For Immediate Release
Contact: Theresa M. MacNaughton, tmacnaughton@hartfordstage.org
Office: 860-520-7114

Auditions to be held for Breakdancing Shakespeare’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream on May 8

Breakdancing Shakespeare: Twelfth Night. Photo by Defining Studio

Hartford, CT – April 29, 2019 – Auditions will be held for Breakdancing Shakespeare’s upcoming production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream on Wednesday, May 8, from 4:00 to 7:30 p.m.

“This year we are excited to be revisiting A Midsummer Night’s Dream. It was the very first Breakdancing Shakespeare I saw twelve years ago in 2007. That production won my heart, and I have been so looking forward to the day when I could direct it myself,” said Nina Pinchin, Associate Director of Education at Hartford Stage. “A Midsummer Night’s Dream, as the title suggests, is a perfectly magical summer evening and a true ensemble piece with room for almost any member of the cast to steal the show!”

A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be adapted for Breakdancing Shakespeare by Scott Bartelson, Hartford Stage Management Associate. The production will be directed by Pinchin, with three public performances scheduled for August 1, 2 and 3.

Auditions are open to current high school students between the ages of 14 and 18 who reside in the Greater Hartford area. Walk-ins are welcome, but appointments are strongly recommended. Auditions will be held at Hartford Stage Rehearsal Studios at 942 Main Street in Hartford.

Students interested in auditioning are encouraged to download and complete the 2019 Neighborhood Studios Apprentice Guidelines and Application found at www.hartfordstage.org/education/bds.

Breakdancing Shakespeare is part of the Greater Hartford Arts Council’s award-winning Neighborhood Studios program – a nationally-recognized six-week paid summer arts apprenticeship. Apprentices are selected from across the Council's 34-town service area, providing an opportunity for teenagers to learn from others with different cultural, economic, and geographic backgrounds.

Created in 2006, Breakdancing Shakespeare combines the text of a classic Shakespearean play with the language of hip hop, rap and breakdancing. Throughout the six-week rehearsal process, students take master classes with guest artists – developing skills related to the production. Past master classes have included text and vocal work, music composition and recording, magic, mask-making, stage combat and beat boxing.

For additional information about Breakdancing Shakespeare, or to schedule an audition, contact Robert Reader, Education Programs Manager, at rreader@hartfordstage.org or 860-520-7263.

HARTFORD STAGE

Now in our 55th season, Hartford Stage is currently under the leadership of Artistic Director Darko Tresnjak. In January 2019, Melia Bensussen was named the sixth Artistic Director of Hartford Stage and will assume the role in June. One of the nation’s leading resident theatres, Hartford Stage is known for producing innovative revivals of classics and provocative new plays and musicals, including 73 world and American premieres, as well as offering a distinguished education program, which reaches close to 21,000 students annually.

Since Tresnjak’s appointment in 2011 the theatre has presented the world premieres of A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder on Broadway, winner of four 2014 Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Direction of a Musical by Tresnjak; Rear Window with Kevin Bacon; the new musical Anastasia by Terrence McNally, Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens; Quiara Alegría Hudes’ Water by the Spoonful, winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Drama; Breath & Imagination by Daniel Beaty; Big Dance Theatre’s Man in a Case with Mikhail Baryshnikov; and Reverberation by Matthew Lopez.

Hartford Stage has earned many of the nation’s most prestigious awards, including the 1989 Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre. Other national honors include Outer Critics Circle, Drama Desk, OBIE, and New York Critics Circle awards. Hartford Stage has produced nationally renowned titles, including the New York transfers of Enchanted April; The Orphans' Home Cycle; Resurrection (later retitled Through the Night); The Carpetbagger's Children; and Tea at Five.

The leading provider of theatre education programs in Connecticut, Hartford Stage’s offerings include student matinees, in-school theatre residencies, teen performance opportunities, theatre classes for students (ages 3-18) and adults, afterschool programs and professional development courses.

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