Commonwealth Shakespeare Company (CSC) and Steven Maler, Founding Artistic Director, are pleased to announce the cast of this summer’s production of Shakespeare’s moving epic, The Winter’s Tale, on the Boston Common, directed by Associate Artistic Director Bryn Boice.
Performances begin on Tuesday, July 16 and run through Sunday, August 4 at the Parkman Bandstand. The production is presented in partnership with the City of Boston, Mayor Michelle Wu, Parks and Recreation Commissioner Ryan Woods, and Boston Chief of Arts and Culture, Kara Elliott-Ortega.
King Leontes of Sicilia falsely accuses his wife, Hermione, of infidelity with his best friend, the King of Bohemia. Inflamed by jealousy and convinced that he is right, Leontes banishes his newborn daughter Perdita as his wife dies of heartbreak. Perdita grows up in Bohemia under the care of a shepherd. Sixteen years pass before old wounds can heal, betrayals can be forgotten, and new alliances formed. Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale is a captivating parable of betrayals, renewed hope, and the transformative power of time.
The principal cast members include an all-star group of New England-area talent including: Nael Nacer (Macbeth, The Tempest at CSC, A Prayer for the French Republic at the Huntington and Broadway) as Leontes; Marianna Bassham (Macbeth, Othello, Twelfth Night at CSC, People Places and Things at Speakeasy Stage) as Hermione; Omar Robinson (Macbeth at CSC, King Hedley II at Actors Shakespeare Project) as Polixenes, King of Bohemia); Paula Plum (multi-Elliot Norton Award-winner, founding member of Actors’ Shakespeare Project) as Paulina/Time; Tony Estrella (Cymbeline at CSC, A Prayer for the French Republic at The Huntington, Artistic Director at Gamm Theatre) as Camillo; Richard Snee (The Taming of the Shrew at CSC, The Minutes at Umbrella Stage) as The Shepherd; Robert Walsh (Coriolanus, Macbeth, Henry V at CSC, founding member of Actors Shakespeare Project) as Antigonus; Ryan Winkles (Universe Rushing Apart: Blue Kettle and Here We Go at CSC, Joy and Pandemic at the Huntington, “Boston Strangler”) as Autolycus; Joshua Olumide (A Raisin in the Sun at New Rep, the Oscar-winning film “American Fiction”) as Florizel; and Nettie Chickering (Much Ado about Nothing for CSC) as Emilia.
The cast also includes the CSC2 company with Clara Hevia as Perdita, Cleveland Nicoll as Clown, John Blair as First Lord, Bella Grace Harris as Gaoler/Bohemian Servant, Ednilson Tavares as Second Lord, Ryan Richard Doyle as Cleomenes, Dyce Stephens as Dion, Chloe Boyan as First Lady/Dorcas, Rilyn Gardner as Second Lady/Mopsa, and Anne Borzner as Doctor/First Gentleman, with youth artist Eviva Rose (Macbeth for CSC) as Mamillius.
Scenic design is by James J. Fenton, Costume Design by Rachel Padula-Shufelt, Lighting Design by Max Grano de Oro, Music Composed by Mackenzie Adamik, and Sound Design by David Remedios, with Movement and Choreography by Victoria Awkward.
Director Bryn Boice is an award-winning director, educator, actor, and producer, as well as CSC’s Associate Artistic Director and Director of Education & Training. For CSC Bryn helmed Universe Rushing Apart: Blue Kettle & Here We Go – two Caryl Churchill one-acts – which garnered her the Elliot Norton Award for Outstanding Director, Large Theatre. Other recent Boston-area credits include: The Sound Inside and The Children (both Elliot Norton nominated for Outstanding Production, Speakeasy Stage); The Book of Will, Into the Breeches! (Elliot Norton nom. for Direction and Production, Hub Theatre Company); Tall Tales from Blackburn Tavern, Gloria (Gloucester Stage); The Half-Life of Marie Curie (The Nora Company); Admissions (The Gamm Theatre); Last Night at Bowl-Mor Lanes (Greater Boston Stage Company); an all-female production of Julius Caesar for Actors’ Shakespeare Project; and a number of Apprentice Repertory Company and Stage2 productions for CSC. New York, regional and other Boston credits as an actor and/or director include work with Asolo Repertory Company, Boston Playwrights’ Theatre, Anthem Theatre Company, Okoboji Theatre, InProximity Theatre, Theatre Row, Martha’s Vineyard PAC, Monomoy Theatre, Caroline’s on Broadway, and Manhattan Theatre Club. Before turning full-time to CSC, she taught at Salem State University, where her wide-ranging experience allowed her to teach Voice for Performance, Applied Stage Movement, Public Speaking, Directing, Acting III (Early Realism), Dramatic Theory & Criticism, and Dialects, among others. MFA in Directing, Boston University. MFA in Acting, Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training (FSU). Member AEA. For more information visit www.brynboice.com
The Winter’s Tale is supported by our generous sponsors and partners including The Liberty Mutual Foundation, the Klarman Family Foundation, the Daymarc Foundation, the Paul and Edith Babson Foundation, Massachusetts Cultural Council, Ovation TV, Xfinity, the City of Boston, the Theater League of Kansas City, GBH, EDGE Media Network, Massachusetts Convention Center Authority, Downtown Boston BID, the Max and Victoria Dreyfus Foundation, The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, City of Boston Parks and Recreation, Suffolk University, The Newbury Boston, Barton and Guestier, and Boston Common Magazine.
Commonwealth Shakespeare Company (CSC), best known for its annual free performances on Boston Common, is a non-profit theater organization founded in 1996, dedicated to artistic excellence, accessibility, and education. CSC’s Free Shakespeare on the Common has served over one million audience members over its 27-year history and has become a beloved summer tradition enjoyed by more than 50,000 people annually. Most recently, CSC presented Macbeth (with Faran Tahir and Joanne Kelly), directed by Steven Maler in 2023, Much Ado About Nothing, directed by Megan Sandberg-Zakian in 2022, and The Tempest (with John Douglas Thompson as Prospero) to great acclaim in 2021.
In addition to its live theatre productions, CSC also provides robust Education and Training programs, including our Apprentice Training Program and CSC2 company for early-career actors, and Stage2 programming for middle and high school students and educators. For more information, visit commshakes.org.