RICHARD III, YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU and More Set for Colorado Shakespeare Festival's 2018 Lineup

Epic love stories, family dramas and laugh-out-loud fun are coming to the Colorado Shakespeare Festival next summer.

On the heels of its wildly successful 60th season, the nation's second-oldest Shakespeare festival is set to focus on hidden gems and modern classics in 2018.

The summer of romance and wit begins on June 9, 2018, with a production of "Love's Labour's Lost," Shakespeare's classic about the struggle between love and intellect. CSF sets this timeless comedy at the turn of the 20th century, when self-improvement, outdoor activities and continuing education were all the rage.

"Love's Labour's Lost is the original rom-com," says CSF Producing Artistic Director Timothy Orr. "We haven't seen it on our stage in 10 years and we can't wait to revisit it. As with any Shakespeare play, it'll be interesting to hear what this play has to say to us now."

Next up is the mesmerizing "Richard III" inside the University Theatre, which concludes Shakespeare's War of the Roses history plays, often called the Henriad.

"It's amazing to think we began this in 2013 with 'Richard II,'" Orr says. "Five years and eight plays later, we're concluding this story with the most delightfully horrible supervillain ever, taking us on a ride through his world."

For the first time in many years, CSF is set to bring two non-Shakespeare plays to its stages. The clever, dreamy "Cyrano de Bergerac" opens after "Richard III" in the Rippon, and the 1930s screwball comedy "You Can't Take it With You" opens in late July in the University Theatre.

"'Cyrano' is no small undertaking for any theatre company-this is one we've been preparing for years," Orr says. "And turning CSF's deep bench of character actors loose inside the world of 'You Can't Take it With You' will be a joy to watch. I'll be there, front row."

As is tradition, CSF also offers a one-night-only Original Practices performance on the Rippon at the tail end of its summer. This year's title is "Edward III," which journeys back to the beginning of England's Hundred Years' War.

The 2018 season will feature several notable milestones:

- CSF will perform "Edward III" for the first time in its history. The play's authorship is mired in mystery. While many reputable scholars believe both Shakespeare and Thomas Kyd had a hand in writing it, no one is sure which man penned the majority.

- In 2018, "Richard III" will be presented on the indoor stage for the first time. While "Richard III" marks the end of a 150-year period of strife in England, "Edward III" marks its beginning.

- The two indoor productions, "Richard III" and "You Can't Take it With You," present a thought-provoking study in contrasts.While England's short-lived monarch is ambitious to a fault, Moss and Hart's 1930s classic presents the revolutionary idea that ambition and success don't necessarily lead to happiness

- Both outdoor productions, "Love's Labour's Lost" and "Cyrano de Bergerac," explore themes of scholarship and romance.

- This summer will feature the CSF directing debuts of Brendon Fox, who has directed at The Old Globe, the Juilliard School and Cleveland Play House, and Kevin Rich, an assistant professor of theatre at CU Boulder and the former artistic director of the Illinois Shakespeare Festival.

The 2018 season opens Saturday, June 9, and runs through Sunday, Aug. 12. Season tickets are available beginning Monday, Oct. 30, 2017 at 10 a.m. online at coloradoshakes.org, over the phone at 303-492-8008 and in person at the CU Presents box office, 972 Broadway, Boulder. The box office is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and is located in the University Club building on the CU Boulder campus. Single tickets are available beginning Monday, Nov. 27, 2017 at 10 a.m.

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Colorado Shakespeare Festival 2018 Season:

LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST
Directed by Brendon Fox
"For where is any author in the world teaches such beauty as a woman's eye?"
Start your summer with a frothy, funny celebration of love and learning. In the bucolic Kingdom of Navarre, four attractive young men make a pact to swear off romance and focus on academia ... just minutes before the four loves of their lives wander by. Shakespeare's side-splitting comedy about the struggle to balance heart and head is the perfect ode to CSF's academic surroundings.
Mary Rippon Outdoor Theatre | June 9-Aug. 12 (June 8 Preview) | Tickets start at $20

RICHARD III
Directed by Wendy Franz
"Bloody thou art, bloody will be thy end."
The Bard's most murderous, malicious and mesmerizing king comes to the CSF indoor stage for the first time. Richard, Edward IV's deformed and embittered younger brother, will do anything to take the crown for himself-but once he has the throne, everything falls apart. Four centuries later, the masterful conclusion of Shakespeare's Henriad history cycle still speaks volumes about lies, honor and the dark side of ambition.
University Theatre | June 23-Aug. 11 (June 22 Preview) | Tickets start at $20

CYRANO DE BERGERAC
Based on the translation written by Anthony Burgess of the play written by Edmond Rostand
Directed by Christopher DuVal
"I myself am a tree, not high perhaps, not beautiful, but free."
The inspiration behind the hit film "Roxanne," Edmond Rostand's timeless romantic comedy has it all: passion, panache and thrilling swordplay. Cyrano, witty and proud but crippled by insecurity, secretly pines for Roxanne-but she has her eyes on handsome, empty-headed Christian. With a beating heart as big as its title character's nose, "Cyrano de Bergerac" is one of the greatest love stories ever written.
Mary Rippon Outdoor Theatre | July 7-Aug. 11 (July 6 Preview) | Tickets start at $20

YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU
By Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman
Directed by Carolyn Howarth
"As near as I can see, the only thing you can take with you is the love of your friends."
Seize the rare opportunity to see a hit screwball comedy on the professional stage. When Alice brings her boyfriend's traditional, straight-laced family to dine with her household of freethinking eccentrics, fights break out and fireworks erupt. Kaufman and Hart's 1930s classic, more relevant today than ever, pays homage to those who march to the beat of their own drum and reminds us all to choose dreams over drudgery.
University Theatre | July 21-Aug. 12 (July 20 Preview) | Tickets start at $20

EDWARD III
By William Shakespeare and Thomas Kyd
Directed by Kevin Rich
"Lilies that fester smell far worse than weeds."
CSF's beloved 'Original Practices' tradition continues with the gripping history play that's been mired in mystery for hundreds of years. England's king is out to capture the crown of France and the heart of a married countess. The cost of his lust? Personal humiliation and 150 years of English battle and bloodshed. This unique, one-night-only performance, inspired by the stage practices of Shakespeare's own time, is summer's hottest ticket.
Mary Rippon Outdoor Theatre | Sunday, Aug. 5, 6:30 p.m. | Tickets start at $20

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