Free Readers Ensemble  

























Oak Park Festival Theatre



© Rehearsal photos by Suburban Journals of  Chicago Inc.


Jack Hickey as Sir John Falstaff.
Photo by Lila M. Stromer


The History of King Henry the Fourth,
adapted from William Shakespeare’s Henry IV Parts I & II, adaptation and directed by Stanton Davis.


review by Ed Vincent

I must begin by saying that I only saw the first half of this play do to poor weather on opening night in Austin Gardens.  This production has a few updates that are anachronistic but pleasing enough to ear and eye.  I am perhaps a bit prejudice to the work of our local art treasure and wonderful job of some of our top local actors.  Jack Hickey as Sir John Falstaff, brings humor and talent to a role both featured in fiction and some parts of history, with similar names.

This is not an adaptation so removed as "Romeo and Juliet" to "West Side Story" but one with some fine tuning still in the era of its writing and the language so popular with lovers of Shakespeare.

The weather can make all the difference in the quality of your visit, so watch the weather and come on a pleasant day or evening for you show.

The presentation was flawless and on the mark, all roles were performed with talent and dedication to the craft.  Come for the show and check the site for special events.

http://www.oakparkfestival.com/



The History of King Henry the Fourth, adapted from William Shakespeare’s Henry IV Parts I & II, adaptation and directed by Stanton Davis.  Outdoors in Austin Gardens.

Performances June 9-July 9, 2011.
Previews June 9-10
Opening Night Saturday, June 11 at 8:00 pm
Thursday – Saturday 8 pm/Sundays 7 pm; also Wednesday July 6 at 8 pm.
Family Days performance June 26: preshow activities start at 4:30 and a special start time of 6:00.

Buy a Summer Pack and save!

Mainstage Ticket Prices:

Previews $15
Rest of run:
Adults $25, students & seniors $20
Student/Senior special!  Students & Seniors can attend performances on Friday June 17th and Wednesday July 6th for only $10.

Family Day performance on June 26th: Adults $15, kids $10.
Industry Nights: All Thursdays and Wednesday July 6. Tickets $10 with proof of industry status.
 
The History of King Henry the Fourth is a new adaptation of Shakespeare’s Henry IV Part I and Part II, commissioned by OPFT. The History of King Henry the Fourth presents more than the bloody battlefields of England in contests for power and succession. At its heart are both the eternal struggle between kinship and friendship, and the private war within all of us to fulfill our duty and our destiny. These sober thoughts are leavened by the rapscallion character of Falstaff and all the vividly comic denizens of the Boar’s Head Tavern.


Cast (in alphabetical order):
 Ariel Begley – Lady Mortimer/Warwick/Hastings
 Logan Black – Poins/Richard II
 †Kate Booth – Peto/Lady Northumberland
 William Bullion Bardolph
 Charlie Cascino – Doll Tearsheet
 †Caitlin Cavannaugh – Harcourt/Music Director
 *Aaron Christensen – Pistol
 Jake Dewar – Archbishop Scroop/Chief Justice
 Patrick Doolin – Westmoreland
 Maggie Kettering – Lady Percy
 †Bill Gordon – Pilgrim/Sir Michael
 Dennis Grimes – Hal
 *Jack Hickey – Falstaff
 †Samuel Hubbard – Mowbray/Mortimer
 Maggie Kettering – Lady Percy
 Adam Meredith – Hotspur
 †Mitchell Martin – Vernon/Pilgrim
 Michael Moran – Prince John
 Sara M. Nichols – Hostess Quickly
 †Mackenzie Parker – Douglas/Northumberland
 Michael Sherwin – King Henry IV
 Edwin Unger – Worchester
 Philip Zimmermann – Blunt/Glendower

Crew:
 Stanton Davis – Director
 Christopher Ballou – Assistant Director, Henry IV
 *Robert W. Behr – Stage Manager
 Becca Chimis – ASM
 Geoff Coates – Fight Choreographer
 Sara Gorsky – Lighting Designer
 Aimee Hanyzewski – Set Designer
 Andrew Hildner – Props Designer
 Joseph Fosco – Sound Designer
 Michael O’Neill – Master Carpenter
 Allison Queen – ASM
 Lindsay Schmeling – Costume Designer

*= member of Actors’ Equity
 †=intern


http://www.oakparkfestival.com/
Close to home and intimate.  Parking for the
night shows right across the street from Austin
Gardens.  Austin Gardens is right behind the
Lake Theater on Lake and Forest Ave.




© Suburban Journals of Chicago
published by Suburban Journals of  Chicago Inc.


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