Cal Shakes' 'All the Bay's a Stage' Program to Present THE TEMPEST

California Shakespeare Theater today announced the cast and public performance dates for its upcoming All the Bay's a Stage touring production of Shakespeare's The Tempest at the Oakland Museum of California. Directed by Cal Shakes Associate Artistic Director Rebecca Novick, The Tempest will play at OMCA November 13 through November 22.

The cast includes Cal Shakes Associate Artist Catherine Castellanos (2014 tour and 2015 Main Stage productions of Twelfth Night) as Prospero; others in the cast include Tristan Cunningham (Life is a Dream, Midsummer Night's Dream, Comedy of Errors) as Miranda/Trinculo; Amy Lizardo (Party People at Berkeley Rep) as Ariel; Liam Vincent (The Mystery of Irma Vep) as Antonio; Carla Pantoja (Taming of the Shrew at SF Shakes) as Gonzalo; John R. Lewis (Don Quixote at Marin Shakes) as Caliban/Alonso; Patrick Kelly Jones (Coast of Utopia at Shotgun) as Stephano/Sebastian; and Rafael Jordan (King Lear) as Ferdinand.

Also returning from the 2014 tour is composer Olive Mitra, whose original music, composed for Ariel and her choir of spirits, will make possible the magic of the play through song and sound, essential components in the touring setting. Mitra also worked this summer with students from Laney College to compose an original work that will be performed during the play's wedding scene between Miranda and Ferdinand. Other members of the creative team include set designer Nina Ball and costume designer Naomi Arnst.

"The Tempest offers a deep look at what we do with power, how we manifest magic, and what it takes to forgive," says director Rebecca Novick. "This production will center the stories of Caliban and Ariel as much as Prospero, inviting us to think about who gets to decide who is human; companion residencies will invite community groups to explore these questions."

Building on the Triangle Lab's successful 2014 tour of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, the public performances of The Tempest at OMCA will culminate a community tour of the production to people in the East Bay who typically have little access to professional theater. This year's tour includes performances at Berkeley Food and Housing Project, the Salvation Army, Civicorps, Alameda Juvenile Justice Center, and Allen Temple Baptist Church Seniors Ministry, among others.

OMCA public performances of The Tempest will take place in the unique setting of the Museum's Blue Oak café; with only 100 seats available, every audience member at these intimate performances is just steps away from the action. Performances will be Fridays at 7pm and Saturdays and Sundays at 4pm from November 13 through November 22. There will be a limited number of pay-what-you-can tickets available at the door for each night's performance.

OMCA is located at 1000 Oak Street, at 10th Street, in Oakland; directions and parking information are available on the Museum's website at http://museumca.org/directions-parking

California Shakespeare Theater's Triangle Lab is funded, in part, by The James Irvine Foundation and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

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