The Brown University/Trinity Rep MFA Programs present William Shakespeare's Richard III, directed by Ryan Purcell (Brown/Trinity Rep MFA Programs '13). Performances are Friday September 30 at 7:30PM, Saturday October 1 at 2:00pm and 7:30PM, as well as Sunday October 2 at 2:00PM in the Citizens Bank Theater, Pell Chafee Performance Center, 87 Empire Street, Providence. Tickets are $10 (general admission) and $5 (seniors and students), and are now on sale at the Trinity Rep box office, by phone (401) 351-4242, and online at www.trinityrep.com.
A historical drama, Richard III depicts Shakespeare's most vicious villain on a quest for power. Tormented by a physical deformity, but armed with a dangerously sharp wit, Richard stops at nothing to attain the crown of England from its rightful heirs; cheating, deceiving, and murdering, among other unscrupulous deeds. Once he accedes to power and takes totalitarian rule over England, the play quickly turns tragic, featuring some of Shakespeare's most clever and provocative soliloquies.
"It's about feeling good about doing bad," says director Ryan Purcell, describing Richard III as Shakespeare's "masterpiece black comedy/horror/action play." In this unique production, the title character's political siege and tyrannical rule will be pertinent to contemporary society, as Purcell has cobbled together a variety of modern milieus for the setting
The cast features second-year MFA acting students Grant Chapman (Richard III), Leah Anderson (Murderer 1 and Ensemble), Alston Brown (Edward IV and Ensemble), Caitlin Davies (Duchess of York and Ensemble), Amanda Dolan (Lady Anne), Danny Duque Estrada (Clarence), Peter Kendall (Hastings and Ensemble), Barrie Kreinik (Elizabeth), Leicester Landon (Richmond and Ensemble), Drew Ledbetter (Catesby), Liz Morgan (Queen Margaret and ensemble), Jaime Rosenstein (Murderer 2 and Ensemble), and Brandon Vukovic (Buckingham).
Ryan Purcell's many directing credits include productions at The Hangar Theatre, LaMama ETC, Brown Playwrights' Rep, The Village Gate, The 14thStreeet Y, the Olney Theatre Center, FringeNYC, The Magic Theatre as part of their Virgin Play Series, and the Kennedy Center as part of the American College Theatre Festival. He received a Fulbright Scholarship to develop a theatre piece
about Afro-Brazilian slave arts in Slavador, Brazil. The work, Marinheiro is now being further developed by Magic Theatre in San Francisco. He is a member of CollaborationTown: A Theatre Company, as well as Drama League Directing fellow.
The Brown University/Trinity Rep MFA Programs provides a three-year professional training program for eighteen students under the auspices of an Ivy League University and Rhode Island's Tony Award-winning theater company. Brown University's Department of Theatre, Speech and Dance is internationally recognized for the quality of its faculty and instruction. Trinity Rep, with its deep tradition of resident artists, provides powerful artistic assets and creates a firm foundation for a new generation of theater artists.