Casting for an Off-Broadway revival of Arden of Faversham has been announced by Red Bull Theater.
The play, which is potentially one of the first theatrical works of William Shakespeare, will star Cara Ricketts as Alice, Thomas Jay Ryan as her husband Arden, and Tony Roach as her lover Mosby. They will be joined by Veronica Falcón, Zachary Fine, Emma Geer, Joshua David Robinson, Thom Sesma, David Ryan Smith, and Haynes Thigpen.
Arden of Faversham is adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher and Kathryn Walat, and directed by Jesse Berger. The production will begin performances March 6, and continue through April 1, with opening night set for March 16.
As scholar Tanya Pollard explains; "Printed in 1592 with no authorial attribution, Arden of Faversham has long been seen as the most famous anonymous play from the Elizabethan era. In recent years, however, its authorship has become a topic of heated critical debate. Scholars have generally agreed that the play was written collaboratively, as was typical of early modern drama in general and especially at the time of Arden’s composition. New work with computational stylistic analysis has supported a growing consensus that the play was written by two authors: one possibly Thomas Watson, and the other, responsible for many of the play’s middle scenes, William Shakespeare. If Shakespeare contributed to Arden, as seems increasingly likely, it would be one of the earliest plays in which he had a hand—possibly the earliest. As such, it introduces suggestive details about his early artistic development. In particular, its unusually substantial and complex female leading role offers a haunting pre-history for later Shakespearean creations such as Rosalind, Lady Macbeth, and Cleopatra. This production compounds the play’s collaborative voices with two newer additions: Jeffrey Hatcher and Kathryn Walat.”
Arden of Faversham will feature scenic design by Christopher Swader and Justin Swader, costume design by Mika Eubanks, lighting design by Reza Behjat, and original music and sound design by Greg Pliska. Rick Sordelet will serve as fight director.
For more information, visit RedBullTheater.com.
