Bell Shakespeare Company
Encyclopedia
Bell Shakespeare is an Australia
n theatre
company specialising in the works of William Shakespeare
. It was founded in 1990 by John Bell
..
Bell Shakespeare is Australia's only national touring theatre company. Its current practice is to tour three mainstage productions to each Australian state in each year, plus a variety of education programs. In 2011, for example, the mainstage productions are Much Ado About Nothing
, Faustus (an adaptation of Marlowe
's Doctor Faustus ), and Julius Caesar
, and the major education programs are Romeo and Juliet
and The Hamlet
Seminar - 2B ≠ 2B. Other education activities include the Actors at Work program, masterclasses, and workshops for teachers and students.
The company, rather than using Renaissance costumes and sets, use contemporary or anachronistic styles. Unlike many other producers, Bell has his actors accentuating and emphasising the many sexual innuendos and bawdy moments that are in original texts.
The Bell Shakespeare Company is listed as a Major Festival in the book Shakespeare Festivals Around the World by Marcus D. Gregio (ed.), 2004, ISBN 978-1413459067.
and directed by Christopher Hurrell.
Bell Shakespeare also offer scholarships and other experiences for both students and teachers, such as a student program that allows the winners to spend a week with company members as they prepare for plays.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
company specialising in the works of William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
. It was founded in 1990 by John Bell
John Bell (actor)
John Anthony Bell, AO, OBE is an Australian actor and theatre director.Bell was born 1 November 1940 in the town of Maitland, New South Wales where he was educated at the Marist Brothers....
..
Bell Shakespeare is Australia's only national touring theatre company. Its current practice is to tour three mainstage productions to each Australian state in each year, plus a variety of education programs. In 2011, for example, the mainstage productions are Much Ado About Nothing
Much Ado About Nothing
Much Ado About Nothing is a comedy written by William Shakespeare about two pairs of lovers, Benedick and Beatrice, and Claudio and Hero....
, Faustus (an adaptation of Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe was an English dramatist, poet and translator of the Elizabethan era. As the foremost Elizabethan tragedian, next to William Shakespeare, he is known for his blank verse, his overreaching protagonists, and his mysterious death.A warrant was issued for Marlowe's arrest on 18 May...
's Doctor Faustus ), and Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar (play)
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, also known simply as Julius Caesar, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1599. It portrays the 44 BC conspiracy against...
, and the major education programs are Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written early in the career of playwright William Shakespeare about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately unite their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular archetypal stories of young, teenage lovers.Romeo and Juliet belongs to a...
and The Hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
Seminar - 2B ≠ 2B. Other education activities include the Actors at Work program, masterclasses, and workshops for teachers and students.
The company, rather than using Renaissance costumes and sets, use contemporary or anachronistic styles. Unlike many other producers, Bell has his actors accentuating and emphasising the many sexual innuendos and bawdy moments that are in original texts.
The Bell Shakespeare Company is listed as a Major Festival in the book Shakespeare Festivals Around the World by Marcus D. Gregio (ed.), 2004, ISBN 978-1413459067.
Education
The Bell Shakespeare Company has a well-developed education program, and tour their Actors at Work program nationally. The 2007 season was written by Ned ManningNed Manning
Ned Manning is an Australian playwright, actor and teacher, whose film credits include the lead role in Dead End Drive-In and an appearance in the teen film Looking for Alibrandi . Manning's television credits include Bodyline, The Shiralee and Brides of Christ...
and directed by Christopher Hurrell.
Bell Shakespeare also offer scholarships and other experiences for both students and teachers, such as a student program that allows the winners to spend a week with company members as they prepare for plays.
2008
- HamletHamletThe Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
(directed by Marion Potts and starring Brendan CowellBrendan CowellBrendan Cowell is an Australian actor, screenwriter and director. Cowell was born in Sydney. He stumbled upon acting by accident while waiting for his sister to come out of a rehearsal; he was then cast in a commercial at age 8...
and with music by Sarah BlaskoSarah BlaskoSarah Elizabeth Blaskow , is an Australian singer-songwriter and musician. After fronting Sydney-based band Acquiesce from the mid-1990s, Blasko developed her solo career from 2002. In 2007, she won the 'Best Pop Release' for What the Sea Wants, the Sea Will Have at the ARIA Music Awards, which... - As You Like ItAs You Like ItAs You Like It is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 or early 1600 and first published in the folio of 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 has been suggested as a possibility...
(directed by John Bell and starring Saskia Smith and Stephan Phillips - Anatomy Titus Fall Of Rome, a reworking of Shakespeare's Titus AndronicusTitus AndronicusTitus Andronicus is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, and possibly George Peele, believed to have been written between 1588 and 1593. It is thought to be Shakespeare's first tragedy, and is often seen as his attempt to emulate the violent and bloody revenge plays of his contemporaries, which were...
by Heiner MüllerHeiner MüllerHeiner Müller was a German dramatist, poet, writer, essayist and theatre director. Described as "the theatre's greatest living poet" since Samuel Beckett, Müller is arguably the most important German dramatist of the 20th century after Bertolt Brecht...
, directed by Michael GowMichael GowMichael Gow is an Australian playwright and director most famed for his 1986 work Away.As a student at Sydney University, Gow acted and directed with the Dramatic Society from 1973-1976. After graduation, Gow went on to act with Nimrod, Thalia and Sydney theatre companies.He has been the Artist...
and starring John Bell
2007
- MacbethMacbethThe Tragedy of Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
(directed by John Bell and starring Sean O'Shea and Linda CropperLinda CropperLinda Cropper is an Australian television actress.Her credits include the lead role in Melba as well as roles in Palace of Dreams , an ABC mini-series, Edens Lost, Ring of Scorpio, Bordertown, Wildside, Water Rats, All Saints, White Collar Blue and The Pacific, and more recently she has starred in...
) - OthelloOthelloThe Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1603, and based on the Italian short story "Un Capitano Moro" by Cinthio, a disciple of Boccaccio, first published in 1565...
(directed by Marion Potts and starring Wayne Blair and Marcus GrahamMarcus GrahamMarcus Graham is an Australian television and stage actor who has also starred in several films, including Mulholland Drive and Josh Jarman. He was known as a teenage heartthrob in the early 90s while starring in the Australian TV soap E Street as the character "Wheels"...
) - The Government Inspector (directed by John Bell and starring Darren Gilshenan and William Zappa)
2006
- The TempestThe TempestThe Tempest is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1610–11, and thought by many critics to be the last play that Shakespeare wrote alone. It is set on a remote island, where Prospero, the exiled Duke of Milan, plots to restore his daughter Miranda to her rightful place,...
(directed by Peter Evens and starring John Bell and Freya StaffordFreya StaffordFreya Stafford is an Australian actress who has appeared in the television programs Head Start and White Collar Blue as central characters.-Early and personal life:Stafford was born and raised in Hobart, Tasmania...
) - The Merchant of VeniceThe Merchant of VeniceThe Merchant of Venice is a tragic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. Though classified as a comedy in the First Folio and sharing certain aspects with Shakespeare's other romantic comedies, the play is perhaps most remembered for its dramatic...
(directed by Anna VolskaAnna VolskaAnna Volska is an Australian television actress. She arrived in Australia when she was young and has acted from a young age.-Television work:...
and starring John Hannan and Thomas Campbell) - The Comedy of ErrorsThe Comedy of ErrorsThe Comedy of Errors is one of William Shakespeare's earliest plays. It is his shortest and one of his most farcical comedies, with a major part of the humour coming from slapstick and mistaken identity, in addition to puns and word play. The Comedy of Errors is one of only two of Shakespeare's...
(directed by John Bell and starring Sean O'Shea and Christopher StolleryChristopher StolleryChristopher Stollery is an Australian television actor. He graduated from Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art in 1987. He has had guest roles on many TV series and miniseries and is most well known for his role on Sea Patrol as Federal Agent Greg Murphy, a role he has held since the...
) - Romeo and JulietRomeo and JulietRomeo and Juliet is a tragedy written early in the career of playwright William Shakespeare about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately unite their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular archetypal stories of young, teenage lovers.Romeo and Juliet belongs to a...
(directed by John Bell and starring Julian Garner and Chloe Armstrong) - Moby-DickMoby-DickMoby-Dick; or, The Whale, was written by American author Herman Melville and first published in 1851. It is considered by some to be a Great American Novel and a treasure of world literature. The story tells the adventures of wandering sailor Ishmael, and his voyage on the whaleship Pequod,...
(adapted and performed by John Bell)
External links
- Bell Shakespeare Website
- Bell Shakespeare Company Collection at the Performing Arts CollectionPerforming Arts CollectionThe Performing Arts Collection at the Arts Centre, Melbourne is the largest specialist performing arts collection in Australia, with over 450,000 items relating to the history of circus, dance, music, opera and theatre in Australia and of Australian performers overseas.- Highlights of the...
, Arts Centre, MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...