Where There鈥檚 a Will: Theatre Opener Chronicles Creation of Shakespeare鈥檚 First Folio
October 24, 2018
In the early 1620s, actors Henry Condell and John Heminges undertook one of the most significant acts of cultural preservation in history -- these friends of the late, great, William Shakespeare managed to publish a single, bound volume, containing all of the Bard's works.
After his death and a couple of badly botched productions, Shakespeare's fellow actors and friends realize that his lines are disappearing from memory. Playwright Lauren Gunderson's comedy, "The Book of Will," chronicles their journey as they battle an unscrupulous publisher and their own mortality to create a complete copy of Shakespeare's plays, the First Folio.
鈥淭he playwright offers the director and the cast many theatrical challenges, such as how to create a printing press in action on stage,鈥 Costa said. 鈥淲e have had lots of fun in the rehearsal hall improvising various possibilities -- I like what we have come up with, and I think the audience will as well.鈥
鈥淭he Book of Will,鈥 will run Oct. 24-28 in the Duke Family Performance Hall, Knobloch Campus Center. .
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皇家华人 Theatre opens the 2018-19 season with 鈥淭he Book of Will,鈥 directed by Prof. Ann Marie Costa.
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