Stratford Festival happens in Visitior Country April 17 - November 17 Stratford, Startford Festival - 2004 Season Contact Tourism Stratford at: (519) 271-5140 or 1-800-561-SWAN (7926). Festival Theatre: A Midsummer Night's Dream: A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare. Directed by Leon Rubin and designed by John Pennoyer. In this production of one of Shakespeare's most popular comedies, the setting is transported to a contemporary rain forest ruled by Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons. The courtiers and young lovers, modern, upper-class urbanites, are drawn into mystery and enchantment when they flee the city to seek love in the wild forestland.
Guys and Dolls: Guys and Dolls, music and lyrics by Frank Loesser; book by Abe Burrows and Jo Swerling. Directed by Kelly Robinson and designed by Debra Hanson. Based on Damon Runyon's short story The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown, this delightful musical dances through the hard-shelled but soft-centred world peopled by the guys and dolls of Runyon's Broadway, where God and gambling mix it up with love and the law. Featured songs include "Luck Be a Lady," "A Bushel and a Peck," "Sit Down, You're Rocking the Boat," "If I Were a Bell" and "Guys and Dolls."
Macbeth: Macbeth by William Shakespeare. Directed by John Wood and designed by John Ferguson. In 11th-century Scotland, the warrior Macbeth returns from battle after defeating an invading army and is accosted by three witches, who predict he will one day become King. Macbeth decides to take destiny into his own hands, urged on by his ambitious wife. However, seized power brings him little peace and even a murderous reign of terror cannot eliminate all threats against him.
King Henry VIII (All Is True): King Henry VIII (All Is True) by William Shakespeare. Directed by Artistic Director Richard Monette and designed by Ann Curtis. In one of Shakespeare's last plays, King Henry VIII, who later becomes the father of Queen Elizabeth I, begins the play as an easily influenced puppet manipulated by evil men but, as he matures and faces more challenges, he becomes a wise and mature ruler, capable of establishing the Tudor dynasty that still held the throne in Shakespeare's day.
Avon Theatre:
The Count of Monte Cristo: The Count of Monte Cristo by Marshall Borden, based on the novel by Alexandre Dumas. Directed by Associate Director Andrey Tarasiuk with set design by Guido Tondino. This swashbuckling romance chronicles the tale of Edmond Dantes, who is about to begin a blissful existence as captain of his vessel and husband to his sweetheart when a false political charge condemns him to life imprisonment. After a dramatic escape many years later, everything from a secret treasure to a series of masterful disguises helps Dantes wreak revenge on all who had wronged him.
Anything Goes: Anything Goes, music and lyrics by Cole Porter; original book by Guy Bolton, Russel Crouse, Howard Lindsay and P.G. Wodehouse; new book by Timothy Crouse and John Weidman. Directed by Anne Allan and designed by Patrick Clark. This Cole Porter musical, filled with unforgettable melodies and sophisticated lyrics, follows the shipboard adventures of nightclub singer Reno Sweeney, her friend Billy Crocker and Moonface Martin, currently Public Enemy No. 13. Featured songs include "Anything Goes," "You're the Top," "I Get a Kick Out of You" and "Blow, Gabriel Blow."
Noises Off: Noises Off by Michael Frayn. Directed by Brian Bedford. The classic farce by the Tony Award-winning author of Copenhagen is not one play but two: simultaneously a traditional sex farce, Nothing On, and the backstage "drama" that develops during Nothing On's final rehearsal and tour.
Tom Patterson Theatre:
Timon of Athens by William Shakespeare. Directed by Stephen Ouimette. Timon, a benevolent nobleman of Athens, is abandoned by false friends when he is bankrupted by his extravagant hospitality and gift-giving. A victim of his own excesses, both of goodness and of hatred, the once-sociable Timon ends his days in rage and despair, isolated and miserable in the wilderness.
Cymbeline by William Shakespeare. Directed by David Latham. One of Shakespeare's later romance plays, Cymbeline tells three connected stories: the resistance of a British king to Roman rule; the story of two lovers, Imogen and Posthumus, driven apart by the lies of the cunning villain Iachimo; and the saga of two young princes kidnapped from the royal household and reared in the wild. All three stories twist and turn until the final scene of remarkable, magical reconciliation
King John by William Shakespeare. Directed by Executive Director Antoni Cimolino. In the court of King John, courtiers and families vie for the upper hand as the King finds his hold on the throne threatened by a rival claimant, his nephew, Arthur of Bretagne. Sexual politics and constant treachery are the only constants in a world where, as King John discovers, power can be held only through deviousness, deal-making and compromise.
Studio Theatre:
The Triumph of Love: The Triumph of Love by Pierre Carlet de Chamblain de Marivaux. Directed by Artistic Director Richard Monette. First presented in 1732, this timeless comedy, written in French and drawing on Italian Commedia dell'Arte traditions, follows the story of Princess Leonide, who uses disguise and guile to win the heart of her true love: a young man who is the legitimate prince of the realm and who believes the Princess to be his enemy for life.
The Swanne: Queen Victoria (The Seduction of Nemesis): The Swanne: Queen Victoria (The Seduction of Nemesis) by Peter Hinton. Directed by Peter Hinton. The third and final instalment in this epic "speculation on history," supported by the Festival's new play development programme, delves further into the mystery of a lost heir to the British crown: an illegitimately conceived black child. As she prepares for her coronation, the young Queen Victoria continues her fictional exploration of the intrigues and accidents of fate that have brought her to the throne.
The Elephant Song/The Human Voice: The Elephant Song by Nicolas Billon. Directed by Jim Warren. This new Canadian one-act play, workshopped at the Stratford Festival through the new play development programme, makes its world debut in the 2004 season. In the play, an eminent psychiatrist has vanished from his office. The last person to see him is a troubled patient who speaks of elephants and opera - with the occasional hint of murder and foul play. Presented as a double bill with The Human Voice. The Human Voice by Jean Cocteau, in a new translation by John Murrell. Directed by Jim Warren. In this one-act tour de force by on of Frances's most celebrated filmmakers, a woman on the edge of an emotional breakdown holds an anguished telephone conversation with the lover who has recently left her. Presented as a double bill with The Elephant Song.