A runaway hit at the Edinburgh Fringe and Kitchen Theatre Company in Ithaca, Polishing Shakespeare arrives Off Broadway on July 10th
Watch the Trailer.
A dot-com billionaire pays an esteemed American theatre company to translate Shakespeare into English (Wait. What?). A sly comedy inspired by an unbelievably true story. To sell out or not to sell out—is that the question?
A runaway hit at the Edinburgh Fringe and Kitchen Theatre Company in Ithaca, Polishing Shakespeare arrives Off Broadway.
Polishing Shakespeare
by Brian Dykstra
directed by Margarett Perry
with
Brian Dykstra
Kate Levy
Kate Siahaan-Rigg
Scenic & Lighting Designby Tyler M. Perry
Sound Design by Ariana Cardoza
Costume Design by MuMbles
★★★★
“An Absolute Delight!”
-Three Weeks
★★★★
“razor sharp script…an absolute delight for lovers of theatre.”-Three Weeks”
— Three Weeks
★★★★
“Brian Dykstra’s script is high polemic poetry. Every. Single. Word is a masterclass in precision.”
—Get Your Coats On
★★★★★
”A satire of coruscating wit that rocked the rafters with bright laughter and gasps of pleasure from the opening weekend’s audiences. Dykstra’s newest work stages a battle royale between Art and Commerce...It’s a fierce yet hilarious debate about money, artistic truth, ‘selling out,’ and as the evening progresses, a descent into an Orwellian landscape of thought management that feels all too present in today’s climate...This soaring triumph of text and stagecraft is not to be missed!"
—Ithaca Times
★★★★
“a meditation on art in society.”
— British Theatre Guid
★★★★★
“The show uses finely wrought prose to explore the unavoidable battle between a donor’s power of the purse, and art’s criticism of such power.”
— FringeFan
★★★★★
“Hilarious! Kate Levy, Brian Dykstra and Kate Siahaan-Rigg are incredibly amazing as they banter, bargain, and bully each other for their own needs and wishes; with both comedy and reality of today’s harsh theatre atmosphere taking center stage. This is a play every theater executive, funder, and board member as well as the playwrights themselves should see.”
— Theatre Eddys
★★★★
“a fast-paced, skillful piece of theatre...
an exhilarating, entertaining rollercoaster of a ride.”
- Edinburgh Reporter
★★★★
“Beautiful, lyrical ruminations on Shakespeare’s legacy, the importance of art, and the influence of money and capitalism on creative expression.”-Theatre Weekly
— Theatre Weekly
Photos by Rachel Philipson
Shakespeare Image by Alan Buttar