LSF 2012
William Shakespeare’s
The Tragedy of Hamlet,
Prince of Denmark
Photo by Randy Large: Joseph Salazar as Romeo and Ben Kahre as Tybalt. Costumes by Jonathan Singer. Director Gary Armagnac.
“The play’s the thing wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the King.”
Directed by Lisa A. Tromovitch
July 12, 13, 14, 22, 27, 28, 29, August 10, 11
Performances begin at 7:30 pm Thursdays – Saturdays, and at 7:00 pm on Sundays.
Picnic area opens at 5:30 pm.
Hamlet – Synopsis
The King of Denmark is dead and has been succeeded by his brother Claudius. Claudius has also married Gertrude, the widowed Queen. Hamlet, Gertrude’s son, is already distressed by his father’s death and the hasty remarriage and when his father’s ghost appears to tell him that he had been murdered by Claudius, Hamlet vows revenge. To cover his intentions, he feigns madness.
Polonius, the Lord Chamberlain, whose daughter Ophelia is all but betrothed to Hamlet, believes that his madness is caused by repressed love and sets a trap for them.
A Company of Players arrives and Hamlet asks them to perform a play, The Murder of Gonzago, hoping that its similarity to the murder of his own father will force Claudius to betray his guilt. Hamlet’s suspicions are confirmed. He visits his mother, reviling her for her hasty marriage, and accidentally kills Polonius, hiding in the chamber. Claudius sends Hamlet to England, planning to have him murdered.
Laertes, Polonius’ son returns demanding revenge for his father’s death. His sister, Ophelia, maddened by grief, has drowned herself. Claudius plots with Laertes to kill Hamlet in a fencing match in which Laertes will have a poisoned sword. The plot miscarries and Laertes dies. Gertrude drinks from a poisoned cup intended for Hamlet and also dies. Hamlet, wounded by the poisoned sword, kills Claudius before he, too, dies.
Fortinbras of Norway lays claim to the throne of Denmark.
http://www.rsc.org.uk/whats-on/hamlet-yps/synopsis.aspx
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William Shakespeare’s
The Merry Wives of Windsor
Photo by Kenneth Alexander. Miles Gaston Villanueva as Tito Merelli and Kathryn Zdan as Diane in Ken Ludwig’s Lend Me A Tenor. Costumes by Joanne Martin. Director Leslie Martinson.
“The world’s mine oyster!”
July 19, 20, 21, August 3, 4, 5, 12
Performances begin at 7:30 pm Thursdays – Saturdays, and at 7:00 pm on Sundays.
Picnic area opens at 5:30 pm.
(recommended for ages 10 and up)
The Merry Wives of Windsor – Synopsis
A most Excellent and Conceited Comedy of Sir John Falstaff and The Merry Wives of Windsor
Justice Shallow and his young, dim-witted nephew, Slender, have come to Windsor in search of Sir John Falstaff. Falstaff and his buddies have taken up residence in the town’s local inn and watering hole, the Garter Inn. Down on his luck, Falstaff has decided to restore his fortunes by seducing the wives of two wealthy citizens. He sends Mistress Page and Mistress Ford identical love letters, but both women are on to him. They discover his double dealing and set about turning the tables, arrange an assignation at Mistress Ford’s house, and begin to play vengeful elaborate practical jokes on him.
The unreasonably jealous husband of Mistress Ford, Frank Ford, has heard of Falstaff’s plan and decides to test his wife’s fidelity. Pretending to be a “Master Brook,” he pays Falstaff to seduce his wife on his behalf, twice almost catching them together, but in innocent circumstances.
Meanwhile, the Pages’ daughter, Anne, is pursued by three suitors. Anne herself is in love with Fenton, a handsome young courtier whom her parents distrust as a fortune-hunter. Mistress Quickly, Dr. Caius’s housekeeper, is being paid by all three suitors to advance their cause. A duel between Doctor Caius and Slender’s friend Parson Evans, the local clergyman, is averted when the Host of the Garter Inn plays a trick on them, and they in turn pay him back.
In Windsor Great Park at night, Mistress Quickly and the “merry wives” set up Falstaff for his final punishment. The whole company gathers in the park to witness his humiliation, but it all ends happily.
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