Lear

LEAR
Directed and adapted by Judith Fisher Evening performances: 8:00 pm - Oct 31 to Nov 3 and Nov 6 - 10, 2007 Matinees: 2:00 pm - Sat Nov 3, Sun Nov 4 and Sat Nov 10, 2007 Ticket prices - $8 students/seniors, general admission $12 Tickets can be purchased at the Drama office, Mon - Fri - 9:00 am - 3:45 pm or at Destinations, Mon - Fri, 9:00 - 5:00 pm A Pre-show Chat, Bits and Bobs, will be given by Judith Fisher at 7:30 in the Rotunda on Thursday, Nov 1 and Friday, Nov 2, and at 1:30 pm on Saturday, Nov 3. There will be a Post-show Chat after the Saturday, Nov 10 matinee performance.
CAST Lear .................................................................................................... Kat Sandler Cordelia ............................................................................................. Lindsay Hunter Goneril ............................................................................................... Sacha Brown Regan ................................................................................................. Hallae Khosravi Albany ........................................................................................ ...... Brian Collins Kent ................................................................................................... Kristin Rodgerson Cornwall ............................................................................................ Ryan LaPlante Gloucester ......................................................................................... Tom McGee Edmund .............................................................................................. Danny Mahoney Edgar .................................................................................................. Matt Donovan Oswald ........................................................................................ ...... Jonathan Khaiat Fool .................................................................................................... Wendy Fox Knight ................................................................................................ Ashley Peoples France, Cornwall Servant 1, English Soldier 2 .................................. Mike Sheppard Burgundy, Cornwall Servant 5, French Solider 2, Herald .................. Will Dick Curan, Lear Attendant 1, French Soldier 1 ....................................... Kayla Ramlochand Doctor, Lear Attendant 3, Cornwall Servant 2 ................................. Megan Miles English Soldier 1, Cornwall Servant 3 ............................................... Beth Turcott Captain, Lear Attendant 2, Cornwall Servant 4 ............................... Mason Mummery		Costume designs by Robin Fisher
CREW Assistant Director ....................................... Cory Cherdarchuck Costume Designer ........................................ Robin Fisher Lighting Designer ........................................ Conor Moore Music and original composition ................ zircocircus.com Set Designer .................................................. Virginia Start Fight Director ................................................ Dorian Foley Stage Manager ............................................. Megan McCarthy ASM ............................................................... Katherine Bass, Brooke MacKenzie Production Manager .................................... Justine Labute Head of Costume .......................................... Bryony Ritchie Costume Crew ............................................... Diana Biacora, Caelan Bronskill, Cory Chedarchuk, Crystal Cybulski, Anna Diemert, Cat Haywood, Aynne Johnson, Kailey Maynard, Morgan Merchand, Adetutu Oluwole-Rotimi, Emily Richardson, Michelle Shoemaker, and various others doing make-up, wardrobe maintenance and dressing Sewers ............................................................. Carmen Abrajian, Helen Robinson, Amanda Rogerson, Cassandra Sclauzero, Marianna Tomlinson, Lenore White Head Electrician .............................................. Anna Diemert Lighting Crew .................................................. Alexander Kerr, Alexander Powell, Jacquiline Lurrics, Sarah Hanks, Tyler Dowey Head Carpenter and Sound Technician ........ Mark Hunt Sound Operators .............................................. Mitchell Crouse, Erik Smith Carpentry Crew ................................................ Nathaniel Fried, Demetri Koutsaris Paint Crew ......................................................... Rowena Brook, Samantha Heather Props .................................................................. Justine Labute, Virginia Start Prompters .......................................................... Ashley Eagan, Ruth Goodwin Poster Design ................................................... Brian Frommer Marketing .......................................................... Lee Atkinson, Marilyn Croteau, Carol Anne Hanna, Ashley Westlake Front of House ................................................. Temi Anderson-Lasade, Adetutu Oluwole-Rotimi, Katie Olsen, Emily Whalen Coordinators ................................................... Adair Redish, Anne Redish
Director's Notes William Shakespeare's King Lear is perhaps one of the most well-known of his plays; it certainly has a long stage history and has starred many of the greatest actors of all time since its first production in December 1606: Richard Burbage, David Garrick, Edmund Kean, Donald Wolfit, Laurence Olivier, Christopher Plummer, and more recently, Brian Bedford, Ian McKellan, and Kevin Kline, to name just a few. It might seem audacious of me, therefore, not only to have adapted the play, but to produce it with a young cast. What most fascinates me about the play is the conflict between age and youth, particularly now at a time when baby boomers are reaching retirement age and the balance in populations gradually tilts from the younger to the elder end of the scale. Young people are faced with the increasing prospect of having to care for old people as social and medical services groan under the pressure. The recent legislation against mandatory retirement, while good for the elder, also casts a shadow over the younger, as the jobs many have been working towards will not be available for several more years. Shakespeare's play seems timely as well as timeless in its focus on the issues of age and the question of inheritance. I have shortened the play to concentrate its focus on these issues and, in order for everyone to be able to relate to the play in some personal way, I have turned the famous aging king into a female character. Lear is about the conflict between parents, not just fathers, and their children? Lear and her three daughters, Gloucester and his two sons - and between truth and hypocrisy. I am delighted that, with the assistance of an award from the Queen's Fund for the Support of Artistic Production, we have been able to acquire the services of Dora-Award-winning professional designer Robin Fisher, who has designed the costumes for the production. In the creation of the play's world, we have drawn inspiration from occidental and oriental traditions as well as contemporary conventions and fashions. The monochromatic costumes are like Shakespeare's play-multi-textured and layered; the set is also multi-levelled, suggestive of the constant changes in the hierarchy of the play's society. It is a world that is, ultimately, in a state of distress. I am extremely grateful for the hard work and commitment of everyone involved in the production, and I particularly want to thank my stage-management team and those who have worked so tirelessly on costumes. I and my wonderful cast of players hope that you will enjoy the time you spend with us today, on the last stages of what has been an incredible journey.

More questions? Email: drama@queensu.ca, Queen's Drama Department or call 613 533 2104

LEAR