Written by William Shakespeare

Directed by James Vesce
Dramaturgy by Andrew Hartley
Choreography by Donell Stines
Musical Direction by James Vesce
Scenic Design: Bob Croghan
Lighting Design: David Filmore
Costume Design: Bob Croghan
Wig & Makeup Design: Heidi O'Hare
Sound & Musical Design: James Vesce
Video Design: Jay Morong

Anne Belk Theater, UNC Charlotte

As one of the late plays of Shakespere, The Winter's Tale carries with it the many challenges of plays in his late period - daunting language, complex characters, and a narrative that passes over long periods of time and geography. But the most challenging dimension of this world, it seems to me, is the unexplained and unimaginable actions and events themselves: a jealousy that cannot be extinguished, a bear that appears then disappears, sudden death and divine retribution, and a final and dramatic moment in Act V which defies simplistic explanation. Such an event disrupts the horizon of all of our assumptions about what is or is not possible and defies tidy explanations. Why these things happen and how as artists we account for them is, for me, the essence of theater practice.

Constructing a design for this production meant thinking and writing about two worlds - the cold, sterile, oppressive Sicilia set against bright, colorful, and sensual Bohemia. Musically we thought immediately that unlike the electronic soundscape that characterizes Sicilia, the sound of Bohemia should be live and present and reflect the countryside- without too much country. As the process unfolded I identified three very different acoustic instruments that together seemed to peculiarly capture the unusual eclectic sound of country folk in this production - guitar, saxophone, and cello. Together they paint the portrait of a mildly eccentric society of lovable citizens content to pass their time with little regard for the weighty matters of state which burden the world of Leontes.