Julius Caesar at Independent Shakespeare Co

INDEPENDENT SHAKESPEARE CO. PRESENTSJULIUS CAESAR BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARECO-DIRECTED BY MELISSA CHALSMA & DAVID MELVILLELIMITED ENGAGEMENT OPENS SATURDAY, MARCH 23AT THE ISC STUDIO IN THE ATWATER CROSSING ARTS + INNOVATION COMPLEX Los Angeles - Independent Shakespeare Co. (ISC), presenters of the Griffith Park Free Shakespeare Festival, announce their first ever mounting of one of the greatest hits of the Elizabethan stage, Julius Caesar. Co-directed by ISC Artistic Director Melissa Chalsma and ISC Managing Director David Melville, William Shakespeares Julius Caesar will begin previews on the Ides of March (Friday, March 15), and will open Saturday, March 23, running through Saturday, May 11 at the ISC Studio in the Atwater Crossing Arts + Innovation Complex, 3191 Casitas Ave., Ste 130 in Atwater Village. Tickets are on sale now online at iscla.org or by calling 818-710-6306.Rome teeters on the brink of civil war as Caesars ambition for a crown threatens the stability of the Republic. Part ghost story, part political murder thriller, ancient Rome comes to vivid life in ISCs intimate indoor performance venue, the ISC Studio. Inspired by Orson Welless 1937 Mercury Theater production, this pared down version of the text immerses the audience in the multiplicities of the conspiracy to save Rome and even gives the spectators a voice in the action. Audience participation encouraged (but not enforced!)Comments Melissa Chalsma, co-director and ISCs Artistic Director, Im especially excited to test the capacity of our new Studio in terms of production values, but also in terms of the relationship between the audience and the action. We always envisioned the Studio as a flexible space, able to be configured in unique ways. With this production, we will be testing the limits of that flexibility, surrounding the audience with the action and making them complicit in Caesars fate.David Melville, co-director, ISCs Managing Director and appearing in the title role, says, In approaching Julius Caesar we have been looking back to other politically charged plays that we have recently produced at the Griffith Park Free Shakespeare Festival. Titus Andronicus begins with a crisis of succession and equally, in Richard III a fragile power vacuum is manipulated by the titular anti-hero as he sways the crowd to his side. We were able to involve our audience as another cast member chanting for various factions and giving their support to whomever we guided them. With Julius Caesar we are taking our experiment a little further - the fate of the Republic depends upon the willingness of the public to choose between two vastly different rhetorical interpretations of Caesars murder. With only 10 actors bringing this production to life, incorporating the audience as the citizens of Rome will create a world where we are all immersed in the proceedings. Will our audience give their allegiance to Brutus or Antony? Naturally, like any political entity, our production will try to lead them in a particular direction, but will they follow the mob? Like all experiments the outcome is uncertain. Taking inspiration from Orson Welless sleek 1937 distilling of the text, we hope to spark a conversation about how groups are manipulated for political gain and how willingly, as groups, we comply.ABOUT THE ARTISTSDAVID MELVILLE (Co-Director & Julius Caesar) As one of the co-founders of ISC, David has performed in many ISC shows including the title roles in Hamlet, Macbeth, Titus Andronicus, Richard II and Richard III; Prince Hal in Henry IV; Bottom in A Midsummer Nights Dream, Touchstone in As You Like It and Sir Toby in Twelfth Night. Other theatre credits include Mother Courage at the Mermaid Theatre, London (with Glenda Jackson); Hamlet, Almeida at the Hackney Empire, London and Broadway transfer (with Ralph Fiennes); Ivanov at The Almeida Theatre, London and Maly Theatre, Moscow. Also a director, he created the Rockabilly production of The Two Gentlemen of Verona among other ISC productions. David has appeared in several films including Ironclad (starring Paul Giamatti as King John), The Understudy and Perfection. On television, he has appeared as the hopeless British travel correspondent Lawrence Beldon-Smythe in the Travel Channel series Lawrence of America. David has composed songs for numerous film projects and theater productions (including the ISC original musical, Red Barn, now being developed as a film.)MELISSA CHALSMA (Co-Director) is the co-founder and Artistic Director of Independent Shakespeare Co. (ISC). Under Melissas leadership, the company created the Griffith Park Free Shakespeare Festival, which has grown into the largest theater event of its kind in Los Angeles. Every summer, 45,000 Angelenos come together for productions, theater workshops, lectures, and performances by local artists. All of ISC summer events are admission-free. As a director, she strives to create a larger role for women in classical theater, often casting women in roles traditionally played by men. In 2018, ISC became only the second organization to receive the Paul Robeson Award by Actors' Equity Foundation and Actors Equity Association. In 2015, ISC received the Margaret Harford Award for sustained excellence from the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle. She directs and acts in many ISC productions. She has performed in theaters across the country and on Broadway (including the American premiere of Harold Pinters MOONLIGHT with Jason Robards, Blythe Danner, and Liev Schreiber).The cast of Julius Caesar will feature: Jos Acain, Cynthia Boorujy, Sam Breen, Kendell Byrd, Faqir Hassan, David Melville, Kelvin Morales, John Philipps, Philicia Saunders and Paul Turbiak.Lighting Design is by Bosco Flanagan. Costume Design is by Lia Wallfish. Assistant Director is Cary Reynolds. Stage Manager is Jenny Park.SCHEDULE Julius Caesar will be presented Friday, March 15 through Saturday, May 11. Thursdays Saturdays at 7:30pm and Sundays at 2pm. No performance Sunday, April 21.LOCATIONISC Studio3191 Casitas Ave., Ste 130 (between Fletcher Drive and Glendale Blvd.) At the Atwater Crossing Arts + Innovation Complex, Los Angeles, CA 90039. Free, ample lot and street parking. TICKET PRICINGGenerous Admission: $35General Admission: $30 Saturdays & Sundays, $25 Thursdays & FridaysStudents: $15Discount for educators: for details please call (818) 710-6306 or email indyshakes@iscla.orgFor reservations, please call (818) 710-6306 or reserve online at www.iscla.org