Tom McCamus as King John, Seana McKenna as Constance.
Noah Jalava as Arthur, Seana McKenna as Constance. Photo:
Don Dixon. Digital Artist: Krista Dodson Photo: David Hou
March 12, 2015… When the rule of a hedonistic and mercurial king is questioned, rebellion, assassination and excommunication ensue, culminating in a chilling attempt to commit an atrocity against a child, whose mother’s anguished grief cannot atone for her blinkered ambitions for her son.
Don’t miss this rare opportunity to see Shakespeare’s King John, in a magnificent production by the renowned Stratford Festival, North America’s leading classical theatre company, whose HD production of King Lear, directed by Artistic Director Antoni Cimolino and starring Colm Feore, opened to rave reviews last month. With commanding performances by Tom McCamus, Seana McKenna, Graham Abbey and Patricia Collins, King John was directed by Tim Carroll, whose recent Shakespeare productions of Richard III and Twelfth Night were the toast of Broadway.
Filmed in spectacular HD under the direction of Barry Avrich, King John will be in cinemas across Canada on Thursday, April 9, and throughout the U.S. on Wednesday, April 8. The Canadian encore screening is on April 12. U.S. encore dates vary. For more information visit www.stratfordfestival.ca/HD
“Deliciously contemporary.” J. Kelly Nestruck, The Globe and Mail
“Tom McCamus plays King John, rivetingly, as a neurotic narcissist. It’s a daring performance.” Robert Cushman,National Post
“This sublime King John has a remarkable intimacy, crystallized by the formidable actor Graham Abbey, whose relationship with the audience becomes one of the closest I've ever seen in a Shakespearean drama.” Chris Jones,Chicago Tribune
“The action is riveting, the political machinations delicious and all the performers,
royal or otherwise, take great delight in the parts they’re playing.” Richard Ouzounian, Toronto Star
King John is produced by Melbar Entertainment Group in association with the Stratford Festival, Artistic Director Antoni Cimolino, and Executive Producers Barry Avrich, Anita Gaffney and Michael Levine.
King John was captured live on stage with a full audience at the Stratford Festival’s Tom Patterson Theatre on September 26, 2014, using 10 high definition cameras and 128 tracks of sound to create a lush, surround-sound experience. Additional pick-up shots of key performance elements were captured on stage immediately following the performance.
This production is part of a massive initiative by the Stratford Festival, North America’s leading classical theatre company, to capture all of Shakespeare’s plays over the next 10 years. The series began with the Stratford Festival’s critically acclaimed production of King Lear in February. Antony and Cleopatra will première in May of 2015, rounding out the first instalment of the Stratford Festival HD series that will ultimately bring the complete works of William Shakespeare to audiences around the world.
Stratford Festival HD is sponsored by Sun Life Financial as part of their Making the Arts More Accessible® program, with generous support from Laura Dinner & Richard Rooney, the Jenkins Family Foundation, Ophelia & Mike Lazaridis,Sandra & Jim Pitblado and Robert & Jacqueline Sperandio.
Canadian distribution is through Cineplex Entertainment’s Front Row Centre Events, which specializes in bringing world-class events and performances to the big screen. Cinema screenings will be followed by a broadcast window on CBC-TV, Canada’s national public broadcaster. Digital and on-demand release will follow.
U.S. distribution is through BY Experience, the “live cinema event powerhouse” (Variety) that brings the highest quality international cultural events to more than 2,000 cinemas and performing arts centres in over 60 countries around the world as the Worldwide HD Distribution Representative for The Met: Live in HD series, International (ex-UK) Distribution Representative for the U.K.’s National Theatre Live series, and North American Distributor for the Bolshoi Ballet cinema series.
ABOUT THE STRATFORD FESTIVAL:
The Stratford Festival has been setting the standard for classical theatre in North America for more than 60 years. With the works of Shakespeare at its core, this acclaimed repertory theatre presents a seven-month season of a dozen or more plays in four venues, along with a Forum of events to enrich the play-going experience. Since its revolutionary first season in 1953, it has welcomed more than 26 million theatregoers from around the world, people who flock to this small Canadian town for one reason: an unparalleled quality of performance. Beginning in 2015, under the leadership of Artistic Director Antoni Cimolino and Executive Director Anita Gaffney, the Stratford Festival will make a select number of its Shakespearean masterpieces available each year in spectacular HD, capturing the entire Shakespeare canon over the next 10 years and bringing the work of this renowned company to audiences around the world.
“Stratford, where fans of classic drama come in large numbers to worship at its leading, four-stage, North American shrine.” Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune
“If you have been longing to encounter greatness in the theatre, it’s waiting for you at the Stratford Festival.” Richard Ouzounian, Toronto Star
“I can’t think of another theatre company in the world currently offering such variety stylistically – and all of it at the highest standard, too. … The company is feeling like an international mecca for Shakespeare.” J. Kelly Nestruck, The Globe and Mail
“The depth of casting allows for revelatory performances even in minor roles.”
Charles Isherwood, The New York Times
“The Stratford Festival is like nirvana for theater fans.” Amy Alipio, National Geographic Traveler
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