October 20, 2014… From The Stratford Festival media release…
Casting for the 2015 season of the Stratford Festival is under way with a number of key roles in place
Artistic Director Antoni Cimolino is delighted to welcome back: Graham Abbey, Sarah Afful, Matt Alfano, Gabriel Antonacci, Matthew Armet, Maev Beaty, Carla Bennett, Evan Buliung, Jacqueline Burtney, Lally Cadeau, Ben Carlson, Shane Carty, Stephen Cota, Keith Dinicol, Sara Farb, Barbara Fulton, Ryan Gifford, Jonathan Goad, Sean Alexander Hauk, Deborah Hay, Alexandra Herzog, Randy Hughson, Peter Hutt, Robin Hutton, Bonnie Jordan, Krista Leis, Monique Lund, Chad McFadden, Yanna McIntosh, Seana McKenna, Gordon S. Miller, Marcus Nance, Cory O’Brien, Denise Oucharek, Stephen Ouimette, Lucy Peacock, Gord Rand, Glynis Ranney, Jennifer Rider-Shaw, Tom Rooney, Steve Ross, Tyrone Savage, Jason Sermonia, Mike Shara, Ian Simpson, Scott Wentworth, Brigit Wilson, Jonathan Winsby, Geraint Wyn Davies and Joseph Ziegler.
Mr. Cimolino is also pleased to welcome newcomers Alex Black, Alexis Gordon, Alana Hibbert, James Kall, Anita Krause, Ethan Lafleur, Melanie McInenly, Stephanie Rothenberg, Cynthia Smithers and Robin Evan Willis.
“I am excited about the quality of these players,” says Mr. Cimolino. “We have an unparalleled company of actors who have been working together for a number of years. They know one another and the trust is there, which means they can push the boundaries.
“Our audiences find great joy in watching them work together over time in various combinations. For instance, the relationship between Seana McKenna and Geraint Wyn Davies that began with Mary Stuart and grew as the love interest in Mother Courage will continue – with great electricity – in Hamlet and The Physicists next year. As with others in the company, the level of trust between these two extraordinary actors allows for a sense of improvisation, a sense of freedom.
“We also have a number of exceptional people who come and go each year, and this serves to reinvigorate the company, while also providing actors with opportunities to experience new things. Then there are the younger actors, who have been here for a few seasons and are now hitting their stride, and they are joined by even newer faces making their Stratford debuts. If you look at theatre over the years, you see that it is this style of company building that allows you to do significant work.”
FESTIVAL THEATRE
Jonathan Goad to play Hamlet in the season opener
HAMLET | BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE DIRECTED BY ANTONI CIMOLINO PREVIEWS START MAY 1 | OPENS MAY 25 | CLOSES OCTOBER 11
Highly regarded for his profoundly emotive performances, Jonathan Goad will take on the role of Hamlet in the 2015 season opener, directed by Mr. Cimolino. The production’s stellar cast also features Seana McKenna as Gertrude and Geraint Wyn Davies as Claudius and the Ghost.
Mr. Goad is well remembered for his impassioned portrayals of such key characters as the Bastard in the 2004 production of King John, Iago in the 2007 production of Othello, Mark Antony in 2009’s Julius Caesar and Hippolytus in Phèdre that same year. This season, he was lauded for his Kent in King Lear, and for his remarkable versatility as he alternated the roles of Titania and Oberon in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. His other Stratford highlights over 12 seasons include Harold Hill in The Music Man, Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet, Angelo in Measure for Measure, Leo Katz in Pentecost, Quarlous in Bartholomew Fair, Frondoso in Fuente Ovejuna, and the title role in Pericles. Mr. Goad has performed at theatres across the country and has worked on numerous films and television series, including the hit CBC show Republic of Doyle, in which he plays Christian Doyle.
The production will also feature longtime Festival favourites Tom Rooney as Polonius and Mike Shara as Laertes.
Stephanie Rothenberg to play Maria with Ben Carlson as Captain von Trapp
THE SOUND OF MUSIC | MUSIC BY RICHARD RODGERS, LYRICS BY OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN II BOOK BY HOWARD LINDSAY AND RUSSEL CROUSE SUGGESTED BY “THE TRAPP FAMILY SINGERS” BY MARIA AUGUSTA TRAPP DIRECTED AND CHOREOGRAPHED BY DONNA FEORE PREVIEWS START APRIL 21 | OPENS MAY 26 | CLOSES OCTOBER 18
Stephanie Rothenberg, who recently played Rosemary in the Tony-nominated Broadway revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, will make her Stratford debut as Maria in The Sound of Music. Ben Carlson will mark his eighth season with his first role in a Stratford musical, playing Captain von Trapp. The production will be directed and choreographed by Donna Feore.
Ms Rothenberg made her Broadway debut in 2011 in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying starring opposite Nick Jonas after appearing as a member of the ensemble in the original Broadway cast with Daniel Radcliffe. She followed up her Broadway run by originating roles in four world premières: Young Irene Castle in Castle Walk at the New York Musical Theatre Festival, Elinor Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility, The Musical at the Denver Center Theater Company, Princess Anne in Roman Holiday at the Guthrie Theater and Princess Clementine in Frog Kiss, The Musical at Virginia Stage Company. Ms Rothenberg grew up in Nashville, TN, recording for country music artists, animated shows and Walt Disney. She recently filmed an episode of Tina Fey’s upcoming show, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, starring Ellie Kemper and Jane Krakowski.
Mr. Carlson’s musical abilities are a secret to no one. For his recent role in the Canadian Stage production of London Road, he shared in a Dora Mavor Moore Award. In 2011 he played a singing and guitar-playing Feste in Des McAnuff’s rock-and-roll Twelfth Night. This season, in addition to playing the Chaplain in Mother Courage and Her Children, he also played guitar and bass in the production, and he performed a one-man musical about the life of Noël Coward for the Forum. Mr. Carlson brings to the role of Captain von Trapp his considerable skills as a dramatic and comedic actor. His Stratford credits include Octavius Caesar in this season’s Antony and Cleopatra, Burleigh in Mary Stuart, Charles Condomine in Blithe Spirit, Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing, Fluellen in Henry V, Alceste in The Misanthrope, Leontes in The Winter’s Tale, John Worthing in The Importance of Being Earnest, and the title role in Hamlet, a part he also played at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, winning a Joseph Jefferson Award. Ms Rothenberg and Mr. Carlson will be joined by Shane Carty as Max Detweiler, Anita Krause as the Mother Abbess and Robin Evan Willis as Elsa Schraeder.
Ben Carlson and Deborah Hay star as Petruchio and Katherina
THE TAMING OF THE SHREW | BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE DIRECTED BY CHRIS ABRAHAM PREVIEWS START MAY 11 | OPENS JUNE 5 | CLOSES OCTOBER 10
Ben Carlson and Deborah Hay will reunite on the Festival stage as the sparring lovers Petruchio and Katherina in The Taming of the Shrew, directed by Chris Abraham. Sparks last flew between the pair when they played Benedick and Beatrice in the Festival’s 2012 production of Much Ado About Nothing.
Ms Hay, who this season lit up the stage as Sally Bowles in Cabaret and Dorothea in A Lovely Sunday for Creve Coeur at the Shaw Festival, will return for her sixth Stratford season. She was last seen at the Festival in 2013 as Milady de Winter in The Three Musketeers and Emilia in Othello, a part for which she received great critical praise. Her previous Stratford credits include Alice in Henry V, Bianca in The Taming of the Shrew, Audrey in As You Like It and Katharine in Love’s Labour’s Lost. Ms Hay’s highly acclaimed Shaw Festival roles also include Eliza Doolittle in the hit production of My Fair Lady, Hesione Hushabye in Heartbreak House and an unforgettable Billie Dawn in Born Yesterday.
Mr. Carlson and Ms Hay will be joined by Sarah Afful as Bianca, Peter Hutt as Baptista, Gordon S. Miller as Biondello, Tom Rooney as Tranio and Mike Shara as Hortensio.
Love’s Labour’s Lost to feature Mike Shara
LOVE’S LABOUR’S LOST | BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE DIRECTED BY JOHN CAIRD PREVIEWS START JULY 30 | OPENS AUGUST 14 | CLOSES OCTOBER 9
Mike Shara, who in just six seasons has become one of the Festival’s best-loved performers, will play Berowne in Shakespeare’s vivacious comedy Love’s Labour’s Lost, directed by John Caird.
Mr. Shara had a remarkable season this year, giving three indelible performances on the Festival stage: a vicious Cornwall in King Lear, a dreamy Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and a scheming Aimwell in The Beaux’ Stratagem, whom he played with marvellous comedic flair. Since joining the company in 2009, he has played such memorable roles as Roderigo in Othello, Aramis in The Three Musketeers, Cornelius Hackl in The Matchmaker, Cloten in Cymbeline and Christian in Cyrano de Bergerac. Mr. Shara is also a veteran of the Shaw Festival and has performed across the country. His television work includes Whatever, Murdoch Mysteries, Little Mosque on the Prairie and Queer as Folk.
The production will also feature Tom Rooney as Holofernes.
AVON THEATRE
Sara Farb to play Anne Frank
SCHULICH CHILDREN’S PLAYS PRESENTS THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK BY FRANCES GOODRICH AND ALBERT HACKETT | ADAPTED BY WENDY KESSELMAN DIRECTED BY JILLIAN KEILEY
REVIEWS START APRIL 22 | OPENS MAY 28 | CLOSES OCTOBER 10
After playing two of Shakespeare’s most significant young women – Cordelia and Jessica – rising star Sara Farb will take on one of the 20th century’s most iconic figures: Anne Frank. Lucy Peacock will play her mother, Mrs. Frank, with Joseph Ziegler playing her father, Mr. Frank, in a production directed by Jillian Keiley.
Having made a great impact with her Stratford debut as Jessica in The Merchant of Venice and Doña Estefania in The Three Musketeers, Ms Farb took on two key roles in 2014: Cordelia in King Lear and Cherry in The Beaux’ Stratagem. For her recent portrayal of Natalie in Citadel Theatre and Theatre Calgary’s co-production of Next to Normal, Ms Farb won a Calgary Critics Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. She played Adele in The Passion of Adele Hugo at Eastern Front Theatre, and had roles in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Canadian Stage and The Sisters Rosensweig at Harold Green Jewish Theatre. She will next be seen in Theatre Passe Muraille’s production of R-E-B-E-C-C-A, a unique solo piece that she has written about her younger sister.
The production will also feature Yanna McIntosh as Mrs. Van Daan.
Alexis Gordon and Jonathan Winsby take the leads in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel
RODGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN’S CAROUSEL MUSIC BY RICHARD RODGERS, BOOK AND LYRICS BY OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN II BASED ON FERENC MOLNAR’S PLAY “LILIOM” AS ADAPTED BY BENJAMIN F. GLAZER ORIGINAL DANCES BY AGNES DE MILLE | CHOREOGRAPHED BY MICHAEL LICHTEFELD DIRECTED BY SUSAN H. SCHULMAN PREVIEWS START MAY 5 | OPENS MAY 29 | CLOSES OCTOBER 11
After stealing hearts as Lancelot in 2011’s Camelot and touring to Broadway in Jesus Christ Superstar, Jonathan Winsby returns to play Billy Bigelow in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel. Firmly by his side will be Alexis Gordon, making her Stratford debut as Julie Jordan. The production will be directed by Susan H. Schulman.
Though he made his Stratford debut in 2006 as Stewpot in South Pacific, Mr. Winsby has spent most of his career at the Arts Club Theatre in Vancouver, playing such roles as Galahad in Spamalot, Enjolras in Les Misérables, Gaston in Beauty and the Beast, Chris in Miss Saigon and Paul in Company. Mr. Winsby recently played Captain von Trapp in Gary Griffin’s The Sound of Music in concert at Carnegie Hall.
Ms Gordon was most recently seen in the world première of The Gravitational Pull of Bernice Trimble at Factory Theatre/Obsidian Theatre Company, as well as in the workshop production of Nicole Brook’s Obeah Opera at Nightwood Theatre Company. Other credits include roles in Recurring John and Paradises Lost at SummerWorks Festival, Canada Sings and Godspell at Victoria Petrolia Playhouse, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Driftwood Theatre.
The production will also feature Evan Buliung as the evildoer Jigger Craigin, Sean Alexander Hauk as Enoch Snow, Alana Hibbert as Nettie Fowler and Robin Evan Willis as Carrie Pipperidge.
Lucy Peacock, Joseph Ziegler team up as Mr. & Mrs. Hardcastle
SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER | BY OLIVER GOLDSMITH DIRECTED BY MARTHA HENRY PREVIEWS START MAY 16 | OPENS JUNE 4 | CLOSES OCTOBER 10
Together on the Stratford stage for the first time since 2009’s The Trespassers, Lucy Peacock and Joseph Ziegler will play Mr. and Mrs. Hardcastle in the hilarious Oliver Goldsmith comedy She Stoops to Conquer, directed by Martha Henry.
Ms Peacock is on a bit of a comic roll at the moment, having played the leads in two delightful productions this season – Judith Bliss in Hay Fever and Mrs. Sullen in The Beaux’ Stratagem. Ms Peacock has long been a shining star at Stratford, with a career studded with remarkable performances, including, most recently, her stirring portrayals of Mary Stuart in the 2013 runaway hit, Elora in the world première of Judith Thompson’s The Thrill and Nana in For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again. Her credits also include the colourful Mrs. Munsch in Wanderlust, the leads in Hello, Dolly!, The King and I, and My Fair Lady, and her tour-de-force performance as all of the characters in The Blonde, the Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead. She has played more than 65 key roles at Stratford and has organized dozens of unforgettable cabarets, in particular the Late Night with Lucy Forum series, in which she performed and showcased the talents of her fellow company members.
Mr. Ziegler was seen most recently in this year’s electrifying production of Twelve Angry Men at Soulpepper Theatre. He has enjoyed a long and varied career in Canadian theatre, television and film. He first joined the Stratford company in 1983 and played many prominent roles over his first five seasons, including Berowne in Love’s Labour’s Lost, Hotspur in Henry IV Part One, Edgar in King Lear, Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfth Night, Claudio in Measure for Measure and Posthumus in Cymbeline. He returned in 2000 to direct Paul Gross in Hamlet and was last seen as Hardy in Morris Panych’s The Trespassers in 2009. Mr. Ziegler, a founding member of Soulpepper Theatre, is the recipient of two Dora Awards.
Maev Beaty will play their daughter, Kate Hardcastle, with Sara Farb as Constance Neville and Tyrone Savage as Hastings.
TOM PATTERSON THEATRE
Seana McKenna, Geraint Wyn Davies and Graham Abbey star in The Physicists
THE PHYSICISTS | BY FRIEDRICH DÜRRENMATT DIRECTED BY MILES POTTER PREVIEWS START MAY 12 | OPENS MAY 27 | CLOSES SEPTEMBER 20
After their electrifying performances in Mother Courage and Her Children, Seana McKenna and Geraint Wyn Davies will light up the stage once more in The Physicists, playing Fräulein Doktor Mathilde von Zahnd and Johann Wilhelm Möbius. They will be joined by Graham Abbey, playing Herbert Georg Beutler (alias “Newton”). The production will be helmed by award-winning director Miles Potter.
Ms McKenna’s heart-breaking portrayals this season of Mother Courage and of Constance in King John were merely the latest in a string of unforgettable performances that have thrilled theatregoers across the country and in the U.S. During her distinguished career she has played almost all of Shakespeare’s leading ladies, as well as his wife, Anne Hathaway, in the one-woman show Shakespeare’s Will. She has twice played Queen Elizabeth at Stratford, in last year’s hit Mary Stuart and in 2002’s Richard III. Renowned for her scorching portrayals of such tragic figures as Clytemestra, Medea and Phèdre, Ms McKenna is equally adept at comic pursuits, recently winning great praise for her Madame Arcati in Blithe Spirit and Dolly Levi in The Matchmaker. She also added some sizzle as La Marquise de Merteuil in 2010’s Dangerous Liaisons. Ms McKenna was recently honoured with two honorary degrees, from the University of Toronto’s Trinity College and the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco.
At once powerfully persuasive and delightfully entertaining, Mr. Wyn Davies is one of the Festival’s most lauded leading men. In addition to his relentlessly charming Cook in Mother Courage, he gave a gripping performance as Mark Antony in this season’s Antony and Cleopatra. He began his Stratford career in 1986, playing the title role in Pericles and Antipholus of Syracuse in The Boys from Syracuse. Since then, his stage career has taken him throughout North America and the U.K. At Stratford, his recent triumphs include Duke Vincentio in Measure for Measure and the Earl of Leicester in Mary Stuart. He has also played Stephano in The Tempest and Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, as well as the title roles in Julius Caesar and Henry V, and Dylan Thomas in the one-man show Do Not Go Gentle. He has dozens of film and television credits, including key roles in Republic of Doyle, ReGenesis, 24, Slings and Arrows, Airwolf, Forever Knight and American Psycho II.
Over the course of his 16 seasons at the Festival, Mr. Abbey has given audiences a long string of captivating performances, most recently including his richly drawn portrayals of Philip the Bastard in King John and Count Johan Oxenstierna in Christina, The Girl King this season. Other memorable highlights of his Stratford career include Iago in Othello, Posthumus in Cymbeline, Aigisthos in Elektra, Petruchio in The Taming of the Shrew, D’Artagnan in The Three Musketeers, as well as Henry V, Macbeth, Romeo and Henry VIII. His extensive television career includes the series lead, Gray Jackson, in The Border, as well as recurring roles in Degrassi, Murdoch Mysteries, Covert Affairs and Republic of Doyle. Mr. Abbey is currently working on The Breath of Kings, a dramatic adaptation of four Shakespeare plays – Richard II, Henry IV Part 1, Henry IV Part 2 and Henry V – developed by him in collaboration with Daniel Brooks and John Murrell through the Stratford Festival Laboratory.
The production will also feature Randy Hughson as Richard Voss.
Evan Buliung to play Pericles
THE ADVENTURES OF PERICLES | BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE DIRECTED BY SCOTT WENTWORTH PREVIEWS START MAY 8 | OPENS MAY 30 | CLOSES SEPTEMBER 19
Beloved for his heart-rending and richly drawn characterizations, Evan Buliung will play the title role in Shakespeare’s sweeping drama The Adventures of Pericles, directed by Scott Wentworth.
Mr. Buliung had an outstanding season this year, giving incredibly nuanced performances as Edgar in King Lear and the alternating roles of Titania and Oberon in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, along with a delightful comic turn as Count Bellair in The Beaux’ Stratagem. In his nine Stratford seasons, Mr. Buliung’s highlights include an acclaimed portrayal of Tom Joad in The Grapes of Wrath, Roger in The Little Years, Mac in King of Thieves, Petruchio in The Taming of the Shrew and Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet. His credits elsewhere include Dumptsy in Idiot’s Delight and Jamie in Long Day’s Journey into Night at Soulpepper Theatre, Macduff in Macbeth at Chicago Shakespeare, and numerous leading roles at the Shaw Festival. Mr. Buliung also originated the role of Khashoggi in We Will Rock You in Toronto and Aragorn in the world première of The Lord of the Rings, for which he earned a Dora Award nomination.
The production will also feature Deborah Hay as Thaisa, Marina and Antiochus’s Daughter, and Brigit Wilson as the Bawd.
Gord Rand to play Oedipus
OEDIPUS REX | BY SOPHOCLES DIRECTED BY DANIEL BROOKS PREVIEWS START JUNE 30 | OPENS JULY 16 | CLOSES SEPTEMBER 1
Gord Rand will return for his second Stratford season to play King Oedipus in Oedipus Rex, directed by Daniel Brooks. Yanna McIntosh, hot off her powerful performance as Cleopatra in this season’s Antony and Cleopatra, will play Jocasta.
Mr. Rand spent this season at the Shaw Festival playing Leonard Charteris in The Philanderer and Charles Bentham in Juno and the Paycock. An actor and writer, he has performed on stages across North America including the National Arts Centre, The Vancouver Playhouse, Tarragon Theatre, Theatre Calgary and Canadian Stage. He is well-remembered for his performance as Uri, a naked Ukranian plutonium dealer, in The Innocent Eye Test at Mirvish, for which he received a Dora Award. He recently toured with the Edinburgh Festival winner Goodness, playing Edinburgh, New York and Vancouver, and just returned from Rwanda. His film and television credits include Republic of Doyle, Lost Girl, Maps to the Stars, Covert Affairs, The Listener, Saving Hope, Flashpoint and Death Comes to Town with Kids in the Hall. Mr. Rand made his Stratford debut in 2002, playing Owen Barclay in Shadows during the Studio Theatre’s inaugural season.
Ms McIntosh will celebrate her 10th Stratford season in 2015. Before heating up the stage in Antony and Cleopatra, she was last seen in the company in 2012, with key roles in two of the season’s most highly lauded productions, playing the Queen in Cymbeline and a powerful and highly original Elektra. Other highlights of her Stratford career include Queen Elizabeth in Richard III, Grace in The Little Years, Hermione in The Winter’s Tale, Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Helen in The Trojan Woman, Mme. Volanges in Dangerous Liaisons and Lady Macbeth. Ms McIntosh is a Dora and Gemini Award-winning actor, whose Toronto credits include Condoleeza Rice in Stuff Happens and the title roles in Mary Stuart, Hedda Gabler and Belle. She was recently nominated for the Christopher Plummer Fellowship Award of Excellence.
Jonathan Goad, Stephen Ouimette and Scott Wentworth team up in The Alchemist
THE ALCHEMIST | BY BEN JONSON DIRECTED BY ANTONI CIMOLINO PREVIEWS START AUGUST 1 | OPENS AUGUST 15 | CLOSES SEPTEMBER 19
Three true Festival favourites will team up in Mr. Cimolino’s production of Ben Jonson’s satirical comedy The Alchemist: Jonathan Goad as Face, Stephen Ouimette as Subtle, and Scott Wentworth as Epicure Mammon.
Mr. Ouimette will make a late-season return to the Festival after reprising his role in the widely acclaimed production of Eugene O’Neill’s The Iceman Cometh with Nathan Lane and Brian Dennehy at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in early 2015. Mr. Ouimette gave audiences a Fool for the memory books in this season’s King Lear, and inspired great jubilation as Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. In a career filled with unforgettable performances, Mr. Ouimette has played Lucio in Measure for Measure, Estragon in Waiting for Godot, Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfth Night, Sam in The Homecoming, Hysterium in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Canon Chasuble in The Importance of Being Earnest and Touchstone in As You Like It, as well as the title roles in Hamlet, King John, Amadeus and Richard III. In addition to his work in Iceman, Mr. Ouimette is remembered in Chicago for his leading performances in The Taming of the Shrew and Troilus and Cressida. He starred alongside Mark Rylance, David Hyde Pierce and Joanna Lumley in La Bête in London’s West End and on Broadway. He is a celebrated director as well as an actor and has been the recipient of Gemini, Dora and Sterling awards.
This season, Mr. Wentworth played a most memorable Gloucester in King Lear, a suave Theseus in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and a slovenly Squire Sullen in The Beaux’ Stratagem. His 2013 season was even more remarkable as he wowed audiences in three unforgettable leading roles: Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof, Shylock in The Merchant of Venice and Capulet in Romeo and Juliet. In a career that spans 20 seasons at Stratford, he has played Tom in The Glass Menagerie, Tranio in The Taming of the Shrew, Mark Antony in Julius Caesar, Hubert in King John, Iago in Othello, Bosola in The Duchess of Malfi and Sky Masterson twice in Guys and Dolls, as well as the title roles in Macbeth, Richard III and Henry IV Part 1. He is a Tony-nominated actor, a director and playwright whose work has been celebrated on Broadway, in London’s West End, on television, and in films and theatres across North America. As previously announced, Mr. Wentworth will also take the helm of next season’s The Adventures of Pericles.
The production will also feature Randy Hughson as Tribulation and Brigit Wilson as Dol Common.
STUDIO THEATRE
Lead casting for Possible Worlds still to come
POSSIBLE WORLDS | BY JOHN MIGHTON DIRECTED BY MITCHELL CUSHMAN PREVIEWS START JULY 1 | OPENS JULY 15 | CLOSES SEPTEMBER 19
Gordon S. Miller will return for his ninth Stratford season to play Williams.
Maev Beaty to play Kate in The Last Wife
THE LAST WIFE | BY KATE HENNIG | WORLD PREMIÈRE DIRECTED BY ALAN DILWORTH PREVIEWS START JULY 30 | OPENS AUGUST 14 | CLOSES SEPTEMBER 20
Maev Beaty, who fast won a place as a leading player this season with her highly lauded portrayal of Goneril in King Lear, will play Katherine Parr, the last wife of Henry VIII, in the world première of Kate Hennig’s new play, The Last Wife, directed by Alan Dilworth.
Ms Beaty, a stalwart of Toronto theatre, also gave a striking performance as Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. A theatre-maker, actor, writer and voice artist, Ms Beaty is noted for such Toronto credits as Passion Play at Outside the March Theatre Company/Convergence Theatre/Sheep No Wool, La Ronde and Parfumerie at Soulpepper, Civility at Necessary Angel, and Outside the March’s Terminus, which won the SummerWorks Jury Prize and was later presented as part of the inaugural Off-Mirvish season at the Royal Alexandra Theatre. Ms Beaty has garnered seven Dora nominations, winning the award for her work in The Penelopiad. She is Co-Artistic Director of Sheep No Wool and an Artistic Associate of Groundwater Productions and Outside the March.
The production will also feature Sara Farb as Mary and Joseph Ziegler as Henry.
Casting continues for the 2015 season. Tickets for the 2015 season will go on sale to Members of the Stratford Festival on Sunday, November 16, 2014, and to the general public on Friday, January 2, 2015.