WASHINGTON, D.C.: Shakespeare Theatre Company (STC) has announced its revised 2020-21 season, featuring a mix of virtual and in-person productions. Dates will be announced as soon as possible, and no later than four weeks before performances begin.
“We are so excited to announce that we are moving ahead with our revised season, and we are working to responsibly invite audiences, actors, and staff back into our theatres,” said executive director Chris Jennings in a statement. “We have a dedicated Safety Committee which has been working for months on every detail to conform to regional and national guidelines. We are planning for online and immersive productions for Phase 2 of ReOpen DC in accordance with the Mayor’s office, and returning to live theatre events when we reach Phase 3.”
The season will begin with All the Devils Are Here: How Shakespeare Invented the Villain (TBA), written and performed by Patrick Page. The one-man performance is an exploration of Shakespeare’s villains, from Iago to Macbeth. The show will be presented online as part of STC Digital.
Next up will be the Donmar Warehouse’s production of Blindness (TBA), adapted by Simon Stephens from the novel by José Saramago, about a pandemic that causes blindness. Presented as an immersive light and sound installation, the show features the voice of Juliet Stevenson and will have a limit of 40 guests per performance. Walter Meierjohann directs.
Following will be Eugène Ionesco’s The Chairs (TBA), an absurdist play about an older couple unstacking chairs for an anticipated audience that may never arrive. Associate artistic director Alan Paul will direct.
The season will continue with Red Velvet (TBA), by Lolita Chakrabarti, about the forgotten history of Ira Aldridge, the Black American actor who took the stage as Othello after Edmund Kean collapsed onstage at London’s Theatre Royal mid-performance in 1833. Jade King Carroll will direct.
Next will be Shakespeare’s As You Like It (TBA), a playful romantic comedy with mistaken identities and lovelorn characters in the forest of Arden. Artistic director Simon Godwin will helm the play, which will be presented as part of the Shakespeare in American Communities program with the National Endowment for the Arts and Arts Midwest.
Founded in 1992, Shakespeare Theatre Company produces classic plays and musicals.
