The Atlanta Shakespeare Company at The New American Shakespeare Tavern Presents Double Falsehood
By: Joseph Harrison May. 29, 2011
The inclusion of Double Falsehood in Arden's Complete Works of Shakespeare last year has inspired us to mount a production.
Double Falsehood is a tragicomedy thought to be based on Cervantes' Don Quixote. Full of over-dramatic action, cliffhangers, romance, betrayal, friendship and revenge... this is an action-packed story you're sure to enjoy!
Last shown somewhere in Covent Garden in 1793...
Now popping up in theatres around the globe... Join us for more history-makin'!
Is Shakespeare the true author of Double Falsehood? It’s quite the controversy! Lewis Theobald, a Shakespearean editor, is credited with resurrecting the script (or perhaps for finding Shakespeare’s lost play Cardenio and rewritting it himself) and John Fletcher (whom as most likely worked with Shakespeare on The Two Noble Kinsmen) has been noted as a collaborator on the project. We invite you to do some research on the history of this play and why the editors at Arden have included it in their “Complete Works of Shakespeare.” Then, come see the play and discuss your thoughts with us. Regardless of who wrote what, we guarantee you’ll have a fun night out at the theatre seeing a play that not many people will ever get a chance to see!
Join the cast and crew members for a Question and Answer session on Sunday June 5 after the show!
Dramatis Personae
Duke Angelo/Master of the Flocks – Daniel Parvis
Citizen – Jeff Watkins
Roderick/Gerald – Matt Felten
Henriquez – Jonathan Horne
Don Bernardo (Leonora’s Father)/1st Shepherd – Jacob York
Leonora/Maid/2nd Shepherd – Kelly Criss
Camillo (Julio’s Father)/1st Gentleman – Clarke Weigle
Julio/Violante’s Servant – Nicholas Faircloth
Violante – Mary Russell
Synopsis
The play opens with Duke Angelo and his elder son and heir, Roderick. Roderick is the dutiful and virtuous son; the Duke also has a younger son, Henriquez, a prodigal son who is absent from the ducal court, pursuing his own interests. Henriquez has just written his father a letter, requesting gold to buy a horse; Henriquez will send his friend Julio to court to receive payment. The Duke and Roderick decide to use Julio for their own purposes: they will detain him at court "some few days...and assay to mould him / An honest spy" upon Henriquez's "riots."
Julio's father Camillo is not happy about his son's mission to court. Julio wants to arrange a marriage with Leonora; his intended bride is agreeable, but cool, and the call to court delays Julio's plan to obtain the consent of both their fathers. Julio leaves Henriquez behind him to further his suit with Leonora — a foolish trust. Henriquez has developed an infatuation with Violante, a beautiful and virtuous local girl of humble birth; she rejects his inappropriate solicitations. Henriquez forces himself upon her. Afterward, confronting his guilty conscience over his "brutal violence," Henriquez tries to convince himself that his act wasn't a rape, with the feeble rationalization that Violante did not cry out, however much she struggled physically.
His pangs of guilt do not prevent Henriquez from pursuing another scheme: in Julio's absence he is courting Leonora. (Henriquez admits in a soliloquy that he sent Julio away with this in mind. His pursuit of both Violante and Leonora is the "double falsehood" of the title.) The young woman is appalled and repelled by this, but her father Don Bernardo wants the family connection with the nobility that their marriage will produce. Leonora sends a letter to Julio, and he returns in time to frustrate the wedding. Julio challenges Henriquez with his sword but is overwhelmed and ejected by Bernardo's servants; Leonora faints and is carried out. Bernardo discovers a dagger and a suicide note on his daughter's person, revealing her final determination to resist the forced marriage.
Julio and the two young women, each in a distraught state of mind, depart mysteriously; the fathers Camillo and Bernardo are left to confront their own distress. Roderick arrives, and comforts the two old men. Their unhappiness works something of a reversal in each man's character: the formerly mild Camillo hardens his nature, while the formerly harsh Bernardo dissolves in tears.
In Act IV the scene shifts from court and town to the wilds where the shepherds keep their flocks (the same shift to the pastoral mode that Shakespeare employs in Act IV of The Winter's Tale). Violante has disguised herself as a boy, and has become a servant to a master shepherd. Julio is also in the neighborhood, wandering distractedly, fighting with shepherds and stealing their food. The Master shepherd is a rare character in traditional English drama, who can actually recognize a woman when she's disguised as a boy. He makes a crude and unwelcome sexual advance toward Violante, which is interrupted by the arrival of Roderick. Henriquez has learned that Leonora has taken refuge in a nearby nunnery, and has gained his brother's help in a plan to retrieve her. Roderick has agreed, in part to keep an eye on his younger brother; he insists that Leonora be treated honourably, and given her choice whether to return with them.
Roderick is also clever enough to piece together the larger situation; he manages to bring Julio, Leonora, Violante, and Henriquez back home altogether. He engineers a grand confrontation and reconciliation scene at the play's end: Julio and Leonora and happily re-united, and a now-repentant Henriquez wants to marry Violante to make up for his crime. The three fathers acquiesce to this arrangement.
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Performance days & times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 PM, and Sundays at 6:30 PM..
Ticket Prices:
All seats $20 General Admission
An 8% sales tax is added on top of all purchases made at The Shakespeare Tavern.
Discount Ticket Options: $12 tickets for Previews (unless otherwise noted);. Student/Educator prices: $5 off per price level per night except in the Balcony on Thursdays and Sundays. Not valid on Saturday nights. $12 for 10am matinees. $3 off for Military, Seniors, Groups of 10 or more, except in the Balcony on Thursdays and Sundays. Promotional discount offers are not valid closing weekend of a performance.
Purchase Tickets Online for most performances at www.shakespearetavern.com
For information on:
The Shakespeare Club Program and Flex Pass: call or email The Tavern Box Office at 404.874.5299 or boxoffice@shakespearetavern.com or visit our website at www.shakespearetavern.com
Education Programs and Workshops: call or email Laura Cole, Education Director at 404-874-5299, X58 or laura@shakespearetavern.com
Volunteer Opportunities: call or email Suzanne Mercer, Volunteer Coordinator at
404-874-5299, X59 or suzanne@shakespearetavern.com
Accessibility and The Shakespeare Tavern: The Shakespeare Tavern is handicapped accessible. Please let the box office know if you have any special needs that we should be aware of in order to make your Shakespeare Tavern experience the very best we can. Our handicapped entrance ramp/parking is located directly behind our building. Once you turn onto Renaissance Parkway from Peachtree Street, you will turn right onto Courtland Street. The Tavern’s back entrance will be immediately on your right once you clear the building on the corner and the traffic poles. The turn comes up quickly, so please drive slowly. Handicapped parking is directly in front of the ramp, behind our building.
Location: The New American Shakespeare Tavern is located at 499 Peachtree Street, NE, just four blocks south of The Fox Theater and directly across the street from Emory University Hospital Midtown.
Parking: In the evening, we recommend parking in the Emory University Hospital Midtown Parking Deck located directly across the street from the front doors of The Shakespeare Tavern on Peachtree Street. Bring your ticket stub to the parking lot attendant at the end of the night and get a discounted parking price. (Regular parking price is $7; discounted price is $4 WITH TICKET STUB!)
We also recommend parking in the InterPark Parking lot, located on the corner of Peachtree and Renaissance Parkway. This is a paid surface lot that should be attended. Parking is usually $5-$7.
DO NOT park on Pine Street or in the empty parking lots on Pine Street. Your car might be booted if you park in these lots.
Food and Beverage Service: The Tavern opens one hour and fifteen minutes before the performance for food and beverage service. Chef for a Night provides a British-pub-style menu for dinner. The Tavern has a beer, wine, coffee, tea, and soft drink bar that serves Bass and Guinness on tap.
Seating and Box Office: Seating is done on a “first come, first served” basis within each designated section. Table seating is limited however all seats can accommodate food and beverages. For reservations or more information, call or email The Tavern Box Office at 404.874.5299 or boxoffice@shakespearetavern.com or order tickets on-line at www.shakespearetavern.com
In Photo: Nicolas Faircloth, Kelly Criss, Jonathan Horne
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