Footlighters Does Cymbeline
Do you want to see crossdressing, violence, murder, and a makeout session at Hanover High School? Then come see the Footlighters’ fall production, Cymbeline! The play was written by William Shakespeare and will be directed by the brilliant Josh Feder. Come see it on Thursday, Friday, or Saturday, November 7th, 8th, or 9th.
You may be familiar with Josh Feder’s work if you saw his choreography in North Country Community Theatre’s Anything Goes, or if you took the Let’s Dance March Intensive last year in which Josh helped out. Josh is a Dartmouth graduate and the education director for the New London Barn Playhouse as well as a director and choreographer for their Junior Intern Program. With his help, the Footlighters are sure to present an entertaining version of this confusing play.
Shakespeare wrote Cymbeline when he was a crotchety old man. It’s pretty much a mash-up of all the comedies he wrote throughout his career. If you decide to come see this fabulous production, you’ll see some very distinct similarities between pieces of this story and elements of other plays. The title character is loosely based on the Celtic British king, Cunobeline. However, there is nearly no similarity between the character Cymbeline and the man Cunobeline other than their shared name and their royal titles.
The plot is: Cymbeline (Owen O’Leary), is the king of Britain. He lives with his daughter from his first marriage, Imogen (Catherine Collison), and with the current queen (Anjali Sundaram). Imogen is in love with Posthumus (Jakub Bobrowicz), a man who was raised in her father’s court. All would live happily ever after, except there is a catch. Posthumus is poor and Imogen has a stereotypically evil and conniving stepmother
courtesy of Matthew Stebenne
. The queen wants Imogen to marry her son, Cloten (Robert McAndrew), so that her son will inherit the kingdom.
This play is going to be jam-packed with entertainment and fun. You can even look out for a couple of musical numbers. If you’re someone who has been contemplating joining the Footlighters, be sure to sign up to act and/or tech for the winter show. The Government Inspector is a smashing comedy written by Nikolai Gogol which will be directed by Mary Gaetz and produced by our very own Amy Good. Footlighters is always looking for new people and appreciates everyone’s efforts! Be sure to attend one of the performances, the weekend of November 7-9, for the exciting production of Cymbeline.