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| "Punk Shakespeare" image by Jason Leinwand |
Middletown’s ARTFARM Theater Company has been celebrating the
400th Anniversary of the Death of Shakespeare since last summer,
beginning with their outdoor production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and
continuing with over 20 “Shakespeare400 Passport” events throughout the State.
This month the year-long celebration comes to a raucous climax with
“Shakespeare Megadeath Weekend” on April 21 – 24, with a multitude of ways for
theater enthusiasts, historians, students of literature, families and barflies
to celebrate the Bard’s Quatercentenary.
Middletown Mayor Dan Drew has declared the week of
April 18 – 24 as “Shakespeare Week in Middletown”,
and ARTFARM is leading the charge locally. “Shakespeare Megadeath Weekend”
events are listed below. All of the events are open to the public, and some are
free:
*The weekend kicks off on Thursday, April 21 with “400
Years of the Bard in Print: From the First Folio to Text Messages”, an
Open House at Special Collections & Archives at Wesleyan University’s
Olin Library. The library has an excellent collection of Shakespeare’s
works, from 1623 to the present. Drop in to view rare, illustrated, and
unusual editions of the Bard. Note that handling of fragile items will be
limited, and children are welcome but must be accompanied by an adult. The
event will be held in the Davison Rare Book Room on the first floor of Olin
Library from noon to 1 pm and 4 – 6 pm. For more information, email sca@wesleyan.edu.
*ARTFARM’s Shakespeare Ensemble will perform a free
reading of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at 2 pm on Friday, April 22 in the Main
Quad at Trinity College
in Hartford.
The performance is sponsored by Sound & Fury, the student-run Shakespeare
Society at the College, as part of their “Shakespeare on the Quad” event and is
open to the public. Rain location in Mather Hall. The cast features many actors
familiar to Shakespeare in the Grove audiences.
*”A Toast to Shakespeare” will be offered at the Wasch
Center for Retired Faculty at 51 Lawn Avenue in Middletown on Friday, April
22 from 5 – 7 pm. The event will feature cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, live
harp music and a short talk on ARTFARM’s Shakespeare work and future plans by
Executive Director Dic Wheeler and Artistic Director Marcella Trowbridge. This
is a fundraiser for ARTFARM’s Shakespeare in the Grove and the suggested
minimum donation is $50 per person.
*Shakespeare’s Birth and Death Day (he was born on
April 23, 1564 and died on April 23, 1616) will be marked at Middletown’s It’s Only Natural
Restaurant all day on Saturday April 23. Ten percent of the day’s sales will
support Shakespeare in the Grove. Eat well and support live outdoor Shakespeare
in Connecticut!
ION Restaurant is at 606 Main
Street.
*On Sunday, April 24, 5 - 7 pm, the Megadeath Weekend
will culminate with “Shakespeare at the Bar– 400 Years Dead!” at Eli Cannon’s
Tap Room, 695 Main Street
in Middletown.
Friends of Shakespeare, actors, fans and families are invited to join the
ARTFARM Ensemble and Board in celebrating the life and impact of Shakespeare.
Recite a sonnet or favorite monolog, share a quote, tell a Shakespeare story –
this informal gathering is meant to give Shakespeare enthusiasts a chance to
gather and have some fun. The event will be held in the Garden if weather
permits, and the bar will be offering two special Shakespeare-themed beers
(proceeds of the sales of these will benefit ARTFARM) for the occasion. Mayor
Drew will join the proceedings with a proclamation at 6 pm.
All of these events are in ARTFARM’s Shakespeare400
Passport, and passport holders will be able to get stamps as long as you bring
your passport to the event. Anyone submitting their Shakespeare400 Passport to
ARTFARM by May 15 with ten or more event stamps will be entered into a drawing
for an impressive packet of prizes, including free tickets to Hartford Stage
Company, Yale Repertory Theater,
Connecticut Repertory Theater,
Long Wharf Theater, ARTFARM, and Flock Theater. Winners will be announced at
ARTFARM’s “Shakespeare Goes To Italy” Rooftop Gala at the Community Health
Center on June 17.
ARTFARM is a Middletown-based non-profit professional
theater company, founded in 2001, which cultivates high-quality theater with a
commitment to simple living, environmental sustainability and social justice.
ARTFARM has presented Shakespeare in the Grove every summer since 2006, tours
an environmental circus called Circus for a Fragile Planet, is committed to
generative, socially engaged physical theater, runs youth circus programs statewide,
offers workshops and residencies throughout the Northeast, and in 2015 spent
four months doing theater work in Sri Lanka.
For more information about Shakespeare Megadeath
Weekend or other ARTFARM programs, contact info@art-farm.org
or call (860) 346-4390.
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ARTFARM
119 Highland Ave
Middletown, CT 06457
(860) 346-4390
Take your Bernie sticker off Artfarm!
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