CONWAY — The 2015 Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre festival features three works by William Shakespeare — The Merry Wives of Windsor, The Merchant of Venice and As You Like It — as well as the well-known musical Fiddler on the Roof, with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick and book by Joseph Stein. The 2015 season begins Thursday and runs through June 28 at several Arkansas venues.
Productions at the Donald W. Reynolds Performance Hall at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway will be done “in the round”; the audience will be on stage along with the actors. The pastoral comedy, As You Like It, will be performed outdoors.
The Merry Wives of Windsor
The season opens at 7:30 p.m. Thursday with The Merry Wives of Windsor at The Village at Hendrix in Conway.
Additional performances at Hendrix will be 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and again June 11 and 12. The show moves to the Argenta Farmers’ Market in North Little Rock for performances at 7:30 p.m. June 25, 26 and 28. All tickets are pay-what-you can with a suggested donation of $15.
This comedy of love and deception features Shakespeare’s famous larger-than-life anti-hero, Falstaff, who comes for a visit. He sets out to woo the housewives of Windsor for some quick cash, but finds himself outfoxed by the wise Windsor wives, becoming the buffoon instead of the leading man in his own ambitious tale of romance.
Utah-based actor Paul Kiernan, plays Falstaff. Dan Matisa of New York City, who is featured in another story about the festival appearing in this edition, directs the play.
In addition to Courtney Bennett, Matthew Duncan and Taylor Galloway, who are UCA graduates and also featured elsewhere in this edition, several other local actors are in this play.
• Chad Bradford of New York City, originally of Little Rock, is a graduate of the UCA. He plays Ford in Merry Wives; he also plays Bassanio in The Merchant of Venice.
• Chris Fritzges of Conway is an assistant professor of theater at UCA, where he teaches acting, voice for the actor and directing. He portrays a page in this production.
• Jordy Neill of Conway plays Slender. He also plays Lancelot Gobbo in The Merchant of Venice. Neill is a son of Cindy and Randy Romeo of Conway and a 2007 graduate of Conway High School. He studied theater at UCA.
• Paige Reynolds of Little Rock is an internship coordinator and associate professor of English at UCA, where she specializes in British Renaissance drama. She plays Mistress Page.
Members of the Youth Ensemble from Conway appearing in The Merry Wives include Jack Ghormley, Sarah Guinee, Anna Beth Jeane, Camille Lambert, Maddie Meek, Kate Parrack and Zeke Whisenhunt, who appear as children of Windsor; Ethan Hemphill, who plays John; Madeline Leicht, who plays Simple; Simon Marotte, who appears as Robin; and Henry Whisenhunt, who plays Harry Page.
The Merchant of Venice
Rebekah Scallet, AST’s producing artistic director, directs The Merchant of Venice, which opens at 7:30 p.m. June 19 at Reynolds Performance Hall. Additional performances are 2 and 7:30 p.m. June 20; 7:30 p.m. June 23; and 2 p.m. June 27 and June 28. Regular admission is $28; senior/student/military admission, $23.
Scallet has set the play during the time between World War I and II, with Fascism on the rise.
“This play is considered one of Shakespeare’s problem plays,” Scallet said. “Though it is called a comedy and ends with marriage, rather than death, the harsh and painful treatment of Shylock by the Venetians doesn’t truly allow the ending to feel happy. I’m interested in exploring all of the complexities and contradictions provided in the text, and the 1930s setting is the perfect backdrop to explore issues of prejudice and greed.”
Scallet is in her fourth year with AST. She is also a lecturer in UCA’s theater program and is the recipient of an Individual Artist Fellowship in Directing from the Arkansas Arts Council.
Appearing in the leading roles of this play are Matisa, who portrays Shylock, and Kiernan, who plays Antonio.
Among the local actors in this play (not already mentioned) are:
• Hannah Moulder of Bentonville, a UCA graduate, who plays Jessica. She also plays Hodel in Fiddler on the Roof.
• Harrison Trigg of Hector, a student at UCA, who plays Salario. He also plays a Russian in Fiddler on the Roof.
Members of the Youth Ensemble from Conway appearing in this play include Anna Caroline Gregg, Ethan Marotte and. Olivia Marotte.
As You Like It
This one-hour family show will be presented at 2 p.m. June 23, 25 and 26 and at 10 a.m. June 27 at Reynolds Performance Hall. Tickets are $10.
As You Like It is a pastoral comedy set in the Forest of Arden, where nothing is quite what it seems. The play’s heroine, Rosalind, is forced to disguise herself as a boy and befriends Orlando, who is her love interest.
Amy Lynn Budd of West Lafayette, Indiana, is making her directorial debut with this play at the Arkansas Shakespeare Festival.
She just completed her second year of study in Purdue University’s Master of Fine Arts directing program under the mentorship of Robert Quinlan, who has directed at AST. Last summer, she interned in dramaturgy at Indiana Repertory Theatre.
“I’m really excited to be here,” Budd said. “I’m really just delighted with my acting ensemble. Everyone in the cast is smart, creative and dedicated.”
As You Like It will tour the state, with productions at Crystal Bridges Museum in Bentonville on June 17, South Arkansas Arts Center in El Dorado on June 19 and the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute on Petit Jean Mountain on June 20.
Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof will open at 7:30 p.m. June 10 at Reynolds Performance Hall. Additional performances will be at 7:30 p.m. June 12, 21, 24 and 27 and 2 p.m. June 14, 21 and 24. Individual tickets are $28.
A two-play season package for The Merchant of Venice and Fiddler on the Roof is available for $42.
Broadway veteran Peter Kevoian stars as Tevye, the family patriarch who dreams of marrying his daughters well and becoming a rich man. Kevoian has played Monsieur Reyer in the original Broadway cast of The Phantom of the Opera, and the wizard in the Chicago Company of the National Tour of Wicked; he also appeared in the Broadway revival of the musical Zorba.
North Little Rock native Jeremy Williams, who now lives in Manhattan, is returning to AST this year to direct Fiddler; he directed last season’s production of Pippin.
Other local actors (not already mentioned) appearing in Fiddler include:
• David Weatherly of Conway, who plays Avram. A son of Allen and Peggy Weatherly of Conway, he is a graduate of Conway High School. He attended UCA and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York City for training in musical theater.
• Holly Gale Ruth of Russellville, who plays Frumah-Sarah and Motel. Ruth is a music teacher at Arkansas Tech University.
Members of the Youth Ensemble from Conway appearing in this play include Josie Ghormley, who plays Biekle; Claire Gillaspy, who plays Shprintze; and Jackson Karl, Zoe Russell, Kendall Watson, Joey Whisenhunt and Maggie Whisenhunt, who are all members of the ensemble.
For more information or to purchase tickets online, visit arkshakes.com. Tickets may also be purchased by calling (866) 810-0012.