May 25, 2018… The Stratford Festival’s 66th season opens officially on Monday, May 28, with Shakespeare’s final masterpiece,
The Tempest, featuring Martha Henry as Prospero.
“Martha Henry’s return to the stage as Prospero promises to be a major theatrical event,” says Artistic Director
Antoni Cimolino, who is directing The Tempest. “Martha,
one of our greatest artists, started her career at Stratford in 1962,
playing Miranda in this magical play, so this is a wonderful full-circle
moment.”
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| Martha Henry as Prospero.
(David Hou photo)
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Magical moments aren’t limited to The Tempest. Opening week will see seven glorious productions open. Five more will follow throughout the summer.
On Tuesday, The Music Man opens, with Daren A. Herbert and
Danielle Wade making thrilling Stratford debuts. This breath-taking production is directed and choreographed by
Donna Feore, whose original choreography reaches exhilarating new heights in numbers such as “Seventy-Six Trombones” and “Shipoopi.”
In an amazing coup de théâtre, Ms Feore has also directed and choreographed
The Rocky Horror Show, featuring Dan Chameroy as Frank N. Furter,
Jennifer Rider-Shaw as Janet and Sayer Roberts as Brad.
The cult classic, which has been whipping preview audiences into the
highest of spirits, caps off the week, opening on Saturday night.
Wednesday sees the opening of Eugene O’Neill’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play
Long Day’s Journey Into Night. Directed by Miles Potter and featuring
Seana McKenna and Scott Wentworth as Mary and James Tyrone, this intimate and heart-breaking production is one you’ll remember for a lifetime.
On Thursday, Oscar Wilde’s suspenseful comedy-drama An Ideal Husband opens, with
Tim Campbell, Brad Hodder, Sophia Walker and Bahareh Yaraghi in leading roles. Directed by
Lezlie Wade, with set design by Douglas Paraschuk, costume design by
Patrick Clark and lighting design by Louise Guinand, this is one of the most beautiful productions you will ever see.
On Friday, Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors gets a modern reading in a gender-fluid production directed by
Keira Loughran. As funny as it is thought-provoking, it features Beryl Bain,
Jessica B. Hill, Qasim Khan and Josue Laboucane.
To Kill a Mockingbird, based on
the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Harper Lee and dramatized by
Christopher Sergal, is the season’s Schulich Youth Play, opening
Saturday afternoon. Directed by
Nigel Shawn Williams, this moving production features Jonathan Goad as Atticus Finch and
Irene Poole as Jean Louise. Captivating for all ages, this play makes an unforgettable family experience.
The season features five additional productions: Brontë: The World Without, opening June 21;
Coriolanus, opening June 22; Julius Caesar, opening August 16; and
Paradise Lost and Napoli Milionaria!, both opening August 17.
Opening Week Itinerary
Sunday, May 27
1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Garden Party in the Festival Lobby and Gardens
Monday, May 28
4:30 p.m. Dignitaries and guests begin to arrive for reception and dinner
6:30 p.m. Stratford Police Pipes and Drums band and the Stratford Cadet Colour Guard arrive at the front of the Festival
6:30-7:30 p.m. Red carpet arrivals at the Festival Theatre
7:30 p.m. Opening of The Tempest
Performance runs 2:42
Tuesday, May 29
8 p.m. Opening of The Music Man at the Festival Theatre
Performance runs 2:35
Wednesday, May 30
8 p.m. Opening of Long Day’s Journey Into Night at the Studio Theatre
Performance runs 3:23 (two intermissions)
Thursday, May 31
8 p.m. Opening of An Ideal Husband at the Avon Theatre
Performance runs 3:01
Friday, June 1
8 p.m. Opening of The Comedy of Errors at the Studio Theatre
Performance runs 1:34 (no intermission)
Saturday, June 2
2 p.m. Opening of To Kill a Mockingbird at the Festival Theatre
Performance runs 2:40
8 p.m. Opening of The Rocky Horror Show at the Avon Theatre
Performance runs 1:52
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Stratford Festival
55 Queen Street | PO Box 520 | Stratford ON | N5A 6V2
55 Queen Street | PO Box 520 | Stratford ON | N5A 6V2
Box Office: Toll Free 1.800.567.1600 | Local 519.273.1600
2018 Season
| April to October
The Tempest
| The Comedy of Errors
| Coriolanus | Julius Caesar
| The Music Man
The Rocky Horror Show
| Long Day’s Journey Into Night | An Ideal Husband
To Kill a Mockingbird
| Napoli Milionaria!
| Brontë
| Paradise Lost
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