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William Shakespeare’s Othello, the Moor of Venice

This year’s Shakespeare journey takes us to Venice and Cyprus — conveniently all located at teh beautiful Theatron, Westpark, Munich.

THE PLAY

‘O, beware my lord of jealousy./It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock/The meat it feeds on.‘ —OTHELLO, act 3, scene 3

The first recorded performance of Othello dates to 1st November 1604, shortly after James VI of Scotland had ascended the English throne and became James I.

Set in the city-state of Venice, the play takes place within the context of the city’s struggle during the 1570s with the Ottoman Empire for control of Cyprus, thereby evoking the Renaissance conflict between Christianity and Islam: the self and the other, the known and the unknown. To heighten the unknown as devious and dangerous, Shakespeare heavily drew on The Travels of John Mandeville (1350-70s), depicting various wonders such as headless men and other curiosities. However, Shakespeare’s main influence for Othello was a tale of a mixed-race marriage in Cinthio’s De Gli Hecatommithi, 1565. Shakespeare heightens jealousy as the driving force of conflict; as such, nearly all characters show signs of jealousy, most notably Othello and Iago, but also Bianca, Brabantio and Roderigo.

During Shakespeare’s time, the part of Othello was played by the company’s star actor, Richard Burbage, wearing black make-up and a wig made of black lamb’s wool. The first person of colour to portray Othello on stage was Ira Aldrige in 1826. Notable actors—black and white—followed such as Paul Robeson, Laurence Olivier, Patrick Stewart, Laurence Fishburne, Thomas Thieme and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

Entity Theatre’s production features Shreyas Bettadapura Raghavendra and Vaishak Raju (understudy) in the title role.

THE STORY

‘This is the night/That either makes me or fordoes me quite.’ — OTHELLO, act 5, scene 1

Venice.

When the Turkish fleet launches an attack on Cyprus, La Duchessa and the Senate decide to send the valiant general Othello to Cyprus’ defence. Othello, obedient to follow orders, immediately sets sail for Cyprus, on board his newlywed wife, Desdemona.

Meanwhile, Othello’s ancient, Iago, is furious about being overlooked for promotion and plots to take revenge against Othello. He manipulates Othello into believing that his wife Desdemona is unfaithful. Jealousy begins to consume Othello, turning his love for Desdemona into bitter hatred. The evidence? A strawberry-spotted handkerchief.

Directed by Conny Loder & John Yates, produced by Ken Lawler & Peter Heinz

Performance dates 7–9, 14–16 & 21–23 July 2023, 19:00

Join us this summer at the Theatron, Westpark. Admission is free, donations are welcome.

More information coming soon.

Due to the nature of outdoor theatre, we may have to cancel a performance. Please check here for a weather update by 16:00 on performance days: 0176 52441735

CAST

(in alphabetical order)

Alexandra Krienke (Understudy Iago)

Blair Gaulton (Soldier)

Cindy Bloes (Soldier, Understudy Desdemona)

David Hall (Brabantio)

Franziska Hass (Soldier)

Helen Schulz (Emilia)

Jennifer Mikulla (La Duchessa of Venice)

Kübra Kocak (Soldier)

Megan Nerlich (Understudy Emilia, Cassio)

Natalie Barnes (Lodovico)

Sara Brandt (Desdemona)

Shreyas Bettadapura Raghavendra (Othello)

Sophie Cretaine (Bianca)

Stefan Füssl (Iago)

Susan Kelly (Gratiano)

Tai Steyn (Cassio)

Tengiz Alpenidze (Roderigo)

Vaishak Raju (Montano, Understudy Othello)

CREW

Stage Management: Christine Fuss, Sarah Ryan

Costumes: Janet Giannone, Claire Middleton, Kübra Kocak, Estefanía Vidal, Lina Peller, Alexandra Krienke

Set Design: Ken Lawler, Anton Loder

Music Director: Helen Schulz

Front of House: Jeremy McCowatt

Dance Director: Sophie Cretaine

Fight Director: Sara Brandt

Photos: Tom Hafner

Marketing & Creative: Polyxeni Pelteki, Peter Heinz, Susanne Moog, Anna Rozman

Diction Coach: David Viita

Watch our trailer here:

connyloder Allgemein, Entity Theatre

William Shakespeare’s Comedy of Errors

It’s summer in Munich. And this means, it’s open air theatre season. While the team currently busily and sweatily rehearses, I simply can’t wait to present this hilarious comedy. True, opinions about this comedy are rather split. Some think the play is not one of Shakespeare’s strongest plays, since the characters are not as psychologically developed as they are in the darker, or later comedies. Others argue that the play is written much in the vein of the commedia dell’arte and hence purposefully presents types rather than characters. Whichever position one may hold, I personally think that The Comedy of Errors is one of Shakespeare’s most hilarious comedies. It’s packed with slapstick, mistaken identities (and all the comical consequences) and witchcraft. Obviously, it also requires a good shipwreck to start the show, and catchy tune to close it. As in the year’s before, we will have a chance for the audience to participate—it wouldn’t be a proper outdoor Shakespeare without some help from the audience. Yes, audience participation. Can’t wait to see this.

THE STORY

Am I in earth, in heaven, or in hell?
— Antipholus of Syracuse, The Comedy of Errors 

The Greek towns of Ephesus and Syracuse are at war with each other. One day, Syracusian merchant Ægeon is stranded in Ephesus while searching for his lost son Antipholus. Unfortunately, Ægeon is found out to be from Syracuse and consequently detained by Duke Solinus. When he informs the Duke that he lost both his wife and his identical twin sons, twenty-three years ago in a shipwreck, Duke Solinus begins to pity Ægeon and promises that he will free him if Ægeon manages to raise a ransom of 1,000 marks by 5 o’clock that same day.

At the same time, Antipholus arrives in Ephesus from Syracuse, together with his servant, Dromio. Both quickly disguise their identities to avoid being arrested – and yet, on their exploration of the town, everyone in Ephesus seems to know them by their names. A lady called Adriana, takes Antipholus into her home, even calling him husband; Angelo, a goldsmith, gifts Antipholus with a chain of pure gold; the local Courtezan greets Antipholus as a regular costumer – and Dromio, well, all of a sudden, he finds himself married to a local beauty! Antipholus and Dromio are confused and suspect that some witchcraft has possessed the Ephesians. The confusion increases when a second Antipholus and a second Dromio enter the scene – and are swiftly arrested for alleged misconduct.

Meanwhile, the clock is ticking for Ægeon – will he find a friend in Ephesus to ransom him? Perhaps someone in the audience can help?

Comedy of Errors: Dromio of Syracus and Dromio of Ephesus
Comedy of Errors: Antipholus of Syracus and Antipholus of Ephesus
 I to the world am like a drop of water that in the ocean seeks another drop
— COMEDY OF ERRORS, ACT 1 SCENE 2
Comedy of Errors: Master, shall I be porter at the gate?
Comedy of Errors, Westpark, Munich
Comedy of Errors, Westpark, München

Photos by Tom Hafner

Directed by Conny Loder & John Yates, produced by Ken Lawler & Peter Heinz

Performance dates 7—10, 14—17 & 21—24 July 2022, 19:00

Munich, Theatron, Westpark.

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Much Ado About Nothing

Behold — the trailer for Entity Theatre’s summer Shakespeare production is here: Much Ado About Nothing!

Entity Theatre is back with its summer Shakespeare!

Messina, 1901.The landed gentry around Leonato and Antonio await the end of the war between Don Pedro and his vicious brother, Don John. When Don Pedro returns victorious to Messina, he brings home with him not only the confirmed bachelor, Benedick, but also the eligible young Claudio.

Claudio and Hero, Leonato’s daughter, fall instantly in love with each other and plan an imminent wedding; meanwhile, Leonato’s niece Beatrice resumes her love-hate relationship with Benedick, trading insults.

Don Pedro is intent on tricking Benedick and Beatrice into publicly confessing their love for each other. At the same time, a bitter Don John and his followers, Borachio and Conrade, deceive Claudio by denouncing Hero as unchaste.


At the altar, Claudio refuses to marry Hero and the party disperses, many believing Hero to have died from the slanderous attack.Dogberry and his Watchmen are sent to investigate. And, since this is a comedy, the truth is brought to light and there will be a wedding after all. But who will be the bride?

William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, abr. by David Viita & Conny Loder

Directed by Conny Loder & John Yates, produced by Ken Lawler & Peter Heinz.

Performances: 7-11 & 14-18 July 2021, starting at 19:00h. Shows last approx. 100 minutes.Theatron, Westpark.

Free admission. Bring a blanket and a picnic. Further info: http://www.entitytheatre.com

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Premiere! Tomorrow!

Up close and personal with The Tempest director, Conny Loder

Photo: Tom Hafner



How does this project differ from the summer open-air productions?
In our live open-air productions, we take down the so-called fourth wall: the actors play to all sides and enter from all sides (sometimes even through the seated audience); they engage with the audience and this interaction boosts the live performance – it gives something back to the actors. Anything can happen. These moments of intimacy, collectiveness, “live”-ness fall flat during a recorded performance without any audience present.

What were the main challenges in this production?
The actors all had to settle for their own private film sets: spaces needed to be adjusted, as well as lighting, the virtual backgrounds had to function with the costumes, sound difficulties needed to be sorted – all this on top of the actors actually not seeing each other and not seeing the actual perspective of the director. Because Zoom puts participants into a specific order on the screen by when they enter the meeting, we had to think about where we wanted each character to be positioned in relation to their scene partners. So instead of an actor coming from stage right, stage left, moving up or downstage, actor X signs in first, then actor Y, and so on. This require a new blocking format, which we referred to as “digital blocking.”

What was your favourite moment of this project?
That is yet to come: the premiere. It almost feels a bit like a premiere at the Theatron since we know that our audience will join in all at the same time to follow the show, only that this time we won’t be able to share this moment in the amphitheatre, but more with a global audience. Exciting!

Photos: Tom Hafner

And here it is — The Tempest. Enjoy!

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The Tempest: an update

1 July has come and this means, only 8 more days till premiere! Team Tempest is super excited — here’s Entity Theatre’s trailer for this exciting project.

9 — 12 July 2020 streaming on Entity Theatre’s YouTube channel.

Premiere 9 July 2020, 7pm CET.

For further information, please visit: www.entitytheatre.com

#entitytheatre #digitaltempest #stayhome #bleibdaheim #dringeblieben

connyloder Allgemein

A New Adventure: Brave New World — The Tempest, going digital. A director ponders on the ups and downs of being caught in the virtual world. Part 1.

The Tempesters — cast introdcution
Our storm teaser: on board a ship, several nobles. What will happen? Only Prospero knows.

“Can you hear me now?”

“Your micropone is still on mute.”

“Crap, I think we just lost Trinculo.”

“Somehow this bottle completely disappears into the background. Got a different bottle?”

“Alonso, Sebastian is to your right and Antonia above your left shoulder.”

“No, your other right.”

“Here’s a sreenshot, everyone.”

“Why is this not working? I can hear everyone now but nobody can hear me. Now I can’t hear anyone anymore, but they can hear me… what’s going on?”

I stopped counting how often these sentences were uttered in the last four weeks. But we managed — sound, video, backgrounds, passing props from one frame to the next — all sorted. It’s been quite a journey. Now let’s start acting.

“Oh brave new world that has such people in it” or: theatres are allowed to open again, so why keeping the Tempest digital?

While the Bavarian Government opened the possibility for theatres to be back from 15 June, albeit with mighty restrictions, team Tempest decided to remain digital. I believe that outdoor theatre carries a specific mission. This mission is based on the idea to be open for all and everyone to come by, drop in, to join us without restrictions, bring along their family and friends and seat themselves in their convenient way, as outdoor theatre does. Currently it is impossible to accommodate for this. So, let’s stay digital. Let’s stay safe. Let’s entertain.

Why choose The Tempest? The Tempest is believed to be one of Shakespeare’s last plays, if not the last. As such it lends itself to be read as Shakespeare’s farewell from the professional theatre business, with Shakespeare rendering his farewell with Prospero’s epilogue. Maybe one can also read it as a farewell to lockdown? What will the world be like when we all meet again?

The play, specifically written to be performed indoors with its first recorded performance dating to 1611 at the court of James I, rings in a new staging practise. Similarly, for this digital project, directors and stage managment had to come up with some unique ideas to adapt to virtual staging. This also meant that actors had to accommodate for the missing scenery and set by setting up a home film-studio in their living rooms or bedrooms. Some were even banned to the cellar by their families for rehearsals. It’s a hard life in theatre business… Isolation fun?

In Renaissance time, the shift indoors also brought along opportunities. The different acoustics allowed more subtle and quiet music to be used; a candlelit theatre created the famous fourth wall and as such drew the audience into an illusion, created on stage. Think about all the magic tricks that could now be performed. And we also have some that we can’t wait to show you.

© Pete Le May / The Globe Theatre
https://www.shakespearesglobe.com/whats-on/sam-wanamaker-playhouse-tour-2019/#photos-videos

Costumes became more precious as they no longer were exposed to the wind and the rain… We know that Inigo Jones (1573-1652), architect and contemporary of Shaksepeare, designed the costumes for the play’s sophisticated and stilised Wedding Masque.

Drawing of a Lady Masquer; Also a fiery spirit from Thomas Campion’s The Lord’s Masque performed alongside The Tempest in 1613; Devonshire Collection, Chatsworth
https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/inigo-jones-designs-for-masque-costumes

Our Wedding Masque looks superb. Beautiful music and singing, and wonderful costumes. But beware when those spirits turn into harpies…

So here we are. Are we “such stuff as dreams are made on?” Possibly. Stranded in the virtual world, we’re trying to connect to the real world. We’ll zoom ourselves to you. The first four weeks have been quite an interesting journey.

Tempest Team, at their first zoom rehearsal

How interesting? Stay tuned. I’ll talk some more about it next time. There are some entertaining facts coming up to be shared with you all.

The Tempest — a digital project will be streamed on Entity Theatre’s YouTube channel in July. More info on http://www.entitytheatre.com.

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Romeo & Juliet — Farewell & Thank You!

Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-cross’d lovers take their life;
Whose misadventured piteous overthrows
Do with their death bury their parents’ strife.
The fearful passage of their death-mark’d love,
And the continuance of their parents’ rage,
Which, but their children’s end, nought could remove,
Is now the two hours’ traffic of our stage;
The which if you with patient ears attend,
What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.

Photos: Tom Hafner

Photos: Dora Lutz

A glooming peace this morning with it brings.
The sun, for sorrow, will not show his head.
Go hence, to have more talk of these sad things.
Some shall be pardoned, and some punishèd.
For never was a story of more woe
Than this of Juliet and her Romeo.

And farewell friends, thus R&J ends…

Thank you, everyone, for making this happen — and a big THANK YOU to our great audience!

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Romeo & Juliet — Impressions from first week performances

Pre-show backstage, discipline — warmup — getting into character and last instructions by directors and stage-management. Of course, everyone’s primary question is — how many members are in the audience tonight?

Photos: Dora Lutz

And then the magic moment happens, three drum beats announce the beginning of the play: the moment when audience and actors become accomplices. This is the beauty of outdoor theatre, where there is no fourth wall – no place to hide, all in the open.

Photos: Dora Lutz

And yet, despite the vastness of the venue, there are intimate moments, which create an experience for both, actors and audience, in a unique emotional way.

Photos: Tom Hafner

And who says that Shakespeare is for adults only?

Photos: Dora Lutz

And then there is, of course, the relief afterwards — after a 95-minute-iambic-pentameter marathon of emotional rollercoaster, physical workout and worrying looks up to the sky hoping for the weather gods to spare us the rain tonight, after all this and much more — nothing says “Yes, we did it!” better than a cold drink. Cheers.

Photos: Dora Lutz

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Romeo & Juliet — Performance Week 1

So it finally happened, performance week 1. We are very proud to be listed as a Kulturtipp by the Süddeutsche Zeitung and Münchner Wochenanzeiger, as well as one of the ten things to do in Germany this July by The Local. So what are your excuses not see us?

What a week! Outdoor theatre holds a lot of surprises, from dogs and small children running onto the stage, to (un)expected rain showers — and sometimes to having an opening night in a hut.

Since the weather gods were not in our favour for our premiere, but we still didn’t want to disappoint our audience, we spontaneously turned opening night into a command performance for 26 audience members, when we moved it into our backstage/storage hut. We set up the Capulet and Montague towers, the tomb, altar and even managed to bring Juliet’s bedroom alive — and all this without ever rehearsing an indoor version. That’s great team work! Below you will find a few impressions from that night.

Photos: Dora Lutz

If you have missed it, here is a review from audience member, Michael:

mit noch feuchten füßen, und augen, schreibe ich diese zeilen. auch wenn am ende noch der klang der gläser stand, heute bevorzuge ich das echo des gesehenen und gehörten. das besondere fand seinen anfang schon im außen: regen. auch wenn ich meine finger 6 tage lang kreuzte, krämpfe mit eingeschlossen, der himmel tut, was er will und so wählte er den ort für dieses schauspiel. und so fanden wir uns im inneren eines art zeltes, gerade so, als säße man selbst in dem turm von julia, so als ringe man selbst mit all den gefühlen die sich in den wunderbar besetzten rollen nach außen stülpten. es war nah. und gibt es einen besseren ort für all das ringen um die liebe, als die enge, die einem herzen gleicht? wo capulets und montagues ins herz hinein- und hinausströmen, wunden hinterlassen und es beschwingen, manchmal im lachen, manchmal im weinen und der glaube hilflos dazwischen steht? und im zentrum weilt ein bett und eine gruft…beides todesnahe orte…und zugleich frieden-bringende. 
so sind diese worte noch trunken von dem erlebten und die geschichte die schon hundertmale erzählt und durchlebt wurde, erlebte ich heute wie das premierenspiel, so frisch, als wäre shakespeares feder noch feucht. jede rolle fand ihren passenden lebenshauch, wie wunderbar sie nachhallen: romeo und julia, vorallem aber meructio, friar laurence, county paris und julias amme. wähle ich morgen die montagues? auf welche seite werde ich mich schlagen? auf die seite der liebenden! habt dank….und alles endet mit einem tanz…

And although the whole week was a mixture of sun and (sadly, quite a lot of) rain, we managed to perform in the open — our actual venue.

Photos: Dora Lutz

The weather gods seem to be more in our favour next week, so if you haven’t seen R&J yet, you still have a chance!

Tonight, 14 July and 18-21 July, 7pm, Theatron, Westpark