buy tickets to one or both of the two: the beard of avon or twelfth night
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……………………………………Behind the Scenes of The Beard of Avon and Twelfth Night

The Beard of Avon
By Amy Freed; Directed by Chris Coleman
January 15 – March 9, 2008 Extended one more week! Must end March 16th
main stage || illustration by Julianna Bright
cast and crew || photos || tv spots || blogs about Twelfth Night/Beard of Avon || study guide || pre-show dinners

The Beard of Avon runs approximately 2 hours, 25 minutes, with one intermission.

Portland Center Stage presents two productions simultaneously in repertory sharing sets, costumes and many of the same actors in both productions. (These two plays will be playing on alternating nights and require purchase of separate tickets.) The Beard of Avon is Amy Freed’s bawdy, delicious, mind-bending comedy about the true authorship of Shakespeare’s plays. An aspiring young spear carrier (Will Shakspere) is enlisted by Edward de Vere (infamous murderer, lecher and nobleman) to serve as his front man for the plays he wants to see mounted. As their partnership develops, Will’s knowledge and understanding of the theater also grows and the line between mentor and protegé gets very blurry. Who actually wrote the plays? An uneducated actor who was losing his hair? Or the brilliant but tawdry Edward de Vere, Earl of Oxford? Or was it Sir Francis Bacon? Or Christopher Marlowe? Or, dare we dream it, Her Majesty, Elizabeth Regina herself.

“…riveting tale and flawless stagecraft […] make this the best ensemble piece seen in Portland this season.” —Eric Bartels, Portland Tribune

In repertory with Twelfth Night
By William Shakespeare; Directed by Jane Jones
January 22 – March 9, 2008 || main stage

Twelfth Night runs approximately 2 hours, 25 minutes, with one intermission.

Throughout The Beard of Avon, frequent references are made to Twelfth Night, making them perfect partners to present in tandem. Perhaps Shakespeare’s finest comedy, Twelfth Night tells the story of Viola, a young woman who finds herself shipwrecked in an unknown country. Disguising herself as a boy to ensure her safety, she soon encounters and falls in love with Duke Orsino, who also develops tender, but perplexing, feelings for her (er, him) as questions of sexual identity, desire and longing spin into a heady concoction. Tender, poignant outpourings of the heart lie next to some of the Bard’s silliest (and most low-brow) double-entendres, while both romance and adventure emerge in full bloom. In typical Shakespearean fashion, boys play girls, girls play boys, girls play boys playing girls and all’s well that ends well in this charming tale of love and misunderstanding. Directed by Jane Jones, Founder and Co-Artistic Director of Seattle’s Book-It Repertory Theatre, whose delightful production of Pride and Prejudice was one of the hits of the 05/06 season.

“Plotwise, it’s like a drink so fizzy that it stirs itself. And what bubbles up here are vibrant comic performances all around. And [Jennifer] Taylor’s Viola, as the driving force of it all, has an easy charisma that makes everyone’s affection for her seem natural.” —Marty Hughley, The Oregonian

sponsored by
Judy C. & Martin N. Kelley

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