 | Jeffrey Carlson makes his Yale Rep debut portraying Richard II. His credits include playing Shakespeare's Hamlet and Romeo, as well as a transgender character in a daytime television series. |
The Yale Rep will stage “Richard II,” a Shakespearean classic
about the nature of leadership and the use and abuse of power, as its first
production of the 2007-2008 season.
T H I S
Yale Rep opens its new season
with Shakespeare classic
Two Obie Award-winning veterans of the American theater — Alvin Epstein,
a founding member of the Yale Rep, and George Bartenieff, co-founder of New
York’s Theater for the New City — will portray uncles of King Richard
in the production, which opens on Thursday, Sept. 27. Obie Award-winning director
Evan Yionoulis, an associate adjunct professor at the School of Drama and resident
director of the Rep, is the show’s director.
“Richard II” recounts the final two years of the Plantagenet king
of England whose rein ended in 1399, and the beginning of the reign of Henry
IV (1399-1413). The play chronicles the autocratic Richard’s eventual fall
from power following a series of actions that destroy his family relationships
and the loyalty of his supporters. Realizing that he essentially has been deposed,
Richard abdicates and is then imprisoned. Stripped of all that defined him as
king, he recovers the deepest measure of his humanity before losing his life.
Director Yionoulis’ recent New York credits include Howard Brenton’s “Sore
Throats” at Theatre for a New Audience, Daisy Foote’s “Bhutan” at
the Cherry Lane Theatre and the upcoming “Ohio State Murders,” also
at Theatre for a New Audience. Her Yale Rep productions include “Black
Snow,” “The People Next Door,” “The King Stag,” “Heaven” and “Galileo.” She
won an Obie Award for her direction of Richard Greenberg’s “Three
Days of Rain” at Manhattan Theatre Club.
Epstein will portray the Duke of Lancaster (also known as John of Gaunt). He
has played more than 150 roles, approximately one-third of them at the American
Repertory Theatre, which he helped found. He made his Broadway debut performing
with Marcel Marceau. Subsequent Broadway credits include the American premiere
of “Waiting for Godot” as well as “King Lear” and “The
Threepenny Opera.” In 2007, he received an Obie Award for lifetime achievement.
Bartenieff, who will play the Duke of York, made his Broadway debut at age
14 in “The Whole World Over.” He recently appeared in The Public
Theater’s “Stuff Happens” and its Shakespeare in the Park
staging of “Romeo and Juliet.” In 2001, he received an Obie Award
for his solo performance as Victor Klemperer in “I Will Bear Witness.” He
co-founded New York’s Theater for the New City in 1971 and served as
its executive director until 1992.
Jeffrey Carlson will make his Yale Rep debut in the title role of “Richard
II.” His Broadway credits include “Taboo,” “Tartuffe” and “The
Goat, or Who Is Sylvia?” Regionally, he has appeared at Washington, D.C.’s
Shakespeare Theatre Company playing the title roles in “Hamlet” and “Lorenzaccio”;
in the McCarter Theatre’s “Romeo and Juliet” as Romeo; and
in the Chicago Shakespeare Theatre’s “Henry IV, parts 1 and 2” as
Prince Hal. Last season he portrayed Zoë in “All My Children,” the
first male-to-female transgender character featured in a daytime television
series.
Billy Eugene Jones returns to the Yale Rep in the role of Henry Bolingbroke.
He has appeared in the Rep’s “Breath, Boom” and played the
title role in “Othello” at the California Shakespeare Theatre.
His Broadway credits include “Radio Golf,” “Gem of the Ocean” and
the recent revival of “A Raisin in the Sun.”
Also in the cast are Brian Burns, Caitlin Clouthier, Jonathan Fried, Carter
Gill, Kristjiana Gong, Christopher Grant, Brent Langdon, Michael Leibenluft,
Christopher McFarland, Christopher McHale, Dan Moran, Edward O’Blenis,
Josh Odsess-Rubin, Joseph Parks, Allen E. Reed, Judith Roberts and Joe Tapper.
Original music for the production is composed by Mike Yiounoulis. Also on the
artistic team are Brenda Davis (scenic design), Melissa E. Trn (costume design),
Ji-Youn Chang (lighting design) and Sarah Pickett (sound design).
“Richard II” runs through Oct. 13. Previews are Sept. 21-Sept. 26.
All performances are at 8 p.m. Following the week of previews, performances are
at 8 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, with additional 2 p.m. performances on three Saturdays — Sept. 29, Oct. 6 (an open-captioned
performance) and Oct. 13 (an audio-described performance) — and on Wednesday,
Oct. 3 (a senior matinee). Members of the audience can meet the cast and crew
in “Talk Back” sessions following the matinee performance on Sept.
29 and the evening performances on Tuesday, Oct. 2, and Thursday, Oct. 4.
The Yale Rep’s new season will continue with Alice Childresses’ “Trouble
in Mind” (Oct. 26-Nov. 17); Molière’s “Tartuffe, or
the Imposter” (Nov. 26-Dec. 22); the world premiere of David Adjmi’s “The
Evildoers” (Jan. 18-Feb. 9); Oscar Wilde’s “A Woman of No
Importance” (March 21-April 12); and a sixth play to be announced (April
25-May 17).
Single tickets range from $35 to $58 and are on sale now. Season subscriptions
are also available. For tickets, visit www.yalerep.org, call (203) 432-1234 or visit the box office at the theater, which is located
at 1120 Chapel St. 
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