Lisa Wolpe's SHAKESPEARE AND THE ALCHEMY OF GENDER to Play Tulane

Fresh off an international tour, Lisa Wolpe's celebrated show SHAKESPEARE AND THE ALCHEMY OF GENDER will run from May 20-22, 2016 in Tulane's Lupin Theater. Ms. Wolpe has arguably played more of the Bard's male roles than any woman in history. Lisa creates an enthralling piece of theatre by melding Shakespeare's most iconic male characters with stories of her life.

Women were not allowed to perform during Shakespeare's lifetime, so young men played Shakespeare's female characters. Lisa, however, turns that idea on its head and illustrates that great actors - regardless of gender or religion - can breathe life into Shakespeare's complex and dynamic characters. An activist as well as a celebrated actress and director, Lisa's work offers a unique and powerful perspective of courage, resilience, and hope against her family's harrowed background. Lisa speaks of her father, who was one of the only members of her family to escape Nazi capture. Determined to fight, he worked as a secret agent and was personally responsible for the death of hundreds of Nazis before fleeing to Canada. Unable to silence the memories, he tragically took his own life when Lisa was four years old. Here Lisa begins to explore why she claims, "Sometimes I feel like Shakespeare saved my life."

SHAKESPEARE AND THE ALCHEMY OF GENDER runs May 20 and 21 at 7:30p, and May 22 at 1:30p. Runtime is 55 minutes with an optional talkback following each show. Performances are held in the Lupin Theater on Tulane's campus: neworleansshakespeare.org/how-to-find-us. Tickets and more information can be found at www.neworleansshakespeare.org.

Lisa Wolpe is an international activist working for the empowerment of women and diversity on the stage. Since 1993 she has been the Founding Producing Artistic Director of the all- female Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company (22 seasons), where she produces, directs, and has performed roles including Hamlet, Richard III, Angelo, Leontes, Romeo, Shylock, and Iago. Lisa is currently touring her solo show Shakespeare & the Alchemy of Gender to venues around the world. She has directed and acted regionally at theaters including Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Berkeley Repertory Company, Shakespeare & Company, Arizona Theater Company, San Diego Repertory Theater, and more. She is a teacher/writer/actor/director who has studied deeply in Clown, Voice, Shakespearean text, and new work, and has received multiple awards for excellence in Directing, Acting, and promoting diversity and excellence onstage. She has taught and directed at universities including NYU, UCLA, USC, Cal Poly Pomona, Whittier College, ACT San Francisco, Boston University, MIT, the American Shakespeare Center, University of Colorado, and more. Her work continues to receive critical praise and was recently highlighted in American Theatre Magazine.

The mission of the New Orleans Shakespeare Festival at Tulane is to produce professional, classical theatre with a primary focus upon the works of William Shakespeare. Our commitment is to utilize local, national, and international talent to create dynamic, visceral, text-based performances celebrating Shakespeare's brilliant insight into the human condition. With this programming we will provide to the people of the Gulf South both entertainment and educational resources of the highest quality, honoring Shakespeare's legacy.

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