Mark Ringer
Encyclopedia
Mark Ringer American writer, theater and opera historian, director and actor. Ringer’s books include Electra
and the Empty Urn: Metatheater and Role Playing in Sophocles
, a critical analysis of theatrical self-awareness in the seven Sophoclean tragedies, Opera's First Master, which Alan Rich
of the LA Weekly
described as “an uncommonly well-told accounting of Monteverdi's
operatic legacy,” and Franz Schubert
's Theatre of Song. Ringer’s work as a director has concentrated on classical plays such as The Alchemist
and The Puritan
for R. Thad Taylor's
Globe Playhouse and Hamlet
with Jon Mullich
in the title role. Ringer is married to director Barbara Bosch, for whom he played Falstaff
in his own adaptation of the two parts of William Shakespeare
's Henry IV
as well as Polonius and the Gravedigger in The Heart of My Mystery: The Hamlet Project. His performances for other directors include Malvolio
in Twelfth Night, Zeus
in Iliad
, Nick Bottom
in A Midsummer Night's Dream
, and Baptista in Taming of the Shrew. Ringer is a Professor of Theatre Arts at Marymount Manhattan College
.
Electra
In Greek mythology, Electra was an Argive princess and daughter of King Agamemnon and Queen Clytemnestra. She and her brother Orestes plotted revenge against their mother Clytemnestra and stepfather Aegisthus for the murder of their father Agamemnon...
and the Empty Urn: Metatheater and Role Playing in Sophocles
Sophocles
Sophocles is one of three ancient Greek tragedians whose plays have survived. His first plays were written later than those of Aeschylus, and earlier than or contemporary with those of Euripides...
, a critical analysis of theatrical self-awareness in the seven Sophoclean tragedies, Opera's First Master, which Alan Rich
Alan Rich
Alan Rich was an American music critic who served on the staff of many newspapers and magazines on both coasts. Originally from Brookline, Massachusetts, he first studied medicine at Harvard University before turning to music...
of the LA Weekly
LA Weekly
LA Weekly is a free weekly tabloid-sized "alternative weekly" in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Editor/Publisher Jay Levin and a board of directors that included actor-producer Michael Douglas...
described as “an uncommonly well-told accounting of Monteverdi's
Claudio Monteverdi
Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, gambist, and singer.Monteverdi's work, often regarded as revolutionary, marked the transition from the Renaissance style of music to that of the Baroque period. He developed two individual styles of composition – the...
operatic legacy,” and Franz Schubert
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
's Theatre of Song. Ringer’s work as a director has concentrated on classical plays such as The Alchemist
The Alchemist (play)
The Alchemist is a comedy by English playwright Ben Jonson. First performed in 1610 by the King's Men, it is generally considered Jonson's best and most characteristic comedy; Samuel Taylor Coleridge claimed that it had one of the three most perfect plots in literature...
and The Puritan
The Puritan
The Puritan, or the Widow of Watling Street, also known as The Puritan Widow, is an anonymous Jacobean stage comedy, first published in 1607. It is often attributed to Thomas Middleton, but also belongs to the Shakespeare Apocrypha due to its title page attribution to "W.S.".-Date and...
for R. Thad Taylor's
R. Thad Taylor
Robert Thaddeus Taylor was an American producer, director and founder of the Shakespeare Society of America.-Taylor:Robert Thaddeus Taylor was born August 29, 1925, in Wendell, Idaho....
Globe Playhouse and 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...
with Jon Mullich
Jon Mullich
Jon Mullich American actor, playwright, director and Academy Award historian who played Gloucester in Reza Abdoh's vision of King Lear and Abel Drugger in The Alchemist at the Globe Playhouse among other roles before achieving recognition for his performance in the title role of Mark Ringer's...
in the title role. Ringer is married to director Barbara Bosch, for whom he played Falstaff
Falstaff
Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare. In the two Henry IV plays, he is a companion to Prince Hal, the future King Henry V. A fat, vain, boastful, and cowardly knight, Falstaff leads the apparently wayward Prince Hal into trouble, and is...
in his own adaptation of the two parts 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"...
's Henry IV
Henry IV, Part 1
Henry IV, Part 1 is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written no later than 1597. It is the second play in Shakespeare's tetralogy dealing with the successive reigns of Richard II, Henry IV , and Henry V...
as well as Polonius and the Gravedigger in The Heart of My Mystery: The Hamlet Project. His performances for other directors include Malvolio
Malvolio
Malvolio is the steward of Olivia's household in William Shakespeare's comedy, Twelfth Night, or What You Will.-Style:Malvolio's ethical values are commonly used to define his appearance.In the play, Malvolio is defined as a "kind of" Puritan...
in Twelfth Night, Zeus
Zeus
In the ancient Greek religion, Zeus was the "Father of Gods and men" who ruled the Olympians of Mount Olympus as a father ruled the family. He was the god of sky and thunder in Greek mythology. His Roman counterpart is Jupiter and his Etruscan counterpart is Tinia.Zeus was the child of Cronus...
in Iliad
Iliad
The Iliad is an epic poem in dactylic hexameters, traditionally attributed to Homer. Set during the Trojan War, the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek states, it tells of the battles and events during the weeks of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles...
, Nick Bottom
Nick Bottom
Nick Bottom is a character in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream who provides comic relief throughout the play, and is famously known for getting his head transformed into that of an ass by the elusive Puck within the play.- Overview :...
in A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream is a play that was written by William Shakespeare. It is believed to have been written between 1590 and 1596. It portrays the events surrounding the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus, and the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta...
, and Baptista in Taming of the Shrew. Ringer is a Professor of Theatre Arts at Marymount Manhattan College
Marymount Manhattan College
Marymount Manhattan College is an urban, coeducational, independent, private, liberal arts college located in Manhattan, New York City, New York with a focus in performing arts. The mission of the College is to educate a socially and economically diverse student body by fostering intellectual...
.
Works
- Opera's First Master ISBN 1574671103
- Electra and the Empty Urn ISBN 080784697X
- Franz Schubert's Theatre of Song ISBN 1574671766