Shakespeare Comes to Worcester

In what would have otherwise been a near dearth of theater productions in Worcester during the summer, Holy Cross has partnered with the Redfeather Theatre Company in mounting a Shakespeare festival in August.

In cooperation with the department of theatre, Redfeather will produce Shakespeare’s As You Like It at Green Hill Memorial Grove Amphitheatre at Green Hill Park. Edward Isser, associate professor and chair of the theatre department at Holy Cross, can barely contain his excitement about the venture.

“When you think about what Worcester needs, it’s a series of cultural elements,” says Isser. “The only theatre that operates during the summer is the children’s theater at Foothills Theatre Company. It’s almost criminal that we don’t have an ongoing summer Shakespeare festival in Worcester."

Isser also says this new initiative is exciting because it complements other community outreach efforts the College has undertaken recently, including involvement in the South Worcester neighborhood and the embrace of the Worcester Tornadoes.

As You Like It, directed by Isser, will run from Aug. 2 to 20, Wednesdays through Sundays, at 7 p.m. General seating is $14; $10 for students and seniors. Tickets can be purchased at the event.

The play is about a group of people who have lost their rightful status in society and are banished to the Forest of Arden, a foreboding wilderness. Fearful of the unknown, hungry and without hope, they are shocked to find an idyllic place of song, comradeship and love. The characters discover that their forced banishment becomes a respite — an escape from the harshness of the outside world. However, they also find that the real dangers in the forest are the complexities and mysteries of their own hearts. The play in comedic fashion examines the terrifying and transformative nature of love — in all its permutations.

Timothy Smith, founder and artistic director of Redfeather, joined Holy Cross as an adjunct professor this past year and asked Isser if he’d be interested in directing the production. Since then the idea has grown bigger and bigger.

“What Tim has done that’s so fantastic is that he started Redfeather literally on a shoestring budget,” says Isser. “What we can bring from Holy Cross is the personnel, the expertise and the resources of the College.”

And who better to focus a festival on than the world’s best-known bard? Isser says Holy Cross has made a conscious decision to focus on Shakespeare’s work in the classroom for pedagogical and practical reasons. Pedagogical because Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest poet in Western literature; practical because Shakespeare is the gold standard for actors to demonstrate acting and performance abilities.

“People love Shakespeare. Summer Shakespeare has become as American as apple pie,” says Isser, who teaches Shakespeare performance, dramatic literature, and direction at the College. “Students love performing Shakespeare. These students are smart and hard-working and invariably rise to the challenge and feel like they’ve accomplished something significant. And it is. Doing Shakespeare well is really difficult.”

Isser has lofty goals for Redfeather, which he says will remain an independent theater company but in partnership with Holy Cross. Now in its third year, the money to support the festivals comes from fundraising in the community and ticket sales.

“We have a real vision moving forward,” he says, using Vassar College’s prestigious Powerhouse Theatre, which partners with New York Stage and Film, as an example.

“Assuming that we are successful — and I am optimistic — we want to introduce more professional actors into the company. We want to be able to use Holy Cross students, alumni, people from the community, and professional actors.”

(The cast for this year’s production is made up of students, alumni, members of the local community and esteemed Holy Cross theatre professor Steve Vineberg. The only professional equity actor in the company is Smith who will play the role of Jaques. The tight budget currently prevents the hiring of other professional actors.)

“This is an absolute win-win situation,” Isser says. “Our students will have an intense, focused theatrical experience that we cannot give them during the academic year. We’re also able to bring back alumni and thereby keep them tied to the Holy Cross community — and many of these alumni have done remarkable work in professional theater since they’ve graduated — and, of course, provide cultural fare to the entire Worcester community.”

But before he gets ahead of himself, Isser must get through rehearsals which run for about four weeks before opening night.

“One of the reasons I love doing theatre is that opening night has a fantastic way of focusing your attention,” he says wryly. “We hope to put on a show that will really excite the community. I think it’s extremely ambitious and a little scary — but that’s also part of the fun. We hope to attract a lot of people who are like-minded and love what we do.”