Actors From the London Stage Bring William Shakespeare’s The Tempest to Wellesley College
Free Public Performances, Thursday, October 20 – Saturday, October 22 at 7 pm
“Actors From the London Stage proves that when it comes to the Bard the minimal may be maximal.” Caldwell Titcomb, The Arts Fuse
Five of England’s top Shakespearean actors bring the Bard’s culminating masterpiece The Tempest to vivid life for three performances only at Wellesley College. Often seen as his farewell to the theatre world, Shakespeare’s The Tempest conjures a world of innocent lovers, bawdy buffoons, mystical beings and a spectacular storm that transforms everyone in its path. Oct. 20-22, 7 p.m. Free. Diana Chapman Walsh Alumnae Hall, 106 Central St. 781-283-2000, www.wellesleysummertheatre.com
Actors from the London Stage (AFTLS)’s Jennifer Kidd, Richard Neale, Laurence Pears, Dale Rapley and Adam Smethurst will each play a number of roles in the performance. With simple and evocative settings, this self-directed ensemble works collaboratively with their audiences to bring Shakespeare’s dramatic language beautifully and compellingly alive.
Prospero, magician and exiled Duke of Milan, has spent the past 12 years marooned on a desert island with his beautiful daughter Miranda, robbed of his throne by his brother Alfonso. In a quest for revenge, Prospero uses his powers to raise a storm at sea, bringing the family that betrayed him within his grasp again. AFTLS will bring its’ signature spare and inventive style to this classic tale of love, deception, power and ultimately, forgiveness.
Formed 36 years ago, AFTLS is one of the oldest and most respected touring Shakespeare companies in the world. Coming from such prestigious venues as the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal National Theatre of Great Britain and Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, these classically trained actors are equally dedicated to presenting first-rate professional performances at American colleges and universities, and to working with students to bring Shakespeare’s work alive. Part of their stated mission is to “get students up out of their chairs and act with them to learn how Shakespeare’s texts become scripts, words become actions and actions become meaning.”
The group will be at Wellesley for a weeklong residency, Oct. 17-22. In addition to performing, they will teach workshops for Wellesley Theatre Studies and English department students during the week.
A theatrical tour de force beloved by the Wellesley community, this will be AFTLS’s sixth visit to the Wellesley campus. Past productions have included A Midsummer Night’s Dream, King Lear, The Winter’s Tale, Macbeth and Hamlet. For more information about AFTLS’s production of The Tempest, visit www.nd.edu/~aftls/current_tour.
Free parking is available in the Davis Parking Facility. Directions and a map of the College are online at www.wellesley.edu/Admin/travel.html. Wheelchair accessible. For disability services contact Jim Wice at 781-283-2434 or jwice@wellesley.edu.
The Wellesley College Department of Theatre Studies and the Department of English, with the generous support of the Committee on Lectures and Cultural Events, and the Ruth Nagel Jones Fund, present these free performances. For more information, www.wellesleysummertheatre.com or call 781-283-2000.
ABOUT WELLESLEY COLLEGE & THE ARTS
The Wellesley College arts curriculum and the highly acclaimed Davis Museum and Cultural Center are integral components of the College’s liberal arts education. Departments and programs from across the campus have enlivened the community with world-class programming —classical and popular music, visual arts, theatre, dance, author readings, symposia, and lectures by some of today’s leading artists and creative thinkers— most of which are free and open to the public.
Located just 12 miles from Boston and accessible by public transit, Wellesley College’s idyllic surroundings provide a nearby retreat for the senses and inspiration that lasts well after a visit.
Since 1875, Wellesley College has been a leader in providing an excellent liberal arts education for women who will make a difference in the world. Its 500-acre campus near Boston is home to 2,300 undergraduate students from all 50 states and 65 countries.
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