Poison and prison make way for a happy ending
Coming to the BAM for the 2016 holiday season, acclaimed Olivier Award-winning British theatre company Cheek By Jowl will set the stage alight, this time with their eclectic tour-de-force take on Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale. An American Premiere performance, Declan Donnellan's acclaimed production was first seen in 1996 at London's Barbican, where its contemporary staging won rave reviews by critics. Available for a limited season only, don't miss out on this unique and witty staging of the Bard's tragi-comedy.
Taking place over the course of 16 years and multiple countries, this haunting tale of jealousy, betrayal and ultimate redemption follows the fortunes of King Leontes of Sicilia and his childhood friend, the Bohemian king Polixenes. Leontes is suddenly paranoid that Polixenes has seduced his wife Hermione, and suspects that her unborn baby isn't his. Ordering his manservant Camillo to poison Polixenes, instead, he warns the target, and the two flee. Meanwhile, Hermione is thrown into prison on suspected treason charges.
When the newborn girl finally arrives, Leontes' doubts her paternity and orders his daughter to be abandoned to the Fates. Sixteen long years pass and baby Perdita is raised by a kindly shepherd. Leontes learns from the Delphi Oracle that his wife was innocent and that the baby was his; he mourns his rash actions and tries to make amends for his evil.