Door Shakespeare’s Producing Artistic Director, Michael Stebbins, and Managing Director, Amy Ensign, are pleased to announce student auditions for the youth production of Something’s Rotten in the State of Denmark, by William Shakespeare and Joseph Wallace.
Auditions for students 8 to 17 years old will take place at the Door County Community Foundation’s Peninsula meeting room (222 North Third Avenue, Sturgeon Bay, 54235), on Tuesday, November 5, from 3:30 to 5:30, and Thursday, November 7, from 6:00 to 8:00. The Door County Community Foundation is located on Founders Square, next to the clock tower in downtown Sturgeon Bay. Students will be asked to read from the script. Please bring individual contact information and student schedules.
Rehearsals will begin the week after auditions. The rehearsal schedule will be determined based on casting.Something’s Rotten in the State of Denmark will be performed December 13, 14, and 15, at Björklunden’s Vail Hall, just south of Baileys Harbor.
The play follows the young actor Tom, who, utterly exhausted from playing the title role in Hamlet, closes his eyes for just a minute and opens the audience’s eyes to a dreamed up version of the Bard’s masterpiece never before imagined. Uncle Claudius can’t seem to remember anyone’s name and the ghost of Hamlet’s father exhibits multiple personalities reminiscent of other famous literary phantoms. From the mysterious council of rabbits to Hamlet covering up Polonius’ death with ventriloquism, this farcical comedy directed by Amy Ensign, is sure to be a hit with the whole family!
This will be Door Shakespeare’s first youth production, building on the strong foundation of the popular summer theatre program, Camp Will, and other educational programs such as Shakespeare in the Schools, and Shake it Up Saturday.
Directing Something’s Rotten in the State of Denmark, Amy Ensign has over thirty years of experience as a camp counselor, coach, and teaching artist. She began her work with youth at summer camps in Northern Ontario, and Indiana, teaching sports and theatre. Locally, Amy has taught and coached youth programs at the YMCA (Kiddie Kinetics, Theatre Games, Dolphin Club, Underwater Hockey), and theatre classes for Door Shakespeare, and Third Avenue Playhouse. Directing credits include shows with TAP’s For Kids By Kids, and StageKids programs (The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, The Birds’ Christmas Carol, The Littlest Angel, Ken Ludwig’s Twas’ the Night Before Christmas), and is currently the Drama Director at Sevastopol School (You Can’t Take it With You, Big Fish, Harvey, You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, The Sound of Music, Fools, and the upcoming Little Women – November 1-3). As an actor, Amy has worked locally with Peninsula Players, Northern Sky Theater, Third Avenue Playhouse, and Door Shakespeare. A voyaging sailor, cycling enthusiast, and underwater hockey player, Amy lives in Sturgeon Bay with her husband and son.
“Heading into our 25th year, Door Shakespeare is expanding our summer season with staged readings and educational programming,” relates Door Shakespeare’s Managing Director, Amy Ensign. “I am excited about bringing together youth from around the county to tell the hilarious story of Something’s Rotten in the State of Denmark!”
Door Shakespeare is a professional theatre, producing the works of William Shakespeare and other classical texts, in the gardens of Björklunden, just south of Baileys Harbor, from June through August. Something’s Rotten in the State of Denmark is Door Shakespeare’s first youth production, and is sponsored in part by grants from The Green Bay Packers Foundation, The Door County Community Foundation, and the Pivot Rock Foundation.
For more information about Something’s Rotten in the State of Denmark, Shakespeare in the Schools, Shake it up Saturday, or Door Shakespeare’s 25th anniversary season, call 920.839.1500, email info@doorshakespeare.com, or go to www.doorshakespeare.com.