Livestreamed OP Shakespeare Performance by International Cast

"Ambitious" is a word that gets used a lot in describing the Hidden Room's production of. We get it. It is ambitious, no doubt, and also it was kind of inevitable.
|
This post was published on the now-closed HuffPost Contributor platform. Contributors control their own work and posted freely to our site. If you need to flag this entry as abusive, send us an email.

"Ambitious" is a word that gets used a lot in describing the Hidden Room's production of Rose Rage. We get it. It is ambitious, no doubt, and also it was kind of inevitable.

Rose Rage is Edward Hall and Roger Warren's adaptation of Shakespeare's earliest history plays, the Henry VI trilogy, originally done by for and by the brilliant Propeller Theatre Company. While Propeller's production took place in a bloody butcher shop, the Hidden Room's performances are presented in Original Practices with an all-male cast, live musicians, universal lighting, and period costumes made using appropriate materials and methods (compliments to the Baron's Men.) The whole show takes about four and a half hours to perform by our cast of actors who rehearsed together via Skype before coming together from London, Austin, and Staunton. And we're livestreaming it through our friends at HowlRound and their NewPlayTV channel here to the Huffington Post. For free.

Watch live streaming video from newplay at livestream.com

It is ambitious, but also perfect for us, and it's been an incredibly joyful process. Our curiosity about where the intersection of technology could meet Original Practices Shakespeare drew us toward making Rose Rage the innaugural effort of our Foreign Actor Exchange Program. It was this same affection for long-distance collaboration that positioned us to be the first company not directly associated with Propeller to be granted the rights to the show. And our commitment to accessibility to art for everyone leads us to our free livestream with an interactive Twitter component so that an international audience can connect not only with us, but with each other through this event.

What better show to test the waters of international partnership and trust than an epic tale of factious peers and class warfare? What better show to test ambition's mettle than one in which ambition is its core accelerant? Rose Rage was inevitable.

Please join us, and send your questions, thoughts, and general Tweetings using the hashtag #RoseRage. We'll have backstage updates and be ready to help guide our online audience through the story and the process as we go along. Heck, tweet us now. We'd love to hear from you, and welcome you inside the Hidden Room.
www.hiddenroomtheatre.com

The Hidden Room's Rose Rage Livestream
King Henry VI(01 of08)
Open Image Modal
The gentle King Henry VI (Ryan Crowder) sits uneasy in the throne. Photo by Kristen Wrzesniewski
Margaret & Suffolk (02 of08)
Open Image Modal
Queen Margaret (Brock England) and her lover Lord Suffolk (Nathan Jerkins) steal a moment. Photo by Kristen Wrzesniewski
The Cade Rebellion (03 of08)
Open Image Modal
Jack Cade (Laurence Pears) leader of the rebellion, prepares to behead all Lords and gentlemen ten times. Photo by Kristen Wrzesniewski
The wooing of Lady Grey(04 of08)
Open Image Modal
The wooing of Lady Grey (James Callas Ball) by Edward of York (Laurence Pears.) Photo by Kristen Wrzesniewski
Lord Talbot & John, Gates of Paris(05 of08)
Open Image Modal
Lord Talbot (Robert Deike) holds his dying son John (Joseph Garlock) on the fields of France. Photo by Kristen Wrzesniewski
The Lord Protector, Good Duke Humphrey(06 of08)
Open Image Modal
Lord Protector Duke Humphrey (Robert Matney) battles unrest betwixt the peers. Photo by Kristen Wrzesniewski
Henry and Margaret(07 of08)
Open Image Modal
King Henry (Ryan Crowder) and Queen Margaret (Brock England) inside the bloody parliament. Photo by Kristen Wrzesniewski
York and Warwick conspire, photo Kristen Wrzesniewski(08 of08)
Open Image Modal
Richard Duke of York (Matt Radford) conspires with the Earl of Warwick (Rommel Sulit) on how to snatch the crown. Photo by Kristen Wrzesniewski

Support HuffPost

At HuffPost, we believe that everyone needs high-quality journalism, but we understand that not everyone can afford to pay for expensive news subscriptions. That is why we are committed to providing deeply reported, carefully fact-checked news that is freely accessible to everyone.

Whether you come to HuffPost for updates on the 2024 presidential race, hard-hitting investigations into critical issues facing our country today, or trending stories that make you laugh, we appreciate you. The truth is, news costs money to produce, and we are proud that we have never put our stories behind an expensive paywall.

Would you join us to help keep our stories free for all? Your will go a long way.

Support HuffPost