Capital Classics Reveals Expanded Greater Hartford Shakespeare Festival for 2024

.Following years of steady growth and record-breaking attendance in 2023, Capital Classics Theatre Company announced the expansion of its signature Greater Hartford Shakespeare Festival. In 2024, for the first time in its 32-year history, Capital Classics will perform two productions in repertory: Shakespeare's immortal tragedy Hamlet and the raucuous comedy The Taming of the Shrew.

Hamlet, which is set to be directed by Capital Classics Artistic Associate Geoffrey Sheehan, and The Taming of the Shrew, directed by Jan Mason, will each be performed 10 times over the course of four weeks. The alternating productions will begin performance on July 10 and run through Sunday, August 4, 2024, on the campus of the University of Saint Joseph in West Hartford.

To accommodate the additional performances and growing demand, Capital Classics will expand from its usual Thursday through Sunday performance schedule to include Wednesday evenings. The repertory performance schedule and ticket information will be announced in early 2024.

About the Plays

In Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark has returned home after the death of the King. Mourning the loss of his father, the young prince must navigate the proclamations of a ghost; dangerous friends and relatives; and the disorienting discovery of his own place in the world.

While politics and psychological unraveling take center stage in Hamlet, The Taming of the Shrew centers on another type of madness: love and marriage. Lucentio has his heart set on marrying the beautiful Bianca. However, there's one complication: her father won't allow her to wed until her older sister, the tempestuous Katherine, is settled in her own marriage. Can the mercenary Petruchio "tame" Katherine, collect her dowry, and allow Lucentio and Bianca's courtship to proceed...or will the titular "shrew" avoid the snares of her erstwhile suitor?

Capital Classics Announces Slate of Board Officers for 2023-2024

In preparation for the expanded festival, the Company's Board of Directors recently elected a slate of officers eager to see the 32-year-old company grow. After having spearheaded Capital Classics' marketing efforts for 15 years, and served as board president from 2010 to 2015, Herb Emanuelson, assistant director of Enterprise Marketing Operations for The Hartford, steps back into the role of President of the Board. Edwin Thrower, scientific director for Envision Pharma Group, will continue to serve as vice president. Artistic Associate and Co-Founder Geoffrey Sheehan, also professor and program coordinator of Theatre Arts for CT State Community College—Housatonic, will act as treasurer. Author and editor Kathleen Fischer will serve as secretary.

“I’m excited to return as board president of Capital Classics Theatre Company,” said Herb Emanuelson. “The board and artistic team are energized. Our 2023 Greater Hartford Shakespeare Festival production of Macbeth brought in record crowds, in excess of 2,600. Through large and small enhancements, we will focus on our audience, performers, and community to continue to bring a welcoming and professional festival experience to Greater Hartford.”

The Shakespeare Book Club

Emanuelson continues, “By listening to our audience through online surveys, we’ve already taken steps to expand our popular Shakespeare Book Club, now in its tenth year. Our new season of talks is taking place on Zoom and will return in person to the West Hartford Public Library. We learned that attendees missed the connections made at in-person events, but we will also continue to use technology to reach attendees from across the U.S. and Canada.”

The tenth anniversary of Capital Classics' Shakespeare Book Club finds the Company exploring their "Ten Favorite Shakespeare Plays: Why I Love This Play!" The 8-month, free discussions — for Shakespeare enthusiasts and newcomers alike — can be enjoyed via Zoom and in the board room of the Noah Webster Library in downtown West Hartford at 6:30 p.m. on the first Monday of the month. To see the complete lineup of plays being discussed and to access free online editions of the plays, visit westhartfordlibrary.org.

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