The Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company is Michigan’s only year-round professional touring Shakespeare company. I have been lucky enough to have a long-standing collaboration with them, to the point that I consider Grand Rapids my second home.
Our work together includes Julius Caesar (2009), Romeo and Juliet (2012), The Duchess of Malfi (2016), Much Ado About Nothing (2017), Antony and Cleopatra (2018), and Richard III (2019).
Reflections on my work at Pigeon Creek
Twelfth Night at Pigeon Creek Shakespeare
I took a whirlwind trip to west Michigan to see my friends at the Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company perform my favorite Shakespearean comedy in one…Read more
Zoom will have Zoom
Tomorrow night, the online production of Measure for Measure that I put together with the Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company will be available on their YouTube…Read more
Antony and Cleopatra at the Rose
In August, we went back to Michigan for ten days to remount Antony and Cleopatra. People often ask me what this means, so here's the…Read more
She's Back!
Get in. We're going back to Egypt! Performance at the Rose, Blue Lake, Michigan, August 24. Cleopatra, John William Waterhouse, c. 1887Read more
Awards and Irony
This morning, my social media was buzzing with posts from friends at Pigeon Creek Shakespeare reporting their nominations for the Wilde Awards (Michigan's professional theater…Read more
Richard III Pictures
Most images by Seraphina Zorn, taken at the Dog Story Theater in Grand Rapids, March 5, 2019.Read more
Audience Response
I have been noodling over a mystery for the past couple of weeks, and I'm curious to hear other theater makers weigh in on it.…Read more
Be Kind
I've been thinking a lot about what it means to do a play about wickedness with such fundamentally kind people. Richard, after all, isn't the…Read more
Disembodied Directing: Final Report
The process for Richard III at Pigeon Creek was unusual because I spent the first three weeks (of a four-week process) directing via Skype. Now…Read more
Be Terrible
I knew, going into Richard, that I would have a huge personal connection with the women in this play. "It's a play about motherhood," I…Read more
We Get Around
Now that Richard III is rolling around Michigan and I'm home, I'm finding myself explaining to people more or less daily that the show goes…Read more
Richard III: Review from Encore Michigan
Bridgette Redman, of Encore Michigan dropped a fantastic review of Richard III after seeing it at the Dog Story Theater in Grand Rapids. LANSING, Mich.–If…Read more
The Sound of the Story
My master's thesis (one of them...) was about using sounds to communicate information about what was happening off-stage. It's a core component of the "theater…Read more
"All Violence is Misogyny."
I'm beyond excited about Richard III at Pigeon Creek Shakespeare. It's such an interesting play, and the actors are doing amazing work. The truth is,…Read more
21st Century Director
I wrote this before I went to Michigan, but it didn't post correctly. If you're curious how I was feeling about Skype directing after a…Read more
Richard's To-Do List
A couple of years ago, when I was reading Richard III in preparation to write a proposal for directing it at Pigeon Creek Shakespeare, one…Read more
From a Distance
I'm excited to join my friends at the Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company once again, this time for Richard III. Except that I won't exactly be…Read more
Review: Much Ado (remount)
It's been a good week in the critical acclaim department. Not only did our remount of Pigeon Creek's Much Ado earn slot #16 in Shakespeareances "Top 25" list, but Eric also posted a wonderful review of the show. You can read the full thing on his website, but here are some of my favorite observations (emphasis mine). Director Alisha Huber embraces many textual advantages the space offers her. In his gulling scene, Benedick (Brad Sytsma) hides among…Read more
Antony and Cleopatra: Review
Katherine recently sent me a review by Bridgette Redman of Encore Michigan, which for some reason didn't end up getting published. Bridgette said we could share some of it on our own websites and promo materials, so here are some of my favorite bits. Running now at Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company’s multiple locations, their “Antony and Cleopatra” is a love story and Katherine Mayberry and Scott…Read more
Silks and Magic and History
Every now and then, I have an idea that feels in my head like it will be the best thing ever and then I'm so nervous…Read more
Pigeon Creek 2019 Season Announcement
Last night, Pigeon Creek announced its 2019 season, so I can finally say, officially, I'm going to direct Richard III! Check out the video for the…Read more
Burning Too Bright
After Heidi saw Antony and Cleopatra (can I just pause for a moment and say how completely honored I am that Heidi, David, and Pam all made…Read more
Closing Time
Antony and Cleopatra had its last performance at Pigeon Creek this afternoon. I haven't seen the show in over a month, so I guess it…Read more
Sounds in Shakespeare
Little-known fact: I'm something of an expert in auditory signalling in early modern plays. That is rarely particularly useful, so I don't trot it out…Read more
Hold Each Other With Care
One thing I've noticed in my work on Antony and Cleopatra is how careful the youngest actors are about getting consent from each other before they touch…Read more
Triumph
One major turning point in Antony and Cleopatra is when Antony explains to Cleopatra exactly what will happen if she ends up trying to make a…Read more
So You Want to Take Your Kid to See A Play...
Why Theater? I have this theory that if your kids get into theater, they'll be too busy to cause much trouble. One of the best…Read more
Artwork!
I just got my first look at our show poster for Antony and Cleopatra. I can't remember the last time I loved the show art quite…Read more
Immersed
I spent the past few days dying long silks for my upcoming production of Antony and Cleopatra at Pigeon Creek Shakespeare. I haven't done any dye…Read more
Much Ado About the Rose
Some of these photos are mine (mostly from rehearsal) and some are from various audience members who posted them on Pigeon Creek's Facebook page or…Read more
Much Ado About Nothing at Pigeon Creek
In the 2016/2017 season, I somehow ended up directing two productions of Much Ado About Nothing. The first was with high school students at the American Shakespeare…Read more
Top Five
Seeing people's #threefictionalcharacters posts this week (which has been super fun, by the way), I've been thinking of other ways to sum up a person…Read more
Guiding Principles
Last spring, while on tour at King University in Tennessee, with Pigeon Creek Shakespeare, Katherine snapped (and subsequently facebooked) a sign in their greenroom that…Read more
Within the House Is Jove
Recently, a friend was in an accident. It was one of those situations where a split second was the difference between serious injury or death,…Read more
The Other Piece of My Heart
If you've been reading over here for any length of time, you know that, although I live in Virginia, I have a creative home in…Read more
Duchess Photos
Remember that time I said I was done with Duchess-obsessed posts? Lies, lies, all lies! I meant it at the time, but then Scott Lange sent me…Read more
When I Muse Thus...
I haven't written as much as I would have expected about my theater work on this blog. In part, this is because it's hard to…Read more
Duchess of Malfi Review (Encore Michigan)
Duchess of Malfi intrigues and delights Review published in Encore Michigan, by Marin Heinritz, 1/26/2016 Playwright John Webster, Shakespeare’s contemporary, is known for his twisted,…Read more
Romeo and Juliet
In rehearsal the other night, Sean Kelley, who had been Romeo in my 2012 Romeo and Juliet at Pigeon Creek Shakespeare, pulled out his phone and…Read more
Julius Caesar Review (MLive)
By James A. Kroll NEW YORK CITY - Last night (Aug. 13) I had the opportunity to see the Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company's New York…Read more
Julius Caesar Audience Response (Jo Miller)
This is a note from Jo Miller, of the English Department at Grand Valley State University. Katherine asked her to record her thoughts on the…Read more