CONTRIBUTED CONTENT — The 2022 season of the Utah Shakespeare Festival is here and will feature eight world-class plays from June 20 to Oct. 8. The lineup of shows for this 61st season is an exciting mixture of Shakespeare, two beautiful musicals (including one outdoors for the first time ever) and magnificent contemporary plays.
“Festival audiences will be absolutely delighted with this combination of great shows,” executive producer Frank Mack said.
Guests can also enjoy additional activities including play seminars, orientations, classes and Repertory Magic, not to mention the free nightly Greenshows that set the stage for the evening shows performed in the outdoor Engelstad Shakespeare Theatre. There are three different Greenshow themes that rotate nightly, and each is perfect for the whole family.
Local audiences can receive discounted tickets in a couple of ways. Half-price tickets are available for performances Monday through Thursday when purchased day-of. Also, the Iron County Pass is good for any eight performances for $200. Students can also take advantage of the Student Access Pass, which allows any student unlimited access to shows for only $40. Discounts are not available online. Call the ticket office for more information.
Festival guests can order their tickets online at bard.org, by phone at 1-800-PLAYTIX or at the ticket office near the Anes Studio Theatre beginning June 20.
“Our audiences can expect another exciting season which will exemplify why, for over 60 years, the Utah Shakespeare Festival has been and continues to be one of the state’s treasures,” interim artistic director Derek Livingston said.
2022 season lineup
In the Engelstad Shakespeare Theatre
“All’s Well That Ends Well” by William Shakespeare
Although the king forces the young Count Bertram to marry orphaned Helen, he cannot make him love her. Only by completing an impossible task can Helen win that affection. But Shakespeare, in one of his famous “dark” comedies, once again shows us that, impossible task or not, callow youth is no match for true love and a determined woman. Features Kendall Cafaro as Helen.
“King Lear” by William Shakespeare
Deluded by lies and flattery, old King Lear has sorely misjudged his daughters, placing himself into the cruel hands of his two ambitious daughters and spurning the youngest, the one who truly loves him. Only when alone and driven mad on the English heath does he realize his epic mistakes in Shakespeare’s stormiest tragedy. Features Broadway and film star Anthony Heald as King Lear.
“Sweeney Todd” by Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler
Sweeney Todd, an unjustly imprisoned barber, escapes and returns to 19th-century London, seeking vengeance against the lecherous judge who framed him and ravaged his young wife. The road to revenge leads Sweeney to Mrs. Lovett, a resourceful proprietress of a failing pie shop, above which he opens a new barber practice.
Mrs. Lovett’s luck sharply shifts when Sweeney’s thirst for blood inspires the integration of an ingredient into her meat pies that has all of London lining up – and the carnage has only just begun in this dark and delicious musical! Features J. Michael Bailey as Sweeney.
In the Randall L. Jones Theatre
“The Sound of Music” with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse
Maria, too exuberant to be a proper nun, is sent to the Von Trapp family as a governess for seven unruly children. There, she teaches the children to sing and Captain Von Trapp to love, only to have the singing family hounded by the Nazis when they invade Austria. Known and loved the world over, “The Sound of Music” reminds us that with high-spirited hope, heartfelt compassion and unwavering determination, life’s mountains can always be climbed. Features Daria Pilar Redus as Maria.
“Trouble in Mind” by Alice Childress
It’s 1957 in New York City, and Wiletta May, an African-American actor in rehearsal for a new Broadway play, doesn’t intend to cause trouble. But this time, the writer has gone too far – and Wiletta rebels against one more stereotypical role in a “well-meaning race play.” Will the other African-American actors join in her fight against the improbable play-within-a-play, or must she fight alone? The stakes are high, but this satire of backstage drama and racial tropes will make you both laugh and stop to think. Features Yvette Monique Clark as Wiletta.
“Clue” written by Sandy Rustin based on the screenplay by Jonathan Lynn, with additional material by Hunter Foster and Eric Price
It’s a dark and stormy night, and you’ve been invited to a very unusual dinner party. Each of the guests has an alias, the butler offers a variety of weapons, and the host is, well … dead. So whodunit? Join the iconic oddballs known as Scarlet, Plum, White, Green, Peacock and Mustard as they race to find the murderer in Boddy Manor before the body count stacks up. Based on the cult classic film and the popular board game, “Clue” is a madcap comedy that will keep you guessing until the final twist.
In the Eileen and Allen Anes Studio Theatre
“The Tempest” by William Shakespeare
Teeming with fairies, monsters, shipwrecks and magic, “The Tempest” is Shakespeare’s last and most imaginative romance. The deposed Duchess Prospero and her lovely daughter, Miranda, are shipwrecked on a small island where nothing is quite as it seems. But as they separate fantasy from authenticity, they eventually discover a “brave new world” of love, harmony and redemption. Features Jasmine Bracey as Prospero.
“Thurgood” by George Stevens Jr.
Meet Thurgood Marshall: lawyer, civil rights activist and the first African-American Supreme Court justice. In this acclaimed play, witness as Marshall tells stories from his life and his transformation from a young and spirited dissenter to a pensive justice full of wisdom.
From his early days as a civil rights lawyer to his appointment to the highest court in the land, Marshall stood for justice while lifting the standing of his race and all Americans. Features Utah Shakespeare Festival director of new play development and artistic associate Derek Livingston as Marshall.
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