reviews -- Shakespeare in the Parking Lot

"COMEDY OF ERRORS" THIS SEASON

BACKSTAGE
Director Kathy Curtiss takes Shakespeare's mistaken identity comedy to Little Italy, and the casual comedy succeeds with its lighthearted nature and impeccable casting of the central twins. Suzy Evans, July 12, 2011

NYTHEATRE.COM
The acting in this production is terrific across the entire ensemble. In addition to skillfully handling Shakespeare’s language, they make all of their characters appropriate to the neighborhood and are all a blast to watch.....Bottom line: Go. Now. Arrive early. Consider bringing a chair. Bring your sense of adventure. Bring your sense of humor. And bring that friend who thinks Shakespeare is boring and that other friend who thinks theater is too expensive. Above all, go, enjoy this gem of a New York summer tradition! Heather Lee Rogers, July 9, 2011

HIGHLIGHTS FROM PAST SEASONS

"When Cassius declares, 'I ... have bared my bosom to the thunder-stone,' what the audience sees is that noble Roman’s open blouse with a black bra underneath."

"Cross-dressing actors and cross-gender casting having become so common, it’s hard to say which would be less surprising these days: an actor in women’s clothing or an actress playing Cassius. In this case, the Drilling Company’s new production of 'Julius Caesar,' it's Selene Beretta as Cassius, and she gives a fierce, powerful performance in a tight skirt and high heels as the leader of the assassins who murder Caesar on the Ides of March."

"Ivory Aquino as Marc Antony gives Ms. Beretta a run for her money. Ms. Aquino’s 'Brutus is an honorable man' speech is so moving that I wish it could be the end of the play. (The soothsayer could just pop in quickly to tell us the conspirators’ fates.)"

"The production’s setting is also notable. The play is presented in the middle of a Lower East Side parking lot, with white plastic chairs for the audience surrounding the 'stage.' The series, which has been around since 1992, is called Shakespeare in the Parking Lot; admission is free; and people strolling across the lot have been known to stop out of curiosity and decide to stay."

"It’s an excellent introduction to 'Julius Caesar' for those who don’t know any more about the play than Caesar’s line 'Et tu, Brute?' And Steven Lee Edwards’s original song 'Caesar Is Back,' which frames the show, sums up Shakespeare’s meaning with crystal clarity."

As Shakespeare wrote, “all the world’s a stage…” and the Drilling Company takes Will’s words quite literally, proving the adage again with their sixteenth summer of free outdoor theater, performed in the unique environs of an unassuming Lower East Side parking lot!

Thursday through Saturday (July 9 through August 15), as the sun heads West to set and the concrete begins to sweat out the heat of summer, a patch of asphalt—67 parking spaces large—is transformed by lawn chairs unfolded along the parking lines into aisles and actors in modern dress taking their places on the “stage.”

The delightful downtown alternative to the other Bard-focused festival, long-running Central Park staple, Shakespeare in the Park, Shakespeare in the Parking Lot attracts hundreds rather than thousands, but demand is still high and audiences grow with each passing year. Thankfully, on Ludlow street you’re not likely to incur the long lines or swarms of picnicking Upper East Siders with Zabars take-out that throng Central Park, though limited provided seats motivate some eager audience members to arrive up to an hour early. However, they’re typically noshing on pizza and tallboys. In the parking lot, props consist of cardboard cutouts and occasionally solid furniture that looks as though it was dumpster dived; costumes are Elizabethan-free; refreshments are minimal. Despite the pared-down staging, the productions are compelling enough to draw crowds out to the simple lot for two-hour performances. Best to be prepared and bring your own chair—a truly necessary supplement to an inevitably too-thin blanket. It’s lot, not lawn, after all!

The simple setting is not without its challenges, however. City sounds compete with the performers for attention, cars continue to enter and exit the active lot, and the actors work to maintain focus while the audiences eyes occasionally wander, distracted by the passing cast of characters, and the confused reactions of those who happen upon the scene.

This year’s artistic directors Hamilton Clancy and Kathy Curtiss ensure you’ll be too captivated to mind the surroundings. Recognizing that theater fans have a lot of choice when it comes to where they get their summer Shakespeare fix, Clancy and Curtiss present two classic comedies, beginning the season with A Midsummer Night’s Dream, followed by Measure for Measure.

So if you find yourself downtown at dusk, seek out the municipal lot for a hassle-free Shakespeare in the Park alternative. And, needless to say, parking is available!