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King Lear is perhaps Shakespeare’s most
uncompromising tragedy. Yet at its heart, it is about forgiving oneself,
demonstrated by the character journeys of both Lear and Cordelia as well
as Gloucester and Edgar. It is also one of the Bard's most insightful plays.
Lear examines the human condition on every level of society, from
the absolute monarch to the most outcast and wretched
people of the social order. Authority, loyalty, obedience, service, servility,
dignity, and pride are principal themes that are woven to
support each character’s journey.
Stark,
soaring, and majestic, we chose to perform Shakespeare's great
tragedy in locations that invoked those qualities: beneath the Willamette
Valley's only suspension bridge, the St. Johns Bridge in
Cathedral Park. Special to the year, both the Tualatin Valley
Parks and Recreation Department and the
Maryhill Museum
invited Portland Actors Ensemble to perform for one night only, at
one their locations. On the evening of the Summer Solstice we
performed at the Stonehenge War Memorial in Maryhill, Washington
It was so successful, Maryhill Museum has invited us back in 2010 to
do two shows to accommodate the number of people. |
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All Shows were FREE
Thursday, Friday & Saturday evenings
June 11, 12, & 13*, 7:30 pm
-Cathedral Park,
Under the bridge at
N. Edison St. and N.
Philadelphia Ave
June 18, 19, 7:30 pm -Cathedral Park
June 20, 7:30 pm -Stonehenge War Memorial,
140 Stonehenge Dr. Maryhill, WA
located about three
miles east of
the Maryhill Museum
June 25, 26, 7:30 pm
-Cathedral Park
June 27, 6:00 pm -Autumn Ridge Park
17548 Northwest Fieldstone Drive,
Beaverton
near NW 185th Ave. and NW Walker Rd.
July 2, 3, 7:30 pm -Cathedral Park
(no show on the 4th)
July 9, 10, & 11, 7:30 pm
-Cathedral Park
*ASL Sign Interpreted Performance |
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2009 Shakespeare-in-the-Parks
The
History of
King
Henry IV
The 1st Part
Directed by John Monteverde
photo by Garry Louie
Cast and Crew
All shows FREE to the public
Special Preview weekend:
Nehalem Bay State
Park, July 25, at 5:00pm
Off US 101, 3 miles South of
Manzanita Junction
Quatat Park, downtown Seaside, OR, July
26, at 1:00pm
on the Necanicum River,
between 1st Ave. and Broadway St.
Opening weekend:
Laurelhurst Park, August 1 and 2, at 3:00pm
SE 35th Ave. and SE Oak St., near "picnic area F" in the center of
the Park
Washington Park, August 8 and
9, at 3:00pm
SW Washington Way, in the lower park, just North of the
Holocaust Memorial
We are NOT at the
amphitheater, but at site 2 on this
map
Gabriel Park, August 15 and 16, at
3:00pm
SW 45th Ave and SW Nevada Ct., past the Tennis Courts
Lynchwood Park, August 22 and
23, at 3:00pm
SE Haig and SE 174th, between Division and Powell
Concordia University, August 29* and
30, at 3:00pm
At the amphitheater in the Quad near
NE 29th Ave &
NE Rosa Parks Way
Reed College, September 5, 6, and 7, at 3:00pm
SE Woodstock and SE Reed College Pl., in front of Eliot Hall
*scheduled to be an ASL Sign Interpreted Performance
Produced in collaboration with our sister company
Northwest Classical Theatre (NWCTC),
PAE celebrated its 40th year of FREE Shakespeare-in-the-Parks with its
first history play production: The First Part of King Henry IV.
NWCTC also presented The Second Part of King Henry IV in
October at their own space, the Shoebox Theater, in Southeast Portland. The productions
shared concepts, design, and actors wherever possible.
Part of a larger narrative of the rise of the House of
Lancaster, both parts of Henry IV focus on the disintegration of King
Henry of Bolingbroke's kingdom, family, and body while he strives to atone
for his usurpation of the throne of his cousin Richard II.
At the same time the plays also follow young Prince Hal's progress to
becoming one of England's greatest monarchs, Henry V. Classified
by Shakespeare's contemporaries as a History (literally, a story), the
two Henry IV plays are considered among the Bard's comic best,
giving rise to some of his most memorable characters. Each part stands
alone as its own story: They were rarely performed together prior to
the 20th century. Today they are frequently bracketed with productions
of Richard II and Henry V forming a tetralogy.
Two of Shakespeare's
unforgettable characters debuted in these plays: The patriotic and virtuous
soldier Henry "Hotspur" Percy, whose motto Esperance
(meaning hope or expectation) could be a watchword for all
the
characters, and the Bard's greatest comic creation, Sir John
Falstaff. The larger-than-life Falstaff was so popular
that it is said that Queen Elizabeth requested a comedy written for him so
that she could see him in love (and the result was The Merry Wives of
Windsor). For centuries the character ran riot through
productions that were titled simply Falstaff,
and often the political content was cut altogether. More recent
stagings have returned the bawdy knight to a larger context. As our director John Monteverde writes:
Hotspur
and Falstaff serve as foils in contrast to Hal and Henry: Hotspur as the
ideal others believe Hal should strive for, Falstaff as the father that
King Henry is not. A central question, and one that gives the play its
most contemporary relevance is “what is leadership?” As a king, as a
father, what does being a good leader mean? We live in a fractured
world where this question frequently comes into play. Our world of the
play is one where the past and the present mix, where there is great
wealth and great poverty, great heroism and great cowardice -often in
the same person. To Hal it is a world where we piece together bits of
our past, to create a new future; a world much like this one.
As always, all park performances
were free. Over 2000 audience members partook in this rare event of collaboration and history this summer, and help
support two theater companies for the price of none.
Press Release (.pdf)
Promotional Photos
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Sister Companies:
The below are companies with whom PAE has collaborated and have an
ongoing relationship.
Northwest Classical Theatre
Company -from their website (www.nwctc.org)
The NWCTC is dedicated to performing great plays by great
writers placing the emphasis on text and authorial intention rather than
directorial conception. By cutting back on stage pyrotechnics and
limiting our use of set and costume, we focus the attention on the word
and story that we try to tell. Our company motto is “Content over
Concept!”
Original Practice
Shakespeare Festival -from their website (www.opsfest.org)
First Folio editions of Shakespeare’s plays
include all the cues an actor needs to perform his or her role without
rehearsal. This allows the truest reaction to the story as it
progresses. The Ops Fest performs using the same performance techniques
as they did in Shakespeare's own time, which means limited rehearsal, an
onstage prompter, and changing roles each performance. This lends a
much more immediate, organic, improvisational feel to the performances.
Original Practice: because
Shakespeare should be a little dangerous
Blue Monkey Theatre Company
-from their website (www.bluemonkeytheater.org)
Fearless Youth, Unforgettable Theater:
Blue Monkey
Theater Company is about taking artistic risks, coloring outside the
lines and empowering the unique, fresh, fearless voice of the young
artist. We’re committed to expanding the vision of what theater for
young people is and can be, by creating experiences that are
challenging, honest and unforgettable. If you can’t be brave when you’re
young, when can you be? |
