History of The Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre
The Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre was founded as The Red Heel Theatre in 1989, initially focusing on classic works of English theatre. In 1993, Carmen Khan became the Artistic Director of Red Heel and in 1996 focused the company's efforts on the works of Shakespeare, renaming it The Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival. Since that time, The Festival has produced 30 plays, reached nearly 30,000 High School students and nearly 70,000 adult audience members. In 2008/9, we engaged in intensive planning with our board of directors and cultural and community leaders and decided to re-brand and rename the company to better reflect our programming. We have added several new programs for adults and students including a lecture series featuring world-renowned Shakespeare Scholars, Shakespeare School Tour which also tours in schools, and a Classical Acting Academy providing early career actors with intense classical training culminating in a free summer Shakespeare play for the public.
In Summer 2008, The City Council of Philadelphia passed a resolution honoring The Theatre for excellence in performance and educational programming, recognizing the impact The Theatre has made on Philadelphia’s cultural landscape and particularly on its students.
Production History
2010 Macbeth
2010 A Midsummer Night's Dream
2010 The Classical Acting Academy's, Henry IV, Part 1
2009 The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)
2008 Romeo & Juliet
2008 Pericles, Prince of Tyre
2007 The Taming of the Shrew
2007 Othello
2006 Much Ado About Nothing
2006 The Tempest
2006 The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)
2006 Young Professional Company, The Two Gentlemen of Verona
2005 As You Like It
2005 Hamlet
2005 Young Professional Company, Twelfth Night
2004 The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)
2003 Julius Caesar
2003 Macbeth
2002 Othello
2002 A Midsummer Night’s Dream
2002 King Lear
2001 Measure for Measure
2001 Twelfth Night
2001 Cymbeline
2000 The Winter’s Tale
2000 The Taming of the Shrew
2000 Romeo and Juliet
1999 Much Ado About Nothing
1999 Hamlet
1998 The Merchant of Venice
1998 The Tempest
1997 Macbeth
1996 Deirdre of the Sorrows
1996 Much Ado About Nothing
Awards and Accolades
City of Philadelphia
2008 Resolution from the City Council of Philadelphia
Honoring the theatre for its
commitment to producing excellent Shakespeare productions
and education programming and making both accessible to all. Introduced by Jannie L. Blackwell
and
Blondell Reynolds Brown
Barrymore Awards
2007 Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Play Award for John Zak as Caliban, The Tempest
Barrymore Nominations
2008 Excellence in Theatre Education and Community Service Award Prize, sponsored by the Virginia and
Harvey Kimmel Arts Education Fund for The Open Door Project
2007 Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Play for John Zak as Caliban, The Tempest
2007 Charlotte Cushman Award for Outstanding Leading Actress in a Play for Christie Parker as Desdemona,
Othello
2006 Clear Sound Award for Outstanding Sound Design for Fabian Obispo, The Tempest
2003 Outstanding Sound Design for Fabian Obispo, Macbeth
2002 Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Play for John Peakes as Gloucester, King Lear
2002 Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Play for Mollie Hall as Puck, A Midsummer Night's Dream
2002 Outstanding Original Music for Obadiah Eaves, King Lear
2001 Outstanding Direction of a Play for Harriet Power, Measure for Measure
2001 Outstanding Leading Actor in a Play for David Howey as Malvolio, Twelfth Night
2001 Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Play for Ian Merrill Peakes as Mercutio, Romeo & Juliet