Huntington to perform ‘Shakesperience!’ outdoors
FOR RELEASE: Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Huntington, Ind.-The Huntington University Department of Theatre Arts will present its educational traveling show "Shakesperience!" on Oct. 6 at 2 p.m. on the dock adjacent to the Huntington Union Building. If it rains, the show will be brought inside to the Studio Theatre in the Merillat Centre for the Arts. David Shamburger, assistant professor of theatre arts, will direct the show. The play will be student directed by Rebekah Posegate, a junior theatre education major from Lake Villa, Ill.
"'Shakesperience!' is a series of monologues, songs and scenes put together in a montage that spans the cannon of Shakespeare while adding the contemporary element of musical theater based on Shakespeare's works," Shamburger said.
Dr. Jack Wann, former chairman of the Theatre Department at Northwestern State University, La., developed this simple concept show that brings together today's musical theatre with the lively and robust theatre of Elizabethan England to create "Shakesperience!"
Shamburger explained the reason of performing outside in daytime is that the actors and audience are more likely to experience something closer to the Elizabethan style.
"As a director," Shamburger said, "I prefer presenting a show in the controlled environment of a theatre with lights and sound. But I also understand the value of the outdoor experience and how it brings you humbly back to the core of art... storytelling."
The presentation is free and open to the public.
The cast includes the following:
Jenn Miller, a senior theatre and psychology double major from Berkeley, Ill.
Abi Allwein, a junior theatre performance major from Fort Wayne, Ind.
Deanna Repic, a junior theatre performance major from Aliquippa, Penn.
Peter Owens, a sophomore history education major from Indianapolis, Ind.
Jon Huffman, a junior theatre major from Traverse City, Mich.
Matthias Austin., a sophomore theatre performance major from Wheaton, Ill.
