Asolo offers free 'Midsummer Night's Dream' in Sarasota

   Every year, Asolo Rep take a very abridged version of a Shakespeare play on the road, performing in high schools and middle schools all over Florida.
   This year, it's a fast-paced and bombastic 45-minute version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream." Local audiences will have a chance to see it Saturday, Oct. 11, in a free performance at the Out-of-Door Academy Lower School outdoor amphitheater.
   The show debuted Thursday to a capacity crowd in the Cook Theatre at the FSU Center for the Performing Arts.
   Director Jen Wineman has done an amazing job of paring the play down to to its bones, and still telling its three separate but connected stories coherently, and maintaining the flavor and -- most importantly -- the linguistic integrity.
   The actors, all third-year students from the FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training, each taking multiple roles, are wondrous and energetic. Andrea Adnoff and Brian Owen are standouts, but the whole cast is magnetic.
   The grown-ups that made up almost all of the audience loved Wednesday's performance, but it's definitely aimed at youngsters. 
   The only liberties Wineman has taken with the script are to change the setting from Athens to a private school called Athens Academy, and to change some of the nobles into school officials. The

Some of the "Dream"  cast

changes aren't obtrusive (except for a repeated school cheer of "Go Minotaurs!" that's ill-fitting and a little bit annoying), but they're probably unnecessary. Wineman said she wanted to make the play as relevant to teenagers as she could, but the changes don't do much toward that end.
   Besides, "A Midsummer Night's Dream" is one of the most easily enjoyed of all of Shakespeare's plays, so there's no real need to turn it into a high school thing. The idea is try to get young people who have never seen a Shakespeare play -- and maybe never seen a play -- to try to catch the theater bug, and this one should do that, and would probably do it just as well without those small changes.
   There's no Shakeseareance necessary, but the audience at Asolo Thursday was full of people who had seen full-length performances of the play before (there was a show of hands during a talk-back) and they all loved it. So unless you're a curmudgeonly Shakespeare purist, this should be a really fun 45 minutes. (Count on an hour including the talk-back).
   Besides, it's free.
   Te performance starts at 2 p.m. Oct.11, at Out-of-Door Academy,
444 Reid St., Sarasota. There's an "introductory workshop" at 1:30 p.m.
   Seating is limited and reservations are required. Call 941-351-8000.






    
   

New company offers Shakespeare scenes in Bradenton

   A new local theater company called the Red Rose Parlour Theatre will offer an original show called "Willy Nilly" at the community room of the South Manatee County Branch, 6081 26th St., Bradenton, at 1 p.m. Friday, Sept, 13. 

Rafael Petlock of Red Rose

   It's an hour-long show with scenes from Shakespeare ("Much Ado About Nothing," "The Merry Wives of Windsor" and "Richard III") interspersed with dance, song and voluntary audience participation. It's aimed for ages 14 and up and it's free.
   Seva Anthony of Red Rose Parlour Theatre said she plans to bring shows to to local community centers and even people's homes. You can find out more about the company at www.redroseparlourtheatre.com. 
   For information about Friday's show at the library, call 941-755-3892

Promising production of "Hamlet" opens in Tampa

   It's William Shakespeare's birthday -- he'd be 449 today -- and two of Tampa's best theater company are finishing up rehearsals for what may be Shakespeare's best play.

Holloway as Hamlet

   Tampa Repertory Theatre, a young company that has staged several of phenomenal shows and no bad ones, and Hat Trick Theatre, a solid company that has just returned to Tampa after relocating for a few years, are teaming up to open "Hamlet" on Thursday.
   It's directed by C. David Frankel, the artistic director of Tampa Rep. Jack Holloway, a fine actor and the artistic director of Hat Trick, plays Hamlet. Ned Averill-Snell, who is perhaps the finest actor in Tampa, is Claudius, and Steve Mountan, who is also among the  Tampa Bay area's acting elite, is Polonius.
   Every indication is that this will be something really special, and well worth the drive to Tampa for anyone who loves theater.
   It runs through May 12 at the Hillsborough Community College Studio Theatre, 1304 E. 11th Ave., Tampa (at the corner of Palm Avenue and Avenida Republica de Cuba in Ybor City). 7:30 p.m. Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 3 p.m. Sundays. $20 general, $15 students, military and seniors. www.tamprep.org.

"Shakespeare in the Park-ing Lot" in Sarasota

   Here's a cool thing. Jobsite Theater, which is in residence at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts in Tampa, is bringing its current production of "Much Ado About Nothing" to Sarasota for one performance only, at 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 3.
   The venue makes this show even cooler. It's in the parking lot of Home Resource, a furniture showroom at 741 Central Ave., Sarasota. Home Resource has offered theater before, but it's usually inside the showroom.

The cast of Jobsite Theater's "Much Ado"

   Jobsite is a solid professional company, and its production of "Much Ado," one of Shakespeare's best comedies, has garnered  positive buzz. Ned Averill-Snell plays Benedick, and he's one of the very best actors in Tampa.
   There's a $15 suggested donation for each ticket. The money goes to Jobsite. Reservations are required. Email mbush@homeresource.com.
   If you can't make the Sarasota show,you can catch "Much Ado" on Jobsite's home turf, the Shimberg Playhouse at the Straz Center, 1010 N. MacInnes Place, Tampa, through April 7. Up there you'll have to pay $28 plus a service charge. Call 813-229-7827 or visit strazcenter.org for details.

'Nunsense,' Shakespeare and the Sarasota Ballet hit local stages

Another big week for the performing arts.

Here are links to my stories that ran in Thursday's Weekend section:

Shakespeare goes clubbing at Asolo with an extremely hip take on "Two Gentleman of Verona."

Manatee Players bring 'Nunsense' back with 'Sensations,' the latest sequel of Dan Goggin's off-Broadway sensation that debuted in 1985. My review of last night's show will run Saturday or Sunday.

Sarasota Ballet opens 20th season with "Firebird" and "Anne Frank."