Elizabeth A. Davis, Tally Sessions & More to Star in HENRY 6 at The Old Globe

The Old Globe has revealed the full cast and creative team for Henry 6, a world premiere adaptation of William Shakespeare's Henry VI, Parts I, II, and III, adapted and directed by Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein. Rehearsals for the milestone production begin this week. The Globe becomes one of only a small handful of theatres in the country's history to complete Shakespeare's canon with Henry 6, the largest Shakespeare production the theatre has ever presented. Edelstein, a renowned stage director, producer, educator, and podcast host, fashions the rarely produced Henry VI, Parts I, II, and III into a thrilling two-part event, running simultaneously at The Old Globe's 2024 Summer Shakespeare Festival. Henry 6 takes place under the stars in the Lowell Davies Festival Theatre. Performances run June 30 - September 14, 2024, with the opening on Friday, July 19 for One: Flowers and France, and July 9 - September 15, 2024, with the opening on Saturday, July 20 for Two: Riot and Reckoning. 

In Henry 6, two ruling families of England, the Yorks and the Lancasters, fight each other in a high-stakes civil war for power known as the Wars of the Roses. Edelstein's adaptations include everything people love about the Bard-transcendent language, vibrant characters, breathtaking battles, and sweeping crowd scenes-as they explore the impact of national politics on individual lives. And the action is framed by a design team working at the very top of their craft and enacted by a sprawling cast of professional actors and local community members.

"Henry 6, five years in the making, is a very special project to me and to The Old Globe," said Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein. "The show does a great many very exciting things. First, it gives me the chance to celebrate what makes these rarely seen plays so great: wonderful characters and an epic story full of battles and poetry and politics and even spirituality. Second, it allows the Globe to join a small group of American theatres that have produced every single Shakespeare play. Third, it helps the Globe bring its professional artmaking and its community-based work closer together: by summer's end, over a thousand San Diegans will have participated directly in the creation of these shows, cheek-by-jowl with nationally renowned theatre makers. And fourth, it will be the biggest Shakespeare production this theatre-and I-have ever attempted. All this will come together in a summer of Shakespeare that no Globe supporter will ever forget."

Edelstein added, "As proud as I am of this major artistic and civic achievement, I'm also proud that the Globe has the capacity and sophistication to pull it off. At the heart of San Diego stands an arts nonprofit that is doing something unique in the nation, and we are grateful to all the supporters who have helped us. Foremost among them is The Roy Cockrum Foundation, and it's my honor to acknowledge Roy's vision and generosity. Without him this project would be impossible."

"With our upcoming production of Henry 6, The Old Globe burnishes its already superb reputation as one of North America's great Shakespeare theatres," said Audrey S. Geisel Managing Director Timothy J. Shields. "This is a milestone achievement for the Globe and a crowning accomplishment for our Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director, Barry Edelstein-one of America's preeminent Shakespearean scholars and directors."

Shields continued, "Barry has expertly adapted the three Henry VI plays into two captivating theatrical events. But his vision extends far beyond just producing the plays. It marries his deep reverence for Shakespeare's work with his steadfast commitment to making the Globe's work as a theatre truly communal. He's conceived of this project as a means to involve over a thousand San Diegans in the making of the production, whether through onstage roles, video appearances, or design workshops. Barry's profound affection for the Bard's plays and the community he serves is palpable throughout this labor of love. San Diego audiences are in for a rare treat when this extraordinary two-night production debuts. By fusing artistic excellence with broad civic engagement, it epitomizes the transformative power of theatre that lives beyond the stage."

Edelstein directs a cast of 30, which includes, in alphabetical order:

Elizabeth A. Davis as Margaret; William DeMeritt as York; Sofia Jean Gomez as Warwick; Mahira Kakkar as Eleanor, Mortimer, and Iden; Ian Lassiter as Gloucester and Edward; Jake Millgard as Charles, Bolingbroke, and King Louis; Keshav Moodliar as King Henry; Victor Morris as Salisbury; Gregg Mozgala as Suffolk and Richard; Mike Sears as Cardinal, Old Clifford, and Father; Ella Serrano as Rutland; Tally Sessions as Talbot and Cade; Cassia Thompson as Joan and Prince Edward.

The cast also includes students in The Old Globe and University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Theatre Program:

Danny Adams as Westmorland, Tutor, and Yorkist Soldier 2; Kevin Alicea-Minor as Countess's Messenger, Hume, and Bevis; Jose Balistrieri as Priest, Soldier, and Young Clifford; Luana Fontes as Countess, Murderer 1, and Smith; Chris Hathaway as Southwell and Holland; Madeline Grace Jones as Bastard, Ship Captain, and Dick; Erick Lindsey as Reignier, Saye, and Yorkist Soldier 1; Angelynne Pawaan as Jourdain, Lawyer, and Jailer Carter Piggee as Somerset; Akoni Steinmann as Talbot's Captain and Clarence; Vandous Stripling II as Buckingham; Emma Svitil as Burgundy, York's Messenger, and Chaplain; Michael Underhill as John Talbot, Spence, and Son; Lisa VillaMil as King's Valet, Murderer 2, and Michael

The Henry 6 Corps are Layth Haddad, Gerardo Navarro, Ella Serrano, and Alejandra Villanueva.

In addition to Barry Edelstein, the creative team includes Lawrence E. Morten III (Scenic Design), David Israel Reynoso (Costume Design), Mextly Couzin (Lighting Design), Melanie Chen Cole (Sound Design), Caite Hevner (Projection Design), Julián Mesri (Original Music), Jacob Grigolia-Rosenbaum (Fight Director), Chelsey Arce (Choreography), Emmelyn Thayer and Jesse Perez (Voice and Text), Alaine Alldaffer, CSA and Lisa Donadio (Casting), and Jess Slocum (Production Stage Manager).

Edelstein, together with his Globe artistic team, also incorporates a rich community component woven into Henry 6. The production features contributions from nearly 1,000 San Diegans, from acting in filmed crowd scenes integrated into the show's action and live walk-on roles every night, to designing props and set pieces that will be seen onstage, to making recorded sound effects and singing choral material in the musical score.

Henry 6 will play in the Lowell Davies Festival Theatre at The Old Globe in San Diego's Balboa Park (1363 Old Globe Way). Performances play from June 30 through September 14, 2024, with the official opening on Friday, July 19 at 8:00 p.m., for One: Flowers and France, and July 9 - September 15, 2024, with the opening on Saturday, July 20at 8:00 p.m., for Two: Riot and Reckoning. The performance schedule is Tuesdays through Sundays at 8:00 p.m. through August 31; beginning September 1, the schedule is Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays at 7:00 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are available online at www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE (234-5623), or at our Box Office in Balboa Park. Ticket prices vary. The Vicki and Carl Zeiger Insights Seminar, scheduled for Tuesday, July 16 at 7:00 p.m., will provide patrons an exploration of the themes and background of the Henry 6 from selected artistic company members. Post-Show Forum events for One: Flowers and France will be held on Wednesday, July 24, Wednesday, August 7, and Tuesday, August 20, and for Two: Riot and Reckoning on Wednesday, July 31, Wednesday, August 14, and Tuesday, August 27. This production includes violence. For additional information on Henry 6, including arts engagement and humanities activities, please visit www.TheOldGlobe.org.