2008 Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival Calls on Renowned London Producer to Guest Direct

Apr 4, 2008

Media Contacts

Incline Village, Nev. (April 4, 2008)--Building upon its season of innovation and growth, as well as expanding its influences nationally and internationally, the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival brings London’s Michael Walling stateside as guest director for this summer’s presentation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.  The Festival is creating a world-class theatre experience on the shores of Lake Tahoe, taking a leap forward with the addition of Walling, an award-winning producer and director recognized by theatre critics and audiences globally.   

A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a complex and thought-provoking comedy and is known as one of Shakespeare’s most original plays.  Walling, acclaimed for lending a distinctive point of view and context to his directorial style, offers his vision to the performance by incorporating a contemporary setting using the natural beauty of Lake Tahoe and drawing inspiration from the area’s rich Native American heritage.   The play’s activity, enhanced by live musical accompaniment, takes place predominantly in a forest at night centering around a series of mishaps with a group of lovers, a troupe of rehearsing actors and a group of impishly interfering immortals.   

Catherine Atack, executive director for the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival notes, “Michael’s experience in translating Shakespeare’s works into a variety of contexts and using the plays to create a socially relevant dialogue is exactly what we were looking for during our inaugural season with our own production team.  Our desire is to create a spectacular and satisfying theatre experience for our visitors – returning and first-timers.  Michael’s vision for A Midsummer Night’s Dream is sensational in that it’s designed to deliver a contemplative rendition of the classic play in a way that pays homage to the history and culture of Lake Tahoe by intertwining our glorious setting within the plot.” 

Walling was engaged by the Festival through Artistic Director Jan Powell, who has worked with him on several previous Shakespeare productions.  Their first foray together was the 1992 award-winning production of Two Gentlemen of Verona at Tygres Heart Shakespeare Company in Portland, Ore., which Powell founded.  They reunited the following year with his direction of Romeo and Juliet, a production that attracted sell-out crowds and surpassed all attendance records for the theatre company.   

An Oxford University graduate, Walling trained at Trinity College in Dublin before founding London’s Border Crossings Theatre and Combined Arts in 1995.  The aptly named theatre was founded as a way to literally cross geographic borders and unite cultures through theatre arts.  Serving as the theatre’s artistic director, he has directed the bulk of Border Crossings productions and provided overall direction for the company.  In addition, he has crossed four continents directing award-winning plays including Two Gentlemen of Verona in the U.S., Paul & Virginie in Mauritius, Die Zauberflote in Spain and The Tempest in India to name a few.  Walling also teaches regularly at London’s Rose Bruford College and Central School of Speech and Drama at the University of London.     

“My experiences producing plays throughout the world couldn’t have prepared me for the immense and awe-inspiring landscape I encountered when first visiting Lake Tahoe,” said Walling.  “It quickly became my muse. The combination of the high alpine environment and radiant azure waters opened my mind to a dreamlike and spiritual state that I was able to weave into the production along with the history of the Native American peoples of the region.  Audiences will feel Lake Tahoe and the absolute treasure it is.   The play, set in present-day Lake Tahoe, creates a juxtaposition of synergy that we believe the audiences will devour.”  

In addition to Walling’s interpretation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the 36th annual production of the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival scheduled for July 10 – Aug. 17, 2008 also presents Shakespeare‘s thrilling history Richard III and the new, vibrant, romantic musical CAMBIO, based on Victor Hugo’s novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame.  Annually, the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival draws more than 30,000 attendees from the across the country to its specially built Warren Edward Trepp Stage at Sand Harbor State Park.  The plays are complemented by gourmet food and drink from Shakespeare’s Kitchen, the fresh Sierra Nevada air and the crystal blue waters of Lake Tahoe, making the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival a one-of-a-kind theatre experience. 

Tickets for the 2008 season are now available online at www.LakeTahoeShakespeare.com with reduced handling fees for all online purchases, or by calling 888-32-SHOWS (888-327-4697).  Tickets start at $22 for open seating tiers and range in options up to the premier reserved seating section from $67.  Information about the 2008 season, membership, volunteer opportunities and sponsorships is available online. 

The Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established for the cultural benefit and enjoyment of all residents and visitors to Lake Tahoe and Reno.  Annually drawing more than 30,000 attendees from across the country to the specially built Warren Edward Trepp Stage along the north shore of Lake Tahoe, the Festival is a regional advocate for producing the finest cultural events in the region.  Through its in-house artistic direction, the Festival produces three plays each summer, creating original costuming, set design and choreography, and attracting a team of national and international stage talent.  The Festival’s community outreach includes and annual program, InterACT, designed to educate future generations on the importance of the arts, theatre and music.   

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