Due to box office demand, Theatre for a New Audience is extending its fourth production of the 2014-2015 season, Fiasco Theater's The Two Gentlemen of Verona by William Shakespeare, directed by Jessie Austrian and Ben Steinfeld, for two additional weeks through Sunday, June 7, at Polonsky Shakespeare Center, 262 Ashland Place. The Two Gentlemen of Verona opened on April 30.
Theatre for a New Audience Founding Artistic Director Jeffrey Horowitz, commented, "It's thrilling that Two Gentlemen, An Octoroon, and Tamburlaine all extended. The Valley of Astonishment, directed by Peter Brook and Marie-Hélène, would also have extended but the artists were unavailable due to previous commitments."
In its first two seasons at Polonsky Shakespeare Center, 92,309 patrons have attended shows as compared with 45,056 attendees for Theatre for a New Audience's last two years in Manhattan. During the same period, the number of younger people attending its shows has more than doubled. Theatre for a New Audience's contribution to the New York cultural scene from its new home in Brooklyn is substantial.
This production of Fiasco Theater's The Two Gentlemen of Verona with its cast of six was originally produced by Folger Theatre (Janet Alexander Griffin, Artistic Producer), Washington D.C., and follows on the heels of Fiasco Theater's widely acclaimed staging of Into the Woods, which recently ran at Roundabout Theatre Company and is nominated for a Drama League, Drama Desk, and Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.
Crackling and quick-moving, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, a seemingly simple tale of shifting devotions among mismatched lovers, helped launch the genre of "rom-com." Yet its delightful madcap surface conceals undercurrents.
"Fiasco is thrilled to be collaborating with
Jeffrey Horowitz and Theatre for a New Audience again and can't wait to work in the beautiful new Brooklyn space," say the three co-artistic directors of Fiasco,
Jessie Austrian,
Noah Brody, and
Ben Steinfeld. "Our ongoing relationship with Theatre for a New Audience and the incredible collaborators they have introduced to us (
Cicely Berry and
Andrew Wade, among others) continues to help us grow and strengthen our work on Shakespeare as individuals and as an ensemble."
Fiasco was drawn to The Two Gentleman of Verona because it is one of Shakespeare's earliest plays (perhaps his first), and after spending so much time with the late play Cymbeline, the troupe was eager to get to know Shakespeare as a young writer. Unlike Cymbeline, which uses epic plot twists and sweeping scope of story-telling, The Two Gentleman of Verona asks deep philosophical questions with simplicity and directness. "And so we've tried to be simple and direct in our staging and our acting of The Two Gentleman of Verona so that the philosophy within the play can be experienced and heard with honesty," the co-artistic directors said. "It may be our most 'bare-bones' production yet."
In The Two Gentlemen of Verona,
Jessie Austrian co-directs and plays Julia,
Noah Brody is Proteus,
Paul L. Coffey is Speed, Zachary Fine is Valentine,
Andy Grotelueschen plays both Launce, Antonia, and the Duke, and
Emily Young is Lucetta and Sylvia.
Sets are by
Derek McLane, costumes are by
Whitney Locher, and lighting is by
Tim Cryan. The vocal coach is
Andrew Wade and the production stage manager is Shane Schnetzler.
Fiasco Theater is an ensemble theater company created by graduates of the Brown University/Trinity Rep M.F.A. acting program. Past shows include Cymbeline (Theatre for a New Audience/
Barrow Street Theatre), Twelfth Night (Access Theater), Into the Woods (
McCarter Theatre Center,
The Old Globe, and Roundabout Theatre Company), and Measure for Measure (New Victory Theater).
Support for Theatre for a New Audience's Polonsky Shakespeare Center and its endowed programs has been provided through a public-private partnership. Public support for this project was provided by the City of New York through the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the New York City Council, and the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President. Leadership private support has been provided by Cleary, Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, the Elayne P. Bernstein Education Fund, The Howard Gilman Foundation, The Irving Harris Foundation, The Polonsky Foundation,
Theodore C. Rogers, and the SHS Foundation.
Principal support for Theatre for a New Audience's season and programs is provided by Bloomberg Philanthropies, The
Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and The SHS Foundation.
The Two Gentlemen of Verona is made possible, in part, by The Howard Gilman Foundation Fund for Classic Drama. The New Deal Ticket Program is supported by Macy's.
Box Office
Single tickets, on sale now, are $60-$85 and may be purchased online at
www.tfana.org, by phone at
866-811-4111, or in person at the Theatre for a New Audience Box Office (262 Ashland Place). Box office hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 1:00pm to 6:00pm. A limited number of premium seats are available for $100.
New Deal tickets for ages 30 and under or full-time students of any age are priced at $20 each and can be purchased online, by phone, or in person at the box office.
Performances are Tuesday through Sunday evenings at 7:30 pm, with matinees on Saturdays and Sundays at 2:00pm.
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