Shakespeare & Company Sets Casting for Summer 2017 Season of the Bard and More

Shakespeare & Company has announced casting for its upcoming summer performance season, under the direction of Artistic Director Allyn Burrows and Managing Director Adam Davis. The Company's 40th Anniversary Season includes a roster of audience favorite artists, critics' top pick actors and a multitude of newcomers joining the Company. The season opens Memorial Day Weekend with Amy Herzog's 4000 Miles.

The 2017 season includes three Shakespeare plays: Cymbeline, The Tempest, and A Midsummer Night's Dream; plus two Edith Wharton comedies, Roman Fever and the newly adapted The Fullness of Life. Additional titles include the Obie Award winning 4000 Miles by Amy Herzog; New York Drama Critics Circle and the Outer Critics Circle Recipient, Intimate Apparel by Lynn Nottage; and Tony Award Winner, God of Carnage by Yasmina Reza. In celebration of the Company's 40th Season the summer program will also include a special August event series, Storytellers and Songwriters. Each event will explore various characters through solo performances by Company artists, interwoven with live music and original compositions from extraordinary musicians and songwriters.

"We are entirely thrilled to have assembled this group of artists to fly this season of award winning playwrights and Shakespeare classics," said Artistic Director Allyn Burrows. "With the stages reconfigured, musical artists added, and a new outdoor theatre to boot, we await your arrival for a true Berkshire theatre experience."

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A complete rundown of play titles, cast lists, press openings, and performance dates for each production is as follows:

Cymbeline
by William Shakespeare
Directed by Tina Packer
Cast: Jason Asprey, Thomas Brazzle, Jonathan Epstein, Nigel Gore, Deaon Griffin-Pressley, Tamara Hickey, Ella Loudon, Josh Aaron McCabe, and Bella Merlin
July 04 - August 6, 2017
Press Opening: Saturday July 8, 7:30pm in the Tina Packer Playhouse

The Tempest
by William Shakespeare
Directed by Allyn Burrows
Cast: Jason Asprey, Thomas Brazzle, Nigel Gore, Deaon Griffin-Pressley, Tamara Hickey, Ella Loudon, Josh Aaron McCabe, Bella Merlin, and Mark Zeisler
August 10 - September 03, 2017
Press Opening: Sunday, August 13, 5:30pm in the Roman Garden Theatre

4000 Miles
by Amy Herzog
Directed by Nicole Ricciardi
Cast: Gregory Boover, Emma Geer, Zoë Laiz, and Annette Miller
May 25 - July 16, 2017
Press Opening: Sunday, May 28, 3:00pm in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre

Intimate Apparel
by Lynn Nottage
Directed by Daniela Varon
Cast: MaConnia Chesser, Lee Edward Colston II, Nehassaiu deGannes, ChristiAnna Nelson, Tommy Schrider, and Whitney White
June 20 - August 13, 2017
Press Opening: Saturday, July 22, 7:30pm in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre

Edith Wharton Comedies: Roman Fever and The Fullness of Life
by Edith Wharton
adapted by Dennis Krausnick
Directed by Normi Noel
Cast: David Joseph, Corinna May, and Diane Prusha
August 17 - September 10, 2017
Press Opening: Sunday, August 20, 3:00pm in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre

A Midsummer Night's Dream
by William Shakespeare
Directed by Jonathan Croy
Cast: David Bertoldi, Caroline Calkins, Tim Dowd, Lori Evans, Rory Hammond, Luke Haskell, Kate Kenney, Mairead Kohler, Caitlin Kraft, Madeleine Rose Maggio, Devante Owens, Thomas Randle, Thomas Reynolds, Leon Schwendener, and Dara Silverman
July 11 - August 19, 2017
Press Opening: Thursday, July 13, 6pm performed at The Dell-Outdoors at the Mount

God of Carnage
by Yasmina Reza
translated by Christopher Hampton
Directed by Regge Life
Cast: Elizabeth Aspenlieder, Allyn Burrows, Jonathan Croy, and Kristin Wold
September 14 - October 8, 2017
Press Opening: Saturday, September 16, 7:30pm in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre

Storytellers and Songwriters
Weekends August 11 - 26, 2017

Via Dolorosa
by David Hare
featuring Jonathan Epstein,
Friday, August 11, 8:30pm in the Tina Packer Playhouse

T.S. Eliot and His Love of Shakespeare
by Joan Ackermann
featuring Allyn Burrows with musical guest Michi Wiancko
Saturday, August 12, 8:30pm in the Tina Packer Playhouse

Door of No Return
written and performed by Nehassaiu deGannes
Friday, August 18, 8:30pm in the Tina Packer Playhouse

In Light of Jane
by Joan Ackermann
featuring Tod Randolph with musical guest Kris Delmhorst
Saturday, August 19, 8:30pm in the Tina Packer Playhouse

Bad Dates
by Theresa Rebeck
featuring Elizabeth Aspenlieder with Vikki True
Sunday, August 20, 8:30pm in the Tina Packer Playhouse

Women of Will
written and performed by Tina Packer with special guest Nigel Gore
Friday, August 25, 8:30pm in the Tina Packer Playhouse

Travels with a Masked Man
written and performed by John Hadden with musical guest Bobby Sweet
Saturday, August 26, 8:30pm in the Tina Packer Playhouse

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Located in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts, Shakespeare & Company is one of the largest Shakespeare Festivals in the country. Founded in 1978, the organization attracts over 30,000 patrons annually. The Company is also home to Shakespeare & Company's internationally renowned Center for Actor Training and nationally renowned and an award-winning Education Program. To learn more about the season, book press seats, order tickets or request a season brochure, visit www.shakespeare.org.

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