THE COMPANY The twelve cast members of As You Like It are Albertan emerging artists taking part in Theatre Calgary’s Shakespeare by the Bow theatre training program. Orlando Duke Senior/Corin Duke Freida/Audrey Jaques Touchstone Phebe/Sharl Rosalind Amiens Silvius/Le Beau/Lord Celia Oliver Adam Director Script Adaptors
PRANEET AKILLA CONRAD BELAU KAYLA BIGRAS MARY ELIZABETH CHISHOLM
CONNER CHRISTMAS JENNY DAIGLE EMILY DALLAS ALEXA ELSER BENJAMIN JONES JOSIE JONES ARMIN KARAME CONNOR PRITCHARD
SAMANTHA MACDONALD SAMANTHA MACDONALD & JENNA TURK Program Director HAYSAM KADRI Site, Set & Costume Designer DEITRA KALYN Composer & Music Director ALLISON LYNCH Fight Director KARL H. SINE Assistant Fight Director ZAKK MACDONALD Text Coach TERRY TWEED Vocal Coach JANE MACFARLANE Movement Coach REBECCA HARPER Choreographer ALEXA ELSER Stage Manager CARISSA SAMS Assistant Stage Manager IAN LANE
DIRECTOR’S NOTE In the unadapted text of As You Like It, the word love appears 162 times. In many ways, the play is Shakespeare’s love letter Samantha MacDonald, Director to love. He explores almost every variation of it; we see what happens when we find love, when we lose love, and when love is denied us. Shakespeare also reminds us, through Rosalind’s astute and sometimes pointed observations, that love is not perfect. Rosalind allows us to know what it is to be in love, and at the same time to see the absurdity of it; she teaches Orlando (and therefore us) that love takes work, but it’s worth it. For in the end, whatever kind it is, love transforms us. It is the only place where we can truly be ourselves. The Forest of Arden is likewise a magical, transcendent place. Almost every character in Arden undergoes some form of transformation – even those we assume are lost. I think it is this hope, the hope of possibility that Rosalind represents so joyously, which explains why we still love to watch her wit triumph and her heart soar 418 years after the first time she took the stage. And at a time when the world is ailing and fear and hate seem to run rampant, what a joy to play in the Forest of Arden – a world in which love reigns supreme and where all things are possible.
Thank you for joining us for As You Like It! I hope you enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed bringing it to life. A Note: As You Like It was written and performed for the first time in 1599, the year the Globe Theatre opened. Though we have edited much of it out, the original text is full of references to the joys of the new theatre space. I am thrilled to be the first to play on our own brand new “wooden O�. Shakespeare would be so pleased. SAMANTHA MACDONALD Director
SHAKESPEARE BY THE BOW SUPPORTING ALBERTA’S EMERGING ARTISTS Shakespeare in Prince’s Island Park is a treasured summertime activity in our city, and Theatre Calgary is delighted to be presenting As You Like It as this season’s Shakespeare by the Bow production! We believe that all Calgarians deserve the opportunity to enjoy theatre in a stunning natural setting all summer long. As Calgary’s largest and longest-running theatre company, Theatre Calgary cares deeply about nurturing the up-and-coming artists who will one day grace our stage. Shakespeare by the Bow allows us to do just that by providing an innovative program for recent theatre graduates based in Alberta who are ready to embark on the first stage of their professional careers. Participants in Shakespeare by the Bow gain practical knowledge and production experience by working with an established director and a professional production team to present a classic work of Shakespeare. The program also features a team of mentors and coaches providing instruction in classical text, voice, speech, music, and movement. This year, Theatre Calgary is proud to collaborate with the National Theatre School of Canada in creating this enhanced learning experience for the participant artists in the Shakespeare by the Bow program.
With the aid of our audiences and sponsors, Theatre Calgary will continue to support our next generation of artists and ensure the future of this beloved summer tradition. You can help with your donation after the performance, or by contacting us at: donations@theatrecalgary.com “Shakespeare by the Bow offers training and practical
experience that you simply can’t get in school. It is a gift to make magic in the park every night.” – Bobbi Goddard (The Tempest, 2015)
The audience in Prince’s Island Park (photo by Meghan McMaster)
WHO’S WHO? Rosalind Our heroine & Duke Senior’s daughter Celia Rosalind’s best friend & Duke Freida’s daughter Orlando Oliver’s younger brother Oliver Orlando’s older brother Duke Freida Duke Senior’s younger sister & Celia’s mother Duke Senior Duke Freida’s older brother & Rosalind’s father Touchstone A court fool Jaques A melancholic lord Audrey A country girl Corin An elderly shepherd Adam Orlando’s faithful servant Phebe A proud shepherdess Silvius A shepherd
Le Beau A courtier Sharl A wrestler Amiens A lord and musician Lord A loyal follower of Duke Senior
THE STORY This summer, follow our brave heroine Rosalind, and her cousin Celia, as they escape the rigid rules of court life for the wilds and freedom of the Forest of Arden. Here, they will fall in and out of love, encounter one of Shakespeare’s greatest fools, and discover the value of true friendship.
A SYNOPSIS
(Spoiler alert!)
Duke Freida has usurped her brother, Duke Senior, and taken control of the dukedom. Now exiled, Duke Senior has fled to the Forest of Arden with a group of loyal lords. However, Duke Freida has allowed his daughter, Rosalind, to remain at court as she is best friends with Duke Freida’s daughter, Celia. Meanwhile their neighbours, orphaned brothers, Oliver and Orlando are at odds. Orlando is set to fight in a wrestling match ordered by Duke Freida, and while
there, Orlando and Rosalind meet and are instantly enamored. However, when Orlando overcomes the favoured winner, Sharl, the upset angers Duke Freida, and in her fury she banishes Rosalind from court life. Unwilling to abandon her friend, Celia leaves with her, and together (with the Duke’s fool, Touchstone) they escape to the Forest of Arden – Celia disguised as a poor wench named Aliena and Rosalind dressed in men’s attire as Ganymede. Once in Arden, they encounter the colourful many who call the forest their home. They find lodging with Corin, a shepherd; are befuddled by the gloomy Jaques; and are serenaded by Duke Senior and his musical lords. In the forest, Rosalind is also reunited with Orlando who has sought refuge there from his menacing brother. Yet, Rosalind is disguised as Ganymede and so her identity is hidden from Orlando. Now lovesick for Rosalind, Orlando has begun adorning trees with poetic verses in praise of her. Pleased by his adoration, but unconvinced of its sincerity, Rosalind (as Ganymede) takes Orlando on as her student after claiming that she is an expert in the ways of the heart. Meanwhile, a shepherdess named Phebe has become infatuated with Ganymede, much to the chagrin of Silvius – a shepherd who loves Phebe with all of his heart. Despite Ganymede’s refutation of her love, Phebe persists and Silvius suffers.
When Ganymede role plays with Orlando, having him address her as his love “Rosalind,” she becomes all the more enamored with him. When Orlando promises to return at two o’clock, and fails to do so, Rosalind is distraught. Once she and Celia happen upon his brother, Oliver, in the woods they learn that he is late with good reason: Orlando had stumbled upon a sleeping Oliver falling prey to a lioness and promptly fought him off. Unfortunately, Orlando didn’t escape injury and is now recovering under the watchful eye of Duke Senior. Once reunited with Orlando, Ganymede ensures that everyone will meet the next day where she promises that then and there Orlando will indeed marry his love, “Rosalind.” The next day, Rosalind finally reveals herself to have been playing Ganymede all along. This discovery ties her to Orlando; propels Phebe towards Silvius; and reunites Rosalind with her father, Duke Senior. As this play is one of Shakespeare’s comedies, it ends joyously with music and a marriage – actually multiple marriages: Rosalind with Orlando; Phebe with Silvius; Celia with Oliver; and Touchstone with a country girl named Audrey. The Dukes are also reunited in spirit when Duke Freida sends her lord, Le Beau, with word that she has bequeathed her crown to Duke Senior and has reinstated his land rights. And they all lived happily ever after – except maybe Jaques!
DESIGN NOTE This year, Shakespeare by the Bow features a beautiful brand new stage in Prince’s Island Park! Designed by Deitra Kalyn, the new structure ensures that the possibilities are endless for future of Shakespeare by the Bow productions. Artistic Associate Jenna Turk spoke with Deitra about how the new stage came to be. Read the full interview here!
Deitra Kalyn, Designer
A graduate of Alberta College of Art and Design, Deitra Kalyn has been part of the Shakespeare by the Bow team from the beginning and even got her start in theatre as a design intern at Theatre Calgary. Now, she is one of the busiest designers in town – and for good reason! Her intuitive design style can be seen in her integration of the stage with its surroundings. 3D rendering of the new stage (via Graham Kingsley)
“I looked at some aerial images of the park and noticed
a reoccurring theme of circles, so that was important for me to include. I’m a big fan of integrated art, so I wanted to use the trees and natural landscape of our playing space as integral elements to the design.” –Deitra Kalyn
“It’s designed in a modular way so that the ‘pie’ pieces
can be arranged in different configurations to create many staging possibilities…this gives future directors the choice to change and re-create a new stage out of the same pieces…think giant cedar-pie-shaped-Legos!” –Deitra Kalyn
A ‘pie piece’ from the new stage (photo by Graham Kingsley)
“This year it is an ‘O’ configuration, but next year it
could be a ‘C’ or an ‘S.’ The modular aspect also allows for the stage to tuck in and around the trees and other organic elements that the park already provides.” –Deitra Kalyn
Part of a paper mini-model of the new stage (photo by Graham Kingsley)
“Graham Kingsley (Theatre Calgary’s Assistant
Technical Director) and I really got into the nitty gritty of what the stage needed to have practically and then what design elements were possible. We went over every detail of how to create the design discovering things like: how many steps are too many for a stage, can actors sword fight on this, and what stain is the best, etc. etc.! We did many a ‘stain test’ to finally land on the beautiful colour that it is now!” –Deitra Kalyn
Stain samples (photo by Graham Kingsley)
“I think As You Like It is a great kick off to the 50th
year! The majority of this show’s setting takes place in the Forest of Arden, so what better place to set it than Prince’s Island Park! Plus, there is a scene where two characters wrestle, and this stage has a natural wrestling ‘ring’ in the centre, so that was a very happy accident!” –Deitra Kalyn
Want to learn more about Shakespeare by the Bow’s new stage? Read the full interview here!
DID YOU KNOW? 55% of the text in As You Like It is written in prose. Shakespeare cleverly subverted the standard of his time by allowing characters of higher status to speak in prose once freed of court life in the Forest of Arden – as opposed to verse which was traditionally associated with those of upper class.
As You Like It is often known as a musical comedy because it features the most songs of any of Shakespeare’s plays. Classics include: “It was a Lover and His Lass” and “Under the Greenwood Tree.” Shakespeare took his inspiration for As You Like It from two romances: The Tale of Gamelyn (circa 1350) and Thomas Lodge’s Rosalynde (1590). The Forest of Arden was an actual place in Warwickshire, England, that has unfortunately since Shakespeare’s time suffered the effects of industrialization. Shakespeare’s mother, Mary Arden, shared her maiden name with the woods and As You Like It’s Arden is said to stem from Shakespeare’s boyhood remembrances of the place. As a pastoral romance, As You Like It is a celebration of love and nature. Shakespeare was a fan of exploring pastoral elements in his works particularly memorably in As You Like It and in A Winter’s Tale. The breeches part is a popular trope in Shakespeare’s work which calls for a female character to temporarily dress themselves in the clothes of a
man. Rosalind/Ganymede is but one famous breeches part; his other notable heroines include: Viola/Cesario in Twelfth Night, Julia/Sebastian in Two Gentlemen of Verona, Imogen/Fidele in Cymbeline, Portia/Balthazar and Nerissa/Clerk – both in The Merchant of Venice.
AS YOU LIKE IT EVENTS POST-SHOW TALKBACKS After select performances, join members of the As You Like It cast for a lively post-show conversation in the park. Talkbacks will take place following the 2pm Sunday matinee performances on:
July 2nd, 9th, 16th, and 23rd August 6th, 13th, and 20th
interACTive POETRY CONTEST Grab your smartphone and tweet us a love poem for your chance to win a pair of tickets to our upcoming production of “Twelfth Night”, part of our 50th Anniversary Season! While you are waiting for the show to begin or following the performance, let your creativity guide you to write a poem, and tweet it to us @ShakesBow using #ShakesBow. Each week of the run, we will be posting a new poem starter across all of our social media. Feel free to use this prompt or write your own. All entries will be anonymously printed to a Shakespeare by the Bow scroll and posted around the city, so keep an eye out for yours! Be sure to follow us on Twitter (@ShakesBow and @TheatreCalgary) so we can contact you if you are the winner!
PRANEET AKILLA Orlando Calgary McGill University ‘15 First role: Aladdin Dream role: George Seurat in Sunday in the Park with
George
Who I’d runaway to the Forest of Arden with: Al Pacino Where I love to willingly waste my time: The library or a movie theatre My favourite line of poetry: "'Beauty is truth, truth beauty,' – that is all Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know." -John Keats, Ode on a Grecian Urn
CONRAD BELAU Duke Senior/Corin Calgary Rosebud School for the Arts ‘13 First role: Peter in Donut Man and the Resurrection Celebration. Dream role: Roland in “Constellations” by Nick Payne or Thomas in “Misterman” by Enda Walsh. Who I’d runaway to the Forest of Arden with: My partner, Alix, and all of One Direction. Where I love to willingly waste my time: Clearwater Lake, Saskatchewan or Twitter @conradbelau My favourite line of poetry: “We're going to a party. It's a birthday party. It's your birthday. Happy birthday, darling. We love you very, very, very, very, very, very, very much.” -Conor Oberst, At The Bottom of Everything
KAYLA BIGRAS Duke Freida/Audrey Strathmore Capilano University ‘13 First role: The Spider in an Elementary School production (grade 5), and a Victorian Lady, introducing a show honouring E. Pauline Johnson (grade 5) Dream role: Elphaba in Wicked Who I’d runaway to the Forest of Arden with: I'd run away with Patrick Stewart, because I could listen to him talk for ages. He's a delightful sprite! Where I love to willingly waste my time: I have never been to a happier place than the off leash dog park at River Park. No one is ever sad and...DOGS. Hundreds of them. I have stayed for hours without noticing a minute. My favourite line of poetry: "Who ever loved, that loved not at first sight?" -Christopher Marlowe/Shakespeare, Hero and Leander/As You Like It
MARY ELIZABETH CHISHOLM Jaques
Milk River University of Lethbridge ‘16 First role: First grade, I played Mrs. Claus and spent the next eight years in love with the boy who played Santa. Dream role: Cinderella! Who I’d runaway to the Forest of Arden with: My mother…or Chris Hemsworth. Where I love to willingly waste my time: I waste all my time in Sephora…and all my money… My favourite line of poetry: “There’s a polar bear, in our Frigidaire, he likes it ‘cause it’s cold in there.” -Shel Silverstein, Bear in There
CONNER CHRISTMAS Touchstone High River University of Lethbridge ‘17 First role: Roger "Putzie" in Grease Dream role: Willy Wonka, or Dewey Finn (School of Rock) Who I’d runaway to the Forest of Arden with: The Hamburglar Where I love to willingly waste my time: Anywhere, it just depends who I'm with. But, if I had to choose...Laser Quest! My favourite line of poetry: "Roses are grey Violets are a different shade of grey let's go chase cars" -A dog
JENNY DAIGLE Phebe/Sharl Carstairs Rosebud School for the Arts ‘15 First role: Weasel in Toad of Toad Hall Dream role: Swallow from Whistle Down the Wind Who I’d runaway to the Forest of Arden with: My little sister, Kiana Where I love to willingly waste my time: Lying on a blanket in the sunshine in my backyard My favourite line of poetry: “You’re off to Great Places! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So… get on your way!” -Dr. Seuss, Oh, The Places You’ll Go!
EMILY DALLAS Rosalind Calgary Mount Royal ‘13 & Pace University ‘16 First role: I was an angel in the kindergarten Christmas pageant, and I wanted to be Mary so badly! I got to wear a halo though so I made my peace with it. Dream role: I have so many, but Rosalind has always been at the top of my list! Who I’d runaway to the Forest of Arden with: My cat Simmons, no question. She’s a great little hunter. Where I love to willingly waste my time: On a sailboat in the middle of Kootenay lake. My favourite line of poetry: “See the mountains kiss high Heaven And the waves clasp one another; No sister-flower would be forgiven If it disdained its brother; And the sunlight clasps the earth And the moonbeams kiss the sea: What is all this sweet work worth If thou kiss not me?” -Percy Bysshe Shelley, Love’s Philosophy
ALEXA ELSER Amiens Lethbridge University of Lethbridge ‘16 First role: Ms. Meyermyer in Ms. Meyermyer's Shining Moment in the 8th Grade Christmas Play! Dream role: Anne in Anne of Green Gables: The Musical at the Charlottetown Festival Who I’d runaway to the Forest of Arden with: Max the Poodle, my family dog of 16 and a half years! Where I love to willingly waste my time: Any record store. Anywhere. I will find it, and stay forever! My favourite line of poetry: “And in The End, the love you take Is equal to the love you make." -John Lennon & Paul McCartney, The End
BENJAMIN JONES Silvius/Le Beau/Lord Edmonton University of Calgary ‘17 First role: Crookfinger Jake from Bertolt Brecht’s The
Threepenny Opera
Dream role: Sherlock Holmes Who I’d runaway to the Forest of Arden with: Sir Ian McKellen Where I love to willingly waste my time: The library, and the arcade. My favourite line of poetry: “Doubt thou the stars are fire, Doubt that the sun doth move, Doubt truth to be a lair, But never doubt I love.” -Shakespeare, Hamlet
JOSIE JONES Celia Calgary National Theatre School ‘17 First role: Mary in the Christmas Story Dream role: Eva Peron in Evita Who I’d runaway to the Forest of Arden with: Gordon Ramsey Where I love to willingly waste my time: Cooking in the kitchen My favourite line of poetry: “but our lives will only ever always continue to be a balancing act that has less to do with pain and more to do with beauty.” -Shane Koyczan, To This Day
ARMIN KARAME Oliver Calgary University of Calgary ‘13 First role: Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream Dream role: Aladdin Who I’d runaway to the Forest of Arden with: Khaleesi Where I love to willingly waste my time: Disney World My favourite line of poetry: “Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove. O no! it is an ever-fixed mark That looks on tempests and is never shaken” -Shakespeare, Sonnet 116
CONNOR PRITCHARD Adam Calgary University of Calgary ‘17 First role: Doctor Villainous (not to be confused with Doctor Horrible) in Be My Manly by Chelsea Woolley, in Grade 11. Dream role: Someone I create from my own imagination. Who I’d runaway to the Forest of Arden with: My own introverted self. Where I love to willingly waste my time: Disneyland! Or on the couch. My favourite line of poetry: “April is the cruellest month” -T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land
Don’t miss…
VICTORS, VILLAINS, AND VIXENS! Directed by Haysam Kadri Join us for this special presentation featuring Shakespeare’s most notorious characters starring the cast of As You Like It. Make the trip to St. Patrick’s Island and Prince’s Island this summer, and you will stumble upon the liveliest, the noblest, and the foulest characters to ever emerge from Shakespeare’s canon! St. Patrick’s Island from July 25 to 30 at 7PM. Prince’s Island on August 9, 11, 16, 18, 23, and 25 at noon.