Hollywood Fringe Festival To Feature Shakespeare Productions

It's ba-ack. The 2013 Hollywood Fringe Festival, an 18 day-long explosion of theatrical events, will take over Hollywood June 13 - 30, 2013 and that means I'll be starting my Fringe coverage of what to see in some specialized areas. First up, it's a look at what you Shakespeare lovers will find at The Fringe. Following past Fringe breakout hits like Pulp Shakespeare and Speed Merchant (of Venice), here are a few that hope to discover a Fringe magic of their own.

O, FALLEN ONE
June 7, 14, 15, 21, 28, 29

O, FALLEN ONE is a new piece of devised theatre that explores Shakespeare's fallen damsel from her point of view, designed especially for the 2013 Hollywood Fringe Festival from co-producers Jaymie Bellous and Megan Ruble. Both are recent graduates of UC, Irvine where they studied Shakespeare and UCI's particular brand of movement, which stems from modern dance and mime technique. O, FALLEN ONE is the result of this communion of creativity.

According to Ruble, who will play Ophelia, "This will be an awesome experience for avid Shakespeare fans because they'll recognize the text and the story, but they will have the unique opportunity of looking at a story they know well through a different lens. By utilizing movement pieces and combining modern text with Shakespeare's words, even those most familiar with Hamlet will find new ideas being brought to light." She adds, "We think it is important that the fallen, neglected Ophelia be given her time to finally speak in a world where abusive male dominance is still an issue for far too many women."

The piece explores Ophelia's memories, dreams, and thoughts leading up to her death. As the doctors, nurses and loved ones fight to return her modern day counterpart to sanity, the young girl falls deeper into Ophelia's reality. The original script by Sinan Zafar combines the words of Shakespeare and poetic movement, inventing a fluid world where loss, oppression, and untold stories can be examined. Jaymie Bellous directs. In addition to Ruble, the ensemble cast includes Amanda Carson, Chris Hull, Samantha Kellie, and Galen Sato. Performances run approximately one hour at The Underground Theatre, 1312 North Wilton Place, Hollywood, CA 90028. Click Here for tickets and more information. The June 7th performance is a Pay What You Can preview.

KING PHYCUS
June 15, 16, 21, 22, 23, 28

Presented by the Flynnsmen and billed as an Historical-Pastoral-Tragical-Comedy in Five Acts, KING PHYCUS takes the plots of Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Caesar, Macbeth, and Richard III, and combines them into a whirlwind of classical language and classic broad comedy. The 80-minute play sounds perfect for The Fringe and is great for all types of audiences

Cast member Drew Doyle says, "Think Shakespeare meets Abbott and Costello, or iambic pentameter with knock-knock jokes." He adds, "The Flynnsmen are 6 actors playing over 20 roles who all met as members of the A2 Ensemble at Antaeus Theatre in North Hollywood. We have a lot of fun doing the play and we think Fringe audiences will have fun watching it." We agree that it sounds like a blast. KING PHYCUS is written by Tom Willmorth and stars Patrick Wenk-Wolff, Buck Zachary, Belen Greene, Drew Doyle, Abby Wilde and Jason Thomas, directed by John Apicella. Performances will take place at Elephant Stages, 1076 Lillian Way, Los Angeles, CA 90038. Tickets are $10. Click Here for tickets and more information.

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The Fringe is completely open and uncensored and its free-for-all approach underlines the festival's mission to be a platform for artists to exhibit the most diverse and cutting-edge points-of-view the world has to offer. Hope to see you around the stages!

For more Los Angeles Shakespeare news, follow @ShakesepareinLA on Twitter.
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