by Gail M. Burns
Berkshire summers zoom by, crammed with more theatre than any one human can see, but even here at Berkshire on Stage (where theatre should be our middle name) we noticed the absence of Pittsfield Shakespeare in the Park. So we were thrilled to hear that the group is alive and well after the departure of Founding Artistic Director Enrico Spada, and presenting a free hour of Shakespeare’s love scenes and love songs at Zion Lutheran Church.
Four actors – Christopher Brophy, Julie Castanga, Joslyn Eaddy-Meléndez, and Rose Williams – went in search of a director and found Martin J. Asprey, alumnus of many productions at Shakespeare & Company and elsewhere in the Berkshires, with a newly minted MFA in directing from Texas State, ready to not only take the directing reins but also to craft this production.
“This group wanted to keep Pittsfield Shakespeare in the Park going, and their first thought was to stage As You Like It, but it got too late in the summer to mount a big production, so we went with seven love scenes from Shakespeare that I’ve titled The Good, The Bad and The Ugly,” Asprey explained.
The program starts off with the wrestling scene from As You Like it, which deals with love at first sight between Rosalind and Orlando., followed by a scene between that quarrelsome couple Beatrice and Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing.
The tone turns from the good and the bad to the decidedly ugly as scenes between Hamlet and Ophelia and Macbeth and his Lady play out, followed by a scene of love spurned from As You Like It and a contentious scene from The Taming of the Shrew. But pure love rules the day with the concluding scene from Romeo and Juliet.
“Shakespeare writes from all these points of view, so there’s something everyone can relate to,” Asprey explained.
Interspersed with the scenes are new, original settings of the song lyrics Shakespeare embedded in his plays, by Kip Beacco and Asprey.
“Kip is an amazing guitarist,” Asprey said of his friend and composing partner. A graphic designer by day, Beacco is the guitarist for the jazz band The Lucky 5.
Victoria “Tori” Rhoades Ph.D,. took time away from her work in both the Training and Education Divisions at Shakespeare & Company to do the choreography and movement for the show. And Asprey’s mother, Tina Packer, was kind enough to come in and do some text work with the actors.
The company is excited to welcome patrons to Zion Lutheran Church (74 First Street in Pittsfield) – mere feet from where they have erected their outdoor stage on the Common in previous years – on Saturday, September 30 at 4 & 7 pm, and on Sunday, October 1 at 2 pm. Admission is free. For more information call 413-551-9585.
