NY Classical Theatre will return to live performance this summer with a production of William Shakespeare’s King Lear, at four public parks in Manhattan and Brooklyn.
Performances will run Tuesday–Sunday at 7 PM ET in Central Park at West 103rd Street and Central Park West (June 24–July 11), MetroTech Commons at Myrtle Avenue and Bridge Street (July 13–18), Carl Schurz Park at East 87th Street and East End Avenue (July 20–25), and The Battery at Battery Place and Broadway (July 27–August 8)
Adapted and directed by Stephen Burdman, the play will feature the optimistic interpretation of Nahum Tate’s 1681 adaptation, which was popular in England for over 150 years until Shakespeare’s original tragic text was restored in 1838. In addition to the ending, several additional scenes from Tate’s version have been incorporated for this production. The Tate version has not been performed in New York City in over 30 years.
King Lear stars Michael Stewart Allen as Cornwall, Amar Atkins as Edmund, Connie Castanzo as Cordelia/Fool, Grant Chapman as Oswald, Jasminn Johnson as Goneril, Cedric Lamar as Kent, John Michalski as Lear, Nick Salamone as Gloucester, Aryana Sedarati as Regan, Clay Storseth as Albany, and Linden Tailor as Edgar. Also in the company are Ollie Corchado, Evan Moore-Coll, and Saleemah Sharpe.
Serving on the creative team are production designer Jelena Antanasijević, casting director Stephanie Klapper, casting liaison marcus d. harvey, voice and speech coach Nora Leonhardt, fight director Sean Michael Chin, production stage manager Yetti Steinman, assistant stage manager Madison Lane, wardrobe supervisor is Ashley Trutanich, and production assistants Rosemarie Manzo and Nina Schatell.
Tickets are free, but reservations are recommended due to limited audience capacity for safety protocols, including contact tracing. Click here for more information.
