Folger Theatre to Close 2015-16 Season with Aaron Posner's DISTRICT MERCHANTS

Concluding its highly successful 2015/16 season, Folger Theatre stages the world premiere of District Merchants, a variation of Shakespeare's play, The Merchant of Venice. Commissioned by Folger Theatre as part of the 2016 celebration of 400 years of Shakespeare and in tandem with the Folger exhibition America's Shakespeare, playwright Aaron Posner sets this new exploration of class and difference in our own political place of power, Washington, D.C., just after the Civil War.

Love and litigation, deep passions, and predatory lending are grappled with in this uneasy comedy, which wades fearlessly into the complexities and contradictions of life in America. Set among the Black and Jewish populations in post-Civil War Washington, D.C., where passions simmer and societies realign, District Merchants is a remarkable and timely tale of money, merchandise, and mercy.

"The ability to dig deep into a Shakespeare script and discover the compelling points that firmly connect with audiences is a touchstone of Aaron Posner's work," says Janet Alexander Griffin, Folger Theatre's Artistic Producer. "We've relished it and relied on that talent as he has directed at Folger for over 15 years. What a pleasure now to hear his voice as a playwright-to admire further his capability to manage the most difficult tales with both seriousness and humor-in our first commissioned work of American Shakespeare."

Aaron Posner is the author of over a dozen plays, including a series of adaptations of Anton Chekhov. The first among these, Stupid F---ing Bird, was among the top ten plays produced in the U.S. last year. In addition, Posner has written Life Sucks (Or the Present Ridiculous), an adaptation of Chekhov's Uncle Vanya, two adaptations of novels by Chaim Potok (The Chosen, My Name is Asher Lev), and, with Michael Hollinger, adapted Edmond Rostand's Cyrano (produced by Folger Theatre, 2011), among others.

"An iconic play such as The Merchant of Venice, which deals with issues of power, prejudice, money, and mercy, seems ripe for an American re-imagining," says Aaron Posner. "With District Merchants, I wanted to take these very same issues and bring them to the extreme pressures, complexities, and contradictions that these two very different and powerfully disenfranchised peoples faced during the tumultuous years of the American Experiment following the Civil War. I think it is a very American story-but also a universal one."

The production is directed by Michael John Garcés, artistic director of LA's Cornerstone Theatre, a company member of Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company (Lights Rise on Grace, The Convert), and also a playwright (Los Illegals), as well as a director. Last season, he directed California: The Tempest, the culmination of an extraordinary program of taking Shakespeare to small towns and diverse communities, combining professional actors and residents, in a performance which the Los Angeles Times called "enchanting...inventive and charming."

Leading the cast are Matthew Boston as Shylock and Craig Wallace as Antoine. Maren Bush is Portia; Akeem Davis, Lancelot; Celeste Jones, Nessa; Seth Rue, Benjamin Bassanio; Dani Stoller, Jessica; and William Vaughan, Lorenzo.

This production features original music composed by Grammy Award® nominee and D.C.-based hip hop musical artist Christylez Bacon, with scenic design by Tony Cisek (Mary Stuart and Richard III at Folger Theatre), and costume design by Meghan Raham (Romeo and Juliet and The Conference of the Birds at Folger Theatre). The creative team also includes Geoff Korf (lighting design) and James Garver (sound design).

District Merchants is on stage at Folger Theatre from May 31 through July 3, 2016. Tickets are available online at www.folger.edu/theatre or by calling the Folger Box Office at (202) 544-7077.

Ticketing Information & Performance Dates:

District Merchants plays at Folger Theatre from May 31 through July 3, 2016. Tickets are $35-$75. Lower-priced previews and discounts for students, seniors, military, educators, and groups of ten or more are available and may be purchased at the Folger Theatre Box Office at (202) 544-7077 or online at www.folger.edu/theatre.

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