About Us
Since its pass-the-hat origins in 1981, the Reduced Shakespeare Company has created ten world-renowned stage shows, two television specials, several failed TV pilots, and numerous radio pieces, all of which have been performed, seen, and heard the world over. The company’s itinerary has included stops off-Broadway, at the White House, the Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, London’s West End, Seattle Repertory Theatre, American Repertory Theatre and Montreal’s famed Just For Laughs Festival, as well as performances in Israel, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Japan, Malta, Singapore and Bermuda, plus countless civic and university venues throughout the USA, the UK, and Europe.
The company’s first three shows, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged), The Complete History of America (abridged) and The Bible: The Complete Word of God (abridged) ran for nine years at the Criterion Theatre in Piccadilly Circus. They were London’s longest-running comedies, and the RSC had more shows running in the West End than Andrew Lloyd Webber. They were also funnier.
In 2016, in honor of the company’s 35th anniversary and the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, the RSC premieres its tenth stage show, William Shakespeare’s Long Lost First Play (abridged), at the Folger Shakespeare Theatre in Washington DC. In 2013 the “Bad Boys of Abridgment” unveiled The Complete History of Comedy (abridged) – to critical and commercial acclaim at both Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park and Merrimack Repertory Theatre, as well as on national tours of the the USA and UK. The Complete World of Sports (abridged) opened in 2010 at Merrimack Rep and after touring the USA and UK, ran at the Arts Theatre in London during the 2012 London Olympics. In 2011 came the world premiere of The Ultimate Christmas Show (abridged) which became Merrimack Repertory Theatre’s best-selling holiday show ever, and the third-best-selling show in MRT’s history and also enjoyed a successful run at San Diego Repertory Theatre as well as multiple tours across the USA.
Upcoming Tour Dates
USA
| Date | City | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| Tour: Hamlet’s Big Adventure (a prequel) | ||
| Feb 06 2021 | Batavia, IL | Fermilab Arts Series |
| Address: Kirk Road & Pine Street. RESCHEDULED FROM 4/18/20 Buy Tickets | ||
| Mar 23 2021 - Mar 25 2021 | Reston, VA | Center Stage, Reston Community Center |
| Address: 2310 Colts Neck Rd, Reston, VA 20191. RESCHEDULED FROM 3/21/20 Buy Tickets | ||
| Apr 21 2021 | Washington, PA | Olin Fine Arts Center- Washington & Jefferson College |
| RESCHEDULED FROM 3/19/20 Buy Tickets | ||
| Apr 29 2021 | Lynchburg, VA | Academy Center of the Arts |
| RESCHEDULED FROM 5/16/20 | ||
RSC Podcasts
Daniel Jose Molina brilliantly played Hal in both parts of Henry IV and the title role of Henry V At the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in 2017 & 2018. Now quarantining in the Chicago area with his wife Alejandra Escalante (who fiercely played Hotspur opposite him in Henry IV Part 1), Daniel discusses how the roles came to him, and shares how Hal’s fear of becoming king matches the actor’s fear of playing him; the importance of knowing that Hal belongs in Eastcheap and isn’t just a tourist; how to best fight imposter syndrome; passing the baton to your fellow actors; the challenge of translating Shakespeare back into English; having multiple versions of the same conversation; the value of discovering new dream roles; devising the elevator pitch of Hal’s journey; and the flattering presence of the Reduced Shakespeare Company in his actor origin story. (Length 28:56)
Podcast: Download (33.5MB)
Paul Edmondson is the Head of Research and Knowledge and Director of the Stratford-Upon-Avon Poetry Festival for the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust and, together with Professor Sir Stanley Wells, has just published All the Sonnets of Shakespeare, which collects Shakespeare’s 154 standalone sonnets along with most of the other sonnets Shakespeare included in his plays, and arranges them all for the very first time in the order in which they were probably written. Paul discusses how he and Sir Stanley had a desire to counter the damaging (and reductive) narrative of a so-called Fair Youth and Dark Lady, and includes revelations of a lifetime of writing; recitations by request; unexpected wisdom from a relatively young poet; recognizing the difficulty of reading the sonnets; schoolboy exercises; how sonnets 50 and 51 suggest that Shakespeare wrote them while on horseback; and the possibility (probably the certainty) of leaving a lasting impact on how we understand Shakespeare’s biography. (Length 28:48)
Podcast: Download (33.3MB)
Award-winning playwright, audio dramatist, and now screenwriter Madhuri Shekar is an alum of Julliard’s playwriting program and has an MFA from USC in Dramatic Writing and a dual Master’s degree in Global Media and Communications from USC and the London School of Economics. Madhuri was awarded the 2020 Lanford Wilson Playwriting Award and her audio drama Evil Eye won the 2020 Audie Award for Best Original Work, and now Evil Eye has been turned into a movie for Amazon Prime. Madhuri talks about how she first started writing stories as a child and discusses our shared Bay Area roots; how she felt seen at a performance of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged); the gift of parental encouragement; the perfection of a scary movie directed by identical twins; the marvel of accurate trailers; huge love for (and the difficulty of achieving) genre tonal shifts; the challenge of performing in empty space; a time to slow down; and the power of theatre and the importance of artist safety. ALSO FEATURING: Our unabridged joy at being a reduced part of Madhuri’s origin story! (Length 22:06)
Podcast: Download (25.6MB)
RSC News
Spend an Afternoon with The Remote Shakespeare Company!
A One-Day Only Live Streaming YouTube & Facebook Event
Sunday, July 12, 2020 – Noon Pacific/3pm Eastern/8pm UK
Please join the Reduced Shakespeare Company and Reston Center Stage on Sunday, July 12, 2020 at Noon Pacific/3pm Eastern/5pm UK for a remote live-streaming afternoon of subversive and joyful entertainment: The Reduced Shakespeare Company in An Afternoon with the Remote Shakespeare Company. (CLICK THROUGH FOR LINKS WHERE TO WATCH!)
The authors of POP-UP SHAKESPEARE! Join Jennie, Reed, and Austin TODAY, June 20, 2020, as they chat about the creation of their “stunning” (Huffington Post) illustrated book Pop-Up Shakespeare. They’ll also take your questions! Find them on the RSC Facebook page here. And the RSC YouTube page here. 11am PST / 1pm CST / 2 EST / 7pm BST
We are actors and playwrights more used to making jokes to defuse tension, but these are serious times so we will will be brief: BLACK LIVES MATTER. The Reduced Shakespeare Company stands in support the communities of color who suffer disproportionate levels of violence in this country. Things must change. We must do better. ForContinue reading
The End. What more do you want? Go away!