Twelfth Night (2016)
Opening Night: September 2, 2016
Closing: September 5, 2016
Theater: Delacorte Theatre
Public Works, The Public’s local and national initiative that invites diverse communities across New York to join in creating ambitious works of theater, celebrates its fourth year at the Delacorte with an enchanting new musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night with music and lyrics by the critically acclaimed songwriter Shaina Taub. Professional artists and community members from partner organizations in all five boroughs perform together on stage in this love story that follows the young heroine Viola, who disguises herself as a man when she washes up on the shores of Illyria. When Viola’s new boss, Duke Orsino, sends her to win over his unrequited love, the Countess Olivia, Viola’s disguise proves too effective, and the Countess falls for the young girl dressed as a boy instead. Artistic Director of Baltimore’s Center Stage, Kwame Kwei-Armah, directs this musical fever dream about love in all its many disguises, and transformative power of walking a mile in another’s shoes.
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September 4, 2016
Everybody’s pretty much crazy in love in Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night,” so it seems natural to include a shout-out to the Beyoncé song of that name in the contemporary musical adaptation of the play that finishes a brief Labor Day weekend run on Monday night at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park. As in the similar previous productions from the Public Theater’s Public Works program, which bring together professional and amateur actors as well as civic and cultural groups, almost anything and everything goes in this free-spirited, thoroughly delightful gloss on Shakespeare’s beloved comedy — the full title of which, after all, is “Twelfth Night, or What You Will.” No sign of Big Bird this time, as there was in the production of “The Winter’s Tale,” but a giant stuffed Pikachu, of Pokémon fame, makes an appearance. (Full disclosure: I had to consult my companion to identify him. Her? It?)
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