Shakespeare’s illustrious prose is inextricably linked with the music that was performed in his plays. The Bard frequently directed his characters to burst into song, cannily catering to the vast audiences who flocked to the Globe Theatre, expecting to enjoy the popular melodies of the day that were interwoven throughout the narrative. English novelist and biographer Peter Ackroyd remarked, “It can be argued that Shakespeare was the first dramatist to make song an integral part of the drama and can thus be seen as the begetter of the musical theatre.”Â
Play, Music! features music from such memorable plays as All’s Well that Ends Well, As You Like It, Hamlet, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Taming of the Shrew, Twelfth Night, and more, penned by prominent 16th-century tunesmiths including John Dowland, King Henry VIII, Richard Tarleton, and Shakespeare himself. Theatro founder Brian Kay is the guest director for this performance.
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Ashlee Foreman, vocals
Brian Kay, vocals & plucked strings
David McCormick, baroque violin
​Anna O’Connell, vocals & historical harp
Holly Scarborough, historical winds & percussion
Brian Kay, vocals & plucked strings
David McCormick, baroque violin
​Anna O’Connell, vocals & historical harp
Holly Scarborough, historical winds & percussion
