Auditions for a Shakespeare Classic Held Last Sunday in Stratford

Shakesperience Productions  of Waterbury (www.shakesperience.org)  held auditions at the Stratford Library last Sunday, April 17 for A Midsummer Night’s Dream to be staged  at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival in August.

According to Tony Murvin, program specialist of the non-profit Shakesperience Productions, the summer show is held every year at fairs and festivals throughout the Northeast. It features  Shakesperience  Productions’ professional actors with performers from the community.

This year, auditions for five supporting roles were held in Stratford and Waterbury and actors  looking for a role in this romantic comedy came from all over Connecticut and  surrounding areas.

Bjorn Petersen of New York City thought this seemed like a “good opportunity.”   Was he nervous?   “A  little bit” said Petersen who has been acting for five to six years.

Professional actor Nat Angstrom, in his third year at Shakesperience Productions, has played many good roles with the company, including Henry V in Stratford at the Shakespeare Festival.  

“Working with this company has really allowed me to explore character work and hone my skills in classical theater,” he said.   He credits co-founder Emily Mattina for his professional growth as an artist.  “ Working with Emily has strengthened my text work as an actor.”

Fellow actor Mike Racioppa, who played Julius Caesar in Stratford,  says his one year with the company has been a “great experience.”   He also played Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet.

Shakesperience Productions, founded in 1996 by Mattina and Jeffrey Lapham, was initially a professional and predominantly educational theater visiting schools.  It  subsequently branched out.

"[We] see 70,000 students a year,” said Murvin of the educational season – a program that runs through the school year and includes interactive workshops and residency programs.   Interactive workshops are based on Shakespeare and folklore from around the world. 

The  performances are held for pre-k to college and feature Rudyard Kipling’s classic, The Jungle Book,  for elementary schools, and Romeo and Juliet for  middle school up to college.

For the first time in its history, the company will be touring vineyards all over Connecticut to bring the abridged works of  Shakespeare - ‘Vintage Shakespeare’ - to the public.

Mattina is “excited to bring our art to more and more people.”

The performances range from Blackbox productions for smaller audiences of about 17 people in the Waterbury studios to outdoor groups of 400 or more.

Mattina, whose vision of bringing Shakespeare’s works alive, said the company was “based on a philosophy for art and life.”   Through ‘The Shakesperience Approach’ she aims to create thought-provoking, artistically excellent productions rooted in classical literature.