[NEohioPAL] Graduate Ensemble Takes on Shakespeare's All's Well That Ends Well

Thu Aug 13 14:13:18 PDT 2009

Graduate Ensemble Takes on Shakespeare’s All’s Well That Ends Well 

Geoff Bullen from The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London To Direct

Cleveland, OH (August 14, 2009) – The Case Western Reserve University (CWRU)
Masters of Fine Arts (MFA) Acting Program at The Cleveland Play House will
present Shakespeare’s play All’s Well That Ends Well in the Brooks Theatre
from September 9 – 19, 2009. Directed by Geoff Bullen from The Royal Academy
of Dramatic Art in London, Shakespeare's take on lust, love, and loss is
performed by the talented Case Western Reserve/Cleveland Play House third
year acting graduate ensemble. Tickets are $15 for adults and $7.50 for
students with a valid ID.  Parking is $8; student parking is only $2 with
valid ID. Tickets are on sale now at The Cleveland Play House box office by
calling 216.795.7000 ext 4 or online at www.clevelandplayhouse.com.

ABOUT THE PLAY and DIRECTOR

Hellen, an orphaned daughter of a doctor, is under the protection of the
widowed Countess of Rossillion. In love with Bertram, the countess' son,
Hellen follows him to court, where she cures the ailing French king of an
apparently fatal illness. The king rewards her by offering her the husband
of her choice. She names Bertram; he resists. When forced by the king to
marry her, Bertram refuses to sleep with her and, accompanied by the
braggart Parolles, leaves for the Italian wars. Bertram says that he will
only accept Hellen if she obtains a ring from his finger and becomes
pregnant with his child. She goes to Italy disguised as a pilgrim and
suggests a 'bed trick' whereby she will take the place of Diana, a widow's
daughter whom Bertram is trying to seduce. A 'kidnapping trick' humiliates
the boastful Parolles, whilst the bed trick enables Hellen to fulfill
Bertram's conditions, leaving him no option but accept the marriage, to his
mother's delight.

Shakespeare’s All’s Well That Ends Well has no record of having been
performed until long after Shakespeare's death. On the contemporary stage,
it has been performed far less than his more popular plays. This is what
attracted Visiting Professor Geoff Bullen to the project for his debut in
directing an MFA Acting Program graduate ensemble. “Not many people have
seen this play,” remarks Bullen. “Whether it’s the text and structure of the
play itself, or the perceived unlikeability of its lead characters, scholars
have generally not been fans of this piece of work.” Bullen, the Associate
Director of England’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) where he
specializes in teaching Shakespeare, is taking a “clear, reassuring, and
realistic versus romantic” approach to his staged adaptation of the play.

ABOUT THE MFA ACTING PROGRAM

Since 1996, The Cleveland Play House has partnered with Case Western Reserve
University to offer a Master of Fine Arts degree in Acting. In 2003, it
became a conservatory program completely housed at The Play House.

Every two years, the MFA Acting Program accepts a class of eight actors into
its three-year program. All three years are spent in residency at The Play
House, providing students with unique access to its vast facilities and the
professional expertise of its staff.

The program is designed to instill the physical, mental, and practical
techniques needed by today's successful theatre artists. Its intimate class
size enables the curriculum and performance experiences to be tailored to
suit the specific training needs of each class and individual student.
Together, instructors in acting, voice, speech, and movement work to train
and assess the progress of each student, integrating the various disciplines
in ways that will create maximum flexibility, freedom of expression, and
dynamic range, with the ultimate goal of instilling the skills, discipline,
and an aesthetic of craft necessary to develop a distinctive and effective
actor capable of encompassing the full range of professional demands.

ALL’S WELL THAT ENDS WELL Cast

For complete biographies, visit
http://www.clevelandplayhouse.com/showinfo.asp?eventID=68

CATHERINE L. ALBERS (Widow) 

AJ CEDEÑO (Lafew) 

ANDREW “FIN” COE (Second Lord)

MICHAEL FLOOD (Elder Dumaine) 

ZAC HOOGENDYK (Parolles) 

LINDSAY IUEN (Mariana) 

JOHN JENSEN (Duke of Florence) 

SARAH NEDWEK (Isbel/Diana) 

TOM PICASSO (Bertram) 

ANTUANE ROGERS (Younger Dumaine)

JAMES TOMOLA (First Lord) 

ERIN WENDALL (Cantiniere) 

TOM WHITE (The King) 

LEIGH WILLIAMS (Hellen) 

RONALD THOMAS WILSON (Lavasch) 

ALL’S WELL THAT ENDS WELL Creative Team

GEOFF BULLEN (Director) is the Associate Director of England’s Royal Academy
of Dramatic Art (RADA), where he specializes in teaching Shakespeare; in
addition, Bullen directs the annual Showcase Presentation of final-year
students, the Stage Fighting Competition, and the New York University Tisch
School of the Arts Shakespeare in Performance program with RADA. He is also
a Visiting Professor at Case Western Reserve University. He was born in
Cornwall, and graduated from Manchester University in 1969. Working at first
as an actor, he began his directing career with Century Theatre, and since
then has worked extensively in the UK both in the commercial and subsidized
theatre. A four-year appointment as associate director and writer at Theatre
Centre (Britain’s longest established company dedicated to work for schools)
has led to work with numerous other Theatre in Education companies. From
1995 to 1999, he was Course Director of Nottinghamshire Next Stage – a
pioneering Local Government project in Adult Education Performing Arts; and
in 2003 designed and inaugurated a Community Arts Management training course
for Liverpool’s Centre for Arts Development. As translator and adaptor –
notably of the work of Feydeau and Steinbeck as the author of numerous plays
on social issues for schools, his work has been performed around the world.
Recent productions include Cavalleria Rusticana and Tosca for Magdala Opera;
the premieres of Beside Picasso (Brian McAvera) and Bacon (Pip Utton), both
at the Edinburgh Festival; David Rudkin’s Red Sun for a National Tour; Into
the Woods, Assassins, and Little Women – The Musical at RADA; and The
Tempest at the Stadsschouwburg in Amsterdam. In 2008 his production of
Chaplin took the grand prix at 5th UNESCO International Festival in Minsk.
His adaptation of On the Black Hill is currently on tour with AJTC Theatre
Company, based in Surrey, England. 

The design team for All’s Well That Ends Well includes Jill Davis (Scenic
Designer), Jeffrey Van Curtis (Costume Design), Michael Boll (Lighting
Designer) and Nathan Tulenson (Sound Design). The Cleveland Play House’s
Production Staff is responsible for the sets, costumes, lighting, props,
furniture, scenic painting, sound, special effects and/or wigs used in this
production.

Founded in 1915, The Cleveland Play House is America’s first regional
theatre.  More than 12 million people have attended more than 1,300
productions at The Play House, including more than 130 American and/or world
premieres.  Today, under the leadership of Artistic Director Michael Bloom
and Managing Director Kevin Moore, The Cleveland Play House is an
artist-driven theatre that serves the Greater Cleveland community by holding
true to its mission: To produce plays of the highest professional standards
that inspire, stimulate, and entertain our diverse audiences, to conduct
training and educational programs that enhance the quality of life for those
we serve, and to help ensure the future of theatre.

The Cleveland Play House is funded through the generosity of Cuyahoga County
residents through Cuyahoga Arts and Culture, and The Ohio Arts Council which
helps to fund The Cleveland Play House with state tax dollars to encourage
economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all
Ohioans.

Case Western Reserve University is among the nation’s leading research
institutions. Founded in 1826 and shaped by the unique merger of the Case
Institute of Technology and Western Reserve University, Case Western Reserve
is distinguished by its strengths in education, research, service, and
experiential learning. Located in Cleveland, Case Western Reserve offers
nationally recognized programs in the Arts and Sciences, Dental Medicine,
Engineering, Law, Management, Medicine, Nursing, and Social Work.

# # #

FACT SHEET

What:                All’s Well That Ends Well by William Shakespeare

Where:              Brooks Theatre, The Cleveland Play House, 8500 Euclid
Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio

When:              Opening Night:     Wednesday, September 9, 2009 at 8:00
pm

                        Performances:     September 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18
and 19, 2009 at 8:00 pm

                        Matinees:              September 12 and 19, 2009 at
4:00 pm

Who:                Cast

Widow....................................................... Catherine L.
Albers*

Lafew......................................................... AJ Cedeno†

Second Lord ............................................. Andrew “Fin” Coe+

Elder Dumaine........................................... Michael Flood†

Parolles..................................................... Zac Hoogendy†k

Mariana...................................................... Lindsay Iuen†

Duke of Florence ...................................... John Jensen*

Isbel/Diana................................................. Sarah Nedwek†

Bertram...................................................... Tom Picasso†

Younger Dumaine...................................... Antuane Rogers+

First Lord .................................................. James Tomola+

Cantiniere.................................................. Erin Wendall+

The King.................................................... Tom White†

Hellen........................................................ Leigh
Williams†

Lavasch..................................................... Ronald Thomas
Wilson*

* Denotes members of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional
Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

† Indicates third year graduates of The Case Western Reserve
University/Cleveland Play House Master of Fine Arts Actor Program.

+ Denotes students of The Case Western Reserve University undergraduate
program in Theatre.

Creative Team

Playwright.................................................. William
Shakespeare

Director...................................................... Geoff Bullen

Scenic Designer........................................ Jill Davis

Costume Design........................................ Jeffrey Van Curtis

Lighting Design.......................................... Michael Boll

Sound Designer......................................... Nathan Tulenson

Stage Manager.......................................... Elynmarie Kazle

Prices:             Tickets are $15 for adults and $7.50 for students with a
valid ID. 

Parking is $8; student parking is only $2 with valid ID.

For Single Tickets: 

Call (216) 795-7000, ext. 4, or visit www.clevelandplayhouse.com

Lisa Craig 
Communications and Public Relations Manager 
Cleveland Play House 
8500 Euclid Avenue 
Cleveland OH  44106 
Phone (216) 795-7000 x236
FAX (216) 795-7005 

Seeing is Believing! www.clevelandplayhouse.com

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