It's Thursday, and that means our peripatetic theater critic, J. Wynn Rousuck, joins Tom in Studio A for our weekly look at the region's thespian offerings. Today, Judy reviews Shakespeare in Love, the new stage version of the multi-Oscar winning 1998 film that's now on the boards at Baltimore Center Stage. Adapted by Lee Hall from from Marc Norman's and Tom Stoppard’s original screenplay, Shakespeare in Love is a funny, bawdy back-story take on the famous Bard's creative muse, and on the complex relationship between art and love.
Baltimore Center Stage Artistic Director Kwame Kwei-Armah calls the play a "joyful romp" that "celebrates every aspect of theater, from the words on the page to the actors on stage. It is a charming tale of love, the English language, and theater itself.” Kwei-Armah says the spirited play is part of Center Stage's "Season of Community" spotlight on the power of artists and institutions to build and bring joy to our communities. Shakespeare in Love, he adds, "is simply the joy that this theater can provide in turbulent times.”
The Baltimore Center Stage production of Shakespeare in Love -- the play's only staging in the Baltimore/Washington D.C. area this season -- is one of 15 productions it's had across the country, making it the most-produced play in America this year. It's directed at Center Stage by Blake Robison, Artistic Director of the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. The cast includes Nicholas Carriere as William Shakespeare; Emily Trask as Viola de Lesseps; Laura Gordon as the Nurse; Avery Glymph as Marlowe/Priest; John Plumpis as Fennyman; Barzin Akhavan as Henslowe; and Naomi Jacobsen as Queen Elizabeth/Molly. There’s also a featured appearance by Meatball (a Chihuahua) as Spot.
Shakespeare in Love continues at Baltimore Center Stage -- located at 700 North Calvert Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202 -- through Sunday, November 26. Click here for ticket information.
