their own housing. Other needs: theatrical clown skills, experience with Shakespeare. Limited number of Equity Special Appearance contracts are available. One classical monologue of not more than 2 minutes, some cold readings. Summer festival titles: The Compleat Wrks of Wllm Shakspr (Abridged), As You Like It, and Henry IV, Part Two. (Some roles already cast), and from the indoor season, Hamlet (Oct '08, no roles yet cast). Those auditioning may be considered for three additional productions on the indoor season not yet announced. To schedule an appointment, send an e-mail to auditions@richmondshakespeare.com. (Phone, emergencies only, 804-232-4000.) Auditioners: Grant Mudge, Artistic Director, James Bond "Henry" director and Kathleen Powers, "Hamlet" director.

Style Weekly: "Measure for Measure" is "Bracing" and "Gratifying"

From this week's Style Weekly:

Quick-Change Artists
Actors make the most of multiple roles in “Measure for Measure.”
by David Timberline

Richmond Shakespeare Theatre’s practice of “doubling” — having each of its actors play two or three roles in a show — has always led to some interesting juxtapositions. Its current production of “Measure for Measure” may present the most fascinating and artistically rewarding combinations yet.

In this complex consideration of moral gray areas, Andrew Hamm portrays both the strict Duke’s deputy, Angelo, who must crack down on the reprobates of Vienna, and the unfortunate gentleman Claudio, who gets cracked down upon. Both of these characters are fraught with inner conflict, and it’s a tribute to Hamm’s considerable skills that he is able to make each man’s trajectory riveting and distinct. He even throws in for good measure an amusing comic turn as an elderly constable.

Hearing that Claudio has been sentenced to die, his novitiate sister, Isabella, leaves the nunnery to plead for his life. Angelo makes her a devil’s bargain: If she sleeps with him, he’ll free her brother. As Isabella, Liz Blake is convincingly enchanting and proves her acting mettle in the extreme emotional rollercoaster her character must ride.

Spurring the plot into greater complication is Vincentio, the Duke (David White), who disguises himself as a friar to spy on the proceedings. White doesn’t quite do enough to differentiate the Duke from the pimp Pompey, but he salvages his performance in some exceptional final scenes.

In other supporting roles, Julie Phillips makes her biggest impression as the bawdy Mistress Overdone, and while John Moss’ near-farcical take on the opportunistic Lucio sometimes seems to belong in a different play, it’s also consistently hilarious.

As is befitting one of Shakespeare’s “problem” plays, this production has some issues with the mix of comic and melodramatic elements. But the overall effect is a bracing — and gratifying — journey down a murky moral path.



Great to hear such praise from Style Weeky! And our review appears directly beneath the review of Doubt, making this "Nun Week" at Style.

If I may be so bold, I need to point out that this show has grown tremendously in the two weeks since the Thursday preview that Mr. Timberline saw. All five actors have really deepened their connection to their roles. If you saw the show early, it's worth coming back to see it again.

There are only two more weeks of Measure for Measure. Don't miss this show!

In Defense of the Bad Guy

If you've spent any time in a talk-back session with me, you've probably heard me gleefully admit that the only thing I might like better than creating art is talking about creating art. This blog is quite the enabler for me, isn't it? It certainly gives me a great opportunity to talk about making Measure for Measure, which has been among the most rewarding experiences of my artistic life.

Since about halfway through our production process for Measure, James Bond (the director, not the fictional spy) and I have shared a similar experience: that of defending Angelo, the assumed "villain" of the play. With friends and colleagues, at home or at the Shakespeare Association of America conference last month, in every conversation we end up in about the show, it seems like our production's interpretation of Angelo becomes central. That's a bit of a red herring; yes, we have found an approach toward the character that we can't find much if any precedent for in the show's long production history (though we believe it to be completely supported by the text), but it changes a lot more than just Angelo. The whole triangle of Angelo - Isabella - Duke is shifted if you begin with the assumption that Angelo isn't a villain.

"Wait a minute," Shakespeare Scholar objects. "Angelo condemns Claudio to death for fornication, a crime that has gone unpunished in Vienna for 19 years. He tries to coerce Claudio's sister Isabella--a novice nun, by the way--to sleep with him to save her brother, and after he thinks he has slept with her he still orders Claudio put to death. How is this guy not a villain? He's a rapist and a murderer! And besides, the Spark Notes edition lists his character as 'Angelo: the villain of the play'."

Well, first of all, that's why I hate Spark Notes and their ilk, which bring the play down to the level of the reader, rather than the Arden or Folger editions, which endeavor to raise the reader up to the level of the text.

Secondly, Angelo fails to either rape Isabella or murder Claudio. If he's a villain, he's not a very competent one. Mariana, his spurned fiancee, substitutes for Isabella in the silent darkness of Angelo's garden house, and she is far from an unwilling participant in the act. And Claudio is spared by the disguised Duke and the Provost, who substitute the convenient head of the fever-slain pirate Ragozine for Claudio's. But the point is well taken; he certainly has ill intent for much of the play.

However, he's not doing these things in a vacuum. Angelo is no Iago, who performs his deeds out of hatred and jealousy; he's no Macbeth, who acts out of ambition and wife-whipping. When presented with a position of authority based solely on the fact that he has a reputation as a strict and righteous man, Angelo begs the Duke to give him some lesser responsibility. He has no idea what to do. When presented with policy decisions, he has no background to draw on for anything other than strict interpretation of the law.

Angelo reminds me of myself. When I got my first job as actor/road manager for a Theatre IV tour, I was a jerk. I thought I needed to act like a boss; I believed that my right to manage was assumed, where in reality it needed to be demonstrated. I was terrible at the job, and I made some very nice people hate me. I was Angelo.

Then Isabella (played by Liz Blake) shows up, gorgeous and brilliant, probably the first girl Angelo has ever been this close to and the first person he's met in town who's as smart and virtuous as he himself is. Having resisted temptation all his life by removing himself from it, he now finds himself not just tempted by Isabella, but, I believe, genuinely and sincerely in love with her. And, truth be told, in a diferent play they'd be a great couple.

So Angelo is in love for the first time. He's 35 years old, he's having all the hormonal rush of a 13-year-old, and he has the power of Claudio's life and death in his hands. He simply doesn't have the experience to resist using the powerful leverage he has to achieve the powerful urges he has. Then, when Isabella returns to discuss the matter, she repeatedly, innocently, seems to be saying "yes" to his thinly-veiled offer to trade Claudio's life for her love. Finally, he's just been tuned to too high a pitch, and strung along for too long, and he snaps.

Does that excuse him? No. But it goes a long way toward explaining him.

Viewing the play's antagonist through the lens of explainable action changes everything about the characters who interact with him. Doesn't Isabella bear some of the blame for the way things spiral out of control? She meets with him alone, she eggs him on, she stays in the room long after Angelo has made his intentions clear, and she certainly has argued passionately that her brother's fornication was no big deal. Of course she doesn't deserve to be propositioned, threatened, or sexually assaulted, but she is far from blameless for the situation she has placed herself in. Some of the show's company--including the director--have even posited that Isabella's refusal to give up her virginity for her brother's life could be seen as every bit as unreasonable as Angelo's insistence that any act of fornication is punishable by death.

The biggest culprit, in my mind, is the Duke (played by Dave White), our supposed co-protagonist with Isabella. First, he places Angelo in a position of power for which he is completely unprepared. Next, when things start falling apart, the Duke doesn't jump out of his disguise and set things aright; he chooses instead to remain concealed and concoct a series of elaborate plans to hook Angelo up with his ex and send him a substitute head. Most dastardly is his decision to keep Isabella ignorant of the fact that Claudio's life has been saved, holding onto that information for a later time, when he will delight her with good news just in time to ask for her hand in marriage.

This, to my mind, is every bit as nasty as anything Angelo does. How is the Duke's manipulating Isabella's love for her brother in order to get her as his wife any better than Angelo's manipulating Isabella's love for her brother in order to get her as a one-night stand? Certainly, the Duke is no "villain." He does save the day in the end; no one is executed or raped, and everyone (except the unrepentant Lucio) ends up in some degree of happily-ever-after. But it's very telling that Isabella has no lines after the Duke proposes to her. For such an intelligent, verbose character to have nothing to say is not an accident for a writer such as Shakespeare.

As an actor, I always want to love and understand the character I'm playing. Loving Angelo the manipulative strict attempted rapist is obviously harder than loving Angelo the lovestruck helpless broken-hearted screw-up. It's much more playable to wrap my head around the idea that he's a generally good guy in way over his head who makes terrible, terrible decisions and feels awful about them afterward. And he is devastated by his choices, separating himself from Shakespeare's true villains with a soliloquy at the end of act four wherein he expresses profound regret for his actions despite the fact that he is convinced he will get away scott-free. Even at the end, when he has been forgiven by Isabella and pardoned by the Duke, he still apoligizes, "crav[ing] death more willingly than mercy."

To my mind, that's no villain. And I don't think that's just better for the actors; I think that makes for a better audience experience. We see something of ourselves in Cassius, in Hotspur, and in Bolingbroke, something much more approachable than the unrepentant villainy of Iago, Aaron, and Richard III. I think we've all gotten ourselves into bad situations from which we couldn't extricate ourselves. We've all lied and been caught in it. And in the end, we've all been in that moment where maybe we would rather just be caught cleanly than get away with what we know we did wrong.

I've been Angelo. I've been the bad guy. I think we all have.



Disagree? That's what the "comments" link is for, my friends. And we have two more Acts of Faith discussions scheduled, after the shows on Sunday, February 17, and Friday, February 29. Or, if you just want to tear my head off after the show, I can easily be persuaded to argue the point over a pint at Penny Lane after any show.



Photos by Eric Dobbs.

"Measure for Measure:" February 7 - March 20

Next up at the Richmond Shakespeare Theatre:


Directed by James Alexander Bond, who brought you Richmond Shakespeare's critically-acclaimed productions of Julius Caesar and Henry IV, Part 1, featuring the acting talent of Liz Blake, Andrew Hamm, John Moss, Julie Phillips, and David White, costumes by Rebecca Cairns and stage managed by Heather Johnson.

Death! is the sentence for impregnating a woman before marrying her, and even though Claudio does intend to marry his Juliet, he’s in a heap of trouble! The good Duke of Vienna has taken a break from royal duties, handing the reins of government to the strict conservative Angelo, who is tempted by Claudio’s sister Isabella, a nun’s novice; if Isabella will yield to Angelo's desire, he'll spare Claudio. Confused yet? Even though appearances in Shakespeare have a way of unraveling and all might end well, someone will be put to death, someone else spends a reckless night alone with a woman he cannot see, the clowns of Vienna will howl and the city itself could crumble. Be careful who you judge, as judgment might be passed on you!

Richmond Shakespeare's contribution to the Acts of Faith Festival, Measure for Measure is a story of passion and prayer, lust and restraint, sin and virtue, offense and forgiveness. One of Shakespeare's last comedies, the play is in many ways one of his most rich and complex, with broad bawdy humor alternating with theology and philosophy centuries ahead of its time. "The tempter or the tempted: who sins most?"

Mature themes but appropriate for age 14 and above.

Show times are Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights at 8:00 and Sunday afternoons at 2:30. All performances are in the chapel at Second Presbyterian Church (5 North 5th Street). Click here for directions!

Click here for tickets!

Picture of the Week: December 20, 2007

Yes, we do indeed take requests:

Photo by Eric Dobbs.

The inestimable Jacquie O'Connor as Mistress Quickly in last summer's Henry IV, Part 1. If I may say so, this was among the best productions Richmond Shakespeare has ever produced, if not the best ever. (Shrew was pretty awesome, as was the 2005 five actor Midsummer.) It was also an unusually photogenic production, so expect to see more pictures of it.

We're fortunate to have Henry director James Alexander Bond returning in a couple weeks to direct Measure for Measure, our 2008 Acts of Faith show. This will be my second time working with James after Fall 2006's Julius Caesar, and he is one of my favorite directors in the world to work with.