Michigan Shakespeare Festival

Individual tickets for 2011 season available



JACKSON – Individual tickets for the 2011 Michigan Shakespeare Festival are now on sale, featuring productions of two Shakespeare classics Much Ado About Nothing and The Winter’s Tale as well as Tartuffe by Moliere.

 “We have listened to our supporters and for 2011 offer the perfect triple play(s): A well known, but not over-performed Much Ado About Nothing, a lesser performed, but classic Shakespeare romance The Winter's Tale, and finally a play we have all seen in some way in real life, Tartuffe,” MSF Board Chairman John Cross said. “It will be interesting indeed to see which of the three draws the largest audiences.”

In addition to individual tickets (priced at $36 and $30), subscriptions are available for the 17th season, scheduled for July 14 through August 7 in the Baughman Theatre at the Jackson Community College Potter Center. Season subscriptions start at $80 for mezzanine level seating and include one ticket to each of the three shows:
·    Much Ado About Nothing -- Shakespeare’s quintessential romantic-comedy of intrigue, antipathy, and attraction.
·    The Winter’s Tale -- Shakespeare’s dreamy romance of jealousy, loss, and the magical power of love.
·    Tartuffe -- Jean-Baptiste Poquelin Moliere’s sparkling farce of hypocrisy, fraud, virtue, and vice.
 
“I’m a sucker for Shakespeare’s light comedies,” said MSF Artistic Director Janice L. Blixt, who is leading the Festival for the second season. “I knew I wanted to produce one of these feel-good shows, and the choice of Much Ado About Nothing was immediately obvious. One of Shakespeare’s very best, the play that coined the phrase ‘merry war’ to describe Beatrice and Benedick’s love-hate relationship is easily recognizable as the precursor to the great dueling lovers in movies like It Happened One Night, The Philadelphia Story, Adam’s Rib, and more recently When Harry Met Sally and Two Week’s Notice.

“Two smart, attractive, funny people, who are destined to be together, yet cannot stand one another at the play’s start, what could be better?”

The 2011 subscription marks the first time the Festival has sold individual season passes and offers patrons more than 10 percent off the regular admission price. Additionally, season subscriptions purchased before April 23 will also include free admission to a limited late-night production of Shakespeare Unplugged, an evening of songs and scenes, monologues and stories by the MSF cast being presented at The Bon Ton Room, 3017 Wildwood Ave., Jackson.

“Unplugged is just another way for the Festival to make Shakespeare come alive,” MSF Chief Operating Officer Richard Griffis said. “The informal setting of The Bon Ton Room makes for a great way for our cast and audience to celebrate a fun, ‘afterparty’ of sorts and gives us an opportunity to expand the Festival out into the community more.”

In 2011, the Festival schedule is being expanded to include two Wednesday afternoon matinee performances.

“Previous audience surveys have shown an interest in having a mid-week matinee and we are happy to be able to offer that option this year,” Griffis said. “Those shows, combined with the late night Unplugged shows, will allow us to share the gift of Shakespeare to a broader range of audiences by creating a flexible schedule that allows people to attend at a time that is convenient to them.”
 
Founded in 1995, the Michigan Shakespeare Festival has entertained nearly 45,000 people of all ages during its traditional summer season. It has grown from a humble, single-week attraction with local amateur performers to a four-week, 23-show event featuring regional professional actors, playing to rave reviews each summer.

Tickets and more information are available at www.MichiganShakespeareFestival.com.

2011 MICHIGAN SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL SCHEDULE
Performances in Baughman Theatre at Jackson Community College Potter Center
Thursday, July 14    7:30 p.m.    Much Ado About Nothing (preview)
Friday, July 15    7:30 p.m.    Much Ado About Nothing (preview)
Saturday, July 16    2:00 p.m.    Tartuffe (preview)
Saturday, July 16    7:30 p.m.    Much Ado About Nothing (opening night)
Sunday, July 17    2:00 p.m.    Tartuffe (preview)
Thursday, July 21    2:00 p.m.    The Winter’s Tale (preview)
Thursday, July 21    7:30 p.m.    The Winter’s Tale (preview)
Friday, July 22    7:30 p.m.    Tartuffe (opening night)
Saturday, July 23    2:00 p.m.    Much Ado About Nothing
Saturday, July 23    7:30 p.m.    The Winter’s Tale (opening night)
Sunday, July 24    2:00 p.m.    Tartuffe
Wednesday, July 27    2:00 p.m.    The Winter’s Tale
Thursday, July 28    7:30 p.m.    Tartuffe
Friday, July 29    7:30 p.m.    The Winter’s Tale
Saturday, July 30    2:00 p.m.    Tartuffe
Saturday, July 30    7:30 p.m.    Much Ado About Nothing
Sunday, July 31    2:00 p.m.    Much Ado About Nothing
Wednesday, August 3    2:00 p.m.    Much Ado About Nothing
Thursday, August 4    7:30 p.m.    The Winter’s Tale
Friday, August 5    7:30 p.m.    Much Ado About Nothing
Saturday, August 6    2:00 p.m.    The Winter’s Tale
Saturday, August 6    7:30 p.m.    Tartuffe
Sunday, August 7    2:00 p.m.    The Winter’s Tale
Performances at The Bon Ton Room, 3017 Wildwood Ave., Jackson
Friday, July 22    11:00 p.m.    Shakespeare Unplugged
Wednesday, July 27    8:00 p.m.    Shakespeare Unplugged
Saturday, July 30    11:00 p.m.    Shakespeare Unplugged
Friday, August 5    11:00 p.m.    Shakespeare Unplugged
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