Red Monkey Theater Group Presents Shakespeare’s ‘Much Ado About Nothing’
1/12/2017
Performances to benefit Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and The Artemis Project
Riverdale, N.Y. – Red Monkey Theater Group (RMTG), resident theater company at the University of Mount Saint Vincent, will present William Shakespeare’s “Much Ado About Nothing” in a 90-minute adaptation directed by Tal Aviezer. Performances are Saturday, January 21 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, January 29 at 2 p.m. in Cahill Theater on the College’s Riverdale campus at 6301 Riverdale Avenue, Riverdale, NY 10471. Tickets are on sale at www.redmonkeytheater.org ($25 general admission, $15 students and seniors, free for University of Mount Saint Vincent students and staff with ID).
The two performances will honor members of RMTG’s extended family who passed away in late 2016. All ticket proceeds from the January 21 performance will be donated to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation in honor of Dean Cocovinis. All ticket proceeds from the January 29 performance will be donated to The Artemis Project, a nonprofit animal rescue organization, in honor of Elliott Robinson.
The January 29 performance will also include a post-performance discussion with the director and cast facilitated by University of Mount Saint Vincent English professor Stephanie Pietros. To compliment the production, RMTG is also offering a free 90-minute “Acting Shakespeare” workshop on Saturday, January 28 at 2 pm, in which members of the company will help participants explore Elizabethan language, make dramatic choices, and bring characters to life. The January 28 workshop is free and open to the public, but participants must pre-register by emailing info@redmonkeytheater.org.
Written circa 1598, “Much Ado About Nothing” is a play set at the end of a war, at a time when people are allowing themselves to believe they have a future. Their emotions are thawing out after a period of national trauma. Soldiers are struggling to reenter the civilian world; survivors are struggling to rescue the bonds of family and friendship. Like any Shakespeare play, this is a piece that reaches across time to shake us by our collective cultural lapels. It confronts us with a wealth of ideas that couldn’t be more current—gender roles, infidelity, generational divides, civil war—and hope.
Following the January performances at Cahill Theater, “Much Ado About Nothing” will tour the Bronx, Westchester, Rockland, and Bergen counties from February through April 2017. A full listing of currently announced tour dates is available at www.redmonkeytheater.org.
This program is funded, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
For tickets, directions, and additional details, please visit www.redmonkeytheater.org.
Founded in 1999, The Red Monkey Theatre Group (RMTG) is the resident theater company of the University of Mount Saint Vincent in Riverdale, NY. A nonprofit performing arts company operating out of the college’s Cahill Theater, RMTG is dedicated to enriching local communities through the cultivation, creation, and presentation of live theater.
About the University of Mount Saint Vincent
Founded in 1847 by the Sisters of Charity, the University of Mount Saint Vincent offers nationally recognized liberal arts education and a select array of professional fields of study on a landmark campus overlooking the Hudson River. Committed to the education of the whole person, and enriched by the unparalleled cultural, educational and career opportunities of New York City, the College equips students with the knowledge, skills, and experiences necessary for lives of achievement, professional accomplishment and leadership in the 21st century.