Shakespeare Comes to Campus in November

Shakespeare’s Tempest Comes to Campus

The Actors from the London Stage will come to UNC Charlotte for a week-long residency that includes three public performances of Shakespeare’s The Tempest, November 3-5. Co-sponsored by the Shakespeare in Action Center and the Department of Theatre, the five-member troupe will participate in a variety of classes and workshops on campus, leading discussions and coaching students in Shakespeare performance.

Founded 35 years ago, Actors from the London Stage is headquartered at University of Notre Dame. British actor Sir Patrick Stewart developed the troupe’s touring concept, which takes the actors to colleges and universities across the United States for a series of residencies that combine public performances and educational outreach. The troupe will arrive at UNC Charlotte on October 31. The tour ends at the Cockpit Theatre in London.

The five actors in the current tour come from prominent British schools and stages, including the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and the Shakespeare Globe Theatre. They will play all the roles of The Tempest (there are 21 characters) in an innovative and minimalist production.
The presentation of Actors from the London Stage and The Tempest is part of the Shakespeare in Action “36 in 6” project. Between 2010 and 2016, the university’s Shakespeare in Action Center will mount six events per year, each devoted to one of Shakespeare’s plays, so that by the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, it will have staged—in some form—all 36 plays in the canon. The events will include major productions, staged readings, and the performance of selected scenes, alongside public lectures, colloquia, and guest appearances.

Tickets for The Tempest are $14, $9 for seniors and UNC Charlotte faculty and staff, and $6 for all students. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.performances.uncc.edu or call 704-687-1849.

Housed both in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the College of Arts + Architecture but working across colleges and disciplines, the Shakespeare in Action Center serves to advance and coordinate various activities and initiatives related to the production and exploration of Shakespeare’s work and that of his contemporaries. Its goal is to advance the study and enjoyment of Renaissance/Early Modern drama and culture, particularly through performance, on campus and in the broader Charlotte community.