Hailing from such prestigious UK companies as Shakespeare’s Globe, the National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company, the five actors of Sir Patrick Stewart’s celebrated theater company Actors From The London Stage bring Shakespeare to life for three evenings at the UTC Fine Arts Center as one of this season’s Patten Performances. Our three nights of Measure For Measure are one half of a week-long residency at UTC, which is designed to promote a campus-wide dialogue inspired by the works of William Shakespeare.
If you go
What: Measure for Measure
When: Oct. 25-27 7:30 p.m.
Where: Fine Arts Center, Roland Hayes Concert Hall
Admission: Purchase tickets online here.
Believed to be written around 1603 and first performed in 1604, Measure for Measure’s themes of justice, “mortality and mercy in Vienna,” and the dichotomy between corruption and purity resonate for us today: “some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall.” While mercy and virtue predominate (the play does not end tragically), the play focuses on justice overall. The play follows an out-of-control attempt by the Duke of Vienna to clean up long term, rampant corruption and vice in Vienna by mysteriously vacating his position and leaving oversight of the city to an overly-zealous judge.
“…actors have a personal connection with dramatic texts, which is distinctive and different from the scholars. Our program gives the actor a unique platform from which to explore with professors and students what he or she does and why it is done. That exciting exchange is what Actors From The London Stage would like to bring to your campus.” – Sir Patrick Stewart, Founding Director
Find out more about the performers here.
Before you go
Before you see the production of Measure for Measure on campus and discover Shakespeare’s exploration of the exploitation of power—come join us in a discussion of what this play might reveal in an investigation of our political climate. We will meet at Granfalloon at 400 E. Main Street, #120 at 6:00, Tuesday, Oct. 24th.
The discussion will be led by Dr. Bryan Hampton, Dorothy and James D. Kennedy Distinguished Teaching Professor and Associate Department Head of English. Hampton will provide a summary of the play and help us unpack its meaning. Dr. Michelle D. Deardorff, Adolph S. Ochs Professor of Government and Department Head of Political Science and Public Service, will explore the implications of this play to our contemporary American political climate. We hope a lively discourse will follow.
This is open to the university and the Chattanooga community.
