IOWA CITY, IA- Riverside Theatre, Iowa City's resident professional theatre company, will produce Riverside Theatre in the Park from June 15 - July 8, featuring As You Like It by William Shakespeare, directed by Theodore Swetz, and The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare, directed by Kristin Horton.

This is the 13th season of the four-week event, formerly called Riverside Theatre Shakespeare Festival.

"Emphasizing the outdoor setting will, we hope, remind people about how magical live theatre in the outdoors can be. As the play begins, night begins to fall, the birds sing, the stars come out. It transports you to another time and place," said Riverside Theatre Artistic Director Jody Hovland.

Tickets for this summer's Riverside Theatre in the Park will go on sale on Friday, May 4 at noon.

In As You Like It, Rosalind, Shakespeare's most breathtaking heroine, and her boyfriend Orlando find themselves in the enchanted Forest of Arden, where "all the world's a stage," and where sudden infatuation is as confusing as it is beautiful. As You Like It has everything people adore about Shakespearean comedy: mistaken identity, cross-dressing, madness, mayhem, lust, laughter, and of course plenty of romance, both heartbreaking and joyous.

"This romantic comedy celebrates the importance of love and has a soothing transformative effect on all who enter its world," said Swetz.

Arguably one of Shakespeare's most controversial plays, The Merchant of Venice introduces characters rich in complexity, humor and, most of all, flaws. To help Bassanio win the heart of the wealthy heiress Portia, Venetian merchant Antonio borrows money from Shylock, a Jewish moneylender. Amid the blossoming love, romance and comic pursuits of the heart, Shylock's loan goes unpaid. Antonio must suffer the consequences of defaulting on the loan - and therefore pay the penalty: a pound of his own flesh. Post-performance Talkbacks will be held after all performances of The Merchant of Venice.

"Shylock is a man desperately grasping for respect in a world infected with hatred and greed - he is a tragic character who can't escape this infection himself. A more modern play one will not find," said Swetz, who will be portraying Shylock in The Merchant of Venice in addition to directing As You Like It.

The Merchant of Venice and related audience education and outreach efforts are supported by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Riverside Theatre in the Park is performed outdoors at the Riverside Festival Stage in Iowa City's Lower City Park every summer. This Globe-inspired theatre set against a bluff and adjacent to a willow-ringed reflecting pond, seats 472.

"It's always exciting for us to assemble the summer company -more than 30 actors, directors and designers from New York, Chicago, Milwaukee, Kansas City, as well as right here in Iowa City. Actors play roles in both productions, and often understudy additional roles, so their time here is very full," said Hovland.

Several returning actors will appear in featured roles this summer: Kelly Gibson (Ah, Wilderness!) as Portia, Kalen Harriman (Mary's Wedding, Romeo and Juliet, Love's Labour's Lost) as Rosalind, Jim Van Valen (A Steady Rain, Ah, Wilderness!) as Jaques and John William Watkins (Guys on Ice) as Gratiano.

Single tickets for Riverside Theatre in the Park range from $17-$39 with discounts available for students, seniors, and youth, as well as those wishing to purchase tickets to both shows. Special pricing is also available for groups of 10 or more.

Four Family Nights will take place on June 17, 24, 26, and July 3. On Family Nights, up to two adults accompanying a youth will receive their tickets at the $17 youth price. Family nights are sponsored by funding from the Johnson County Community Foundation.

Tickets can be ordered by calling the Riverside Theatre Box Office at 319-338-7672. The Riverside Theatre Box Office is open Monday through Friday, noon to 4 p.m. After Memorial Day, the Box Office hours change to Tuesday-Saturday, noon to 4 p.m. Single tickets may also be order online at www.riversidetheatre.org

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Performance Schedule

June 15, 8 p.m. - As You Like It

June 16, 8 p.m. - As You Like It

June 17, 7 p.m. - As You Like It*

June 22, 8 p.m. - The Merchant of Venice

June 23, 8 p.m. - The Merchant of Venice

June 24, 7 p.m. - The Merchant of Venice*

June 26, 7 p.m. - As You Like It*

June 27, 8 p.m. - As You Like It

June 28, 8 p.m. - The Merchant of Venice

June 29, 8 p.m. - The Merchant of Venice

June 30, 8 p.m. - As You Like It

July 1, 7 p.m. - The Merchant of Venice

July 3, 7 p.m. - The Merchant of Venice*

July 5, 8 p.m. - As You Like It

July 6, 8 p.m. - As You Like It

July 7, 8 p.m. - The Merchant of Venice

July 8, 7 p.m. - As You Like It

* Family Night, where up to 2 adults accompanying a youth will receive their tickets at the youth price.

Iowa City, IA - Up next at Riverside Theatre is the area premiere of the gritty and complex Broadway thriller, A Steady Rain by Keith Huff, directed by Joseph Price.

 

A Steady Rain is about two Chicago cops, Joey and Denny, who are lifelong best friends and partners on the beat until a chain of events spirals out of control threatening their jobs, their friendship and their lives.

 

"Joey and Denny grew up together and have always lived 'back to back' knowing that they could rely on one another no matter the circumstances," Price said.  "We meet them in a sort of internal affairs purgatory...the men face a world where all seems lost and we witness their struggle to make sense of that world."

 

This gripping duologue features area actors Martin Andrews as Joey and Jim Van Valen as Denny.

 

A Steady Rain was performed on Broadway in 2009 and Huff is currently working on adapting the play for EON Films. Huff is a graduate of the UI's Playwright Workshop.

 

"The lives these characters live, what they see and are asked to do on a daily basis - it's slowly wearing them down - destroying them.  Both of them are looking for salvation.  Only one can find it. It's an exciting story to tell with complicated characters to explore," said Andrews.

 

Andrews is the Producing Director for Working Group Theatre and an MFA graduate of UI. He last appeared at Riverside Theatre in Working Group Theatre's The Toymaker's War and Riverside's All My Sons.

 

Van Valen is an Assistant Professor of Theatre and Head of Acting at Cornell College and an MFA graduate of UI. He was last seen in Riverside's summer productions of Ah, Wilderness! and The Two Gentlemen of Verona.

 

A Steady Rain also features lighting design by Bryon Winn, sound design by Katherine Horowitz, and costume design by Adriana Fernandez.

 

A Steady Rain contains strong language and adult content.

 

Tickets for A Steady Rain, March 30 - April 15, are $15-$28 with discounts available for those over 60, those under 30, and youth. $15 students rush tickets are available on a first come first served basis 20 minutes before curtain. Tickets are available by phone at (319) 338-7672, online at www.riversidetheatre.org or in person at the Riverside Theatre Box

Office, located at 213 N. Gilbert St., Iowa City, IA.

 

Immediately following the opening night performance on Friday, March 30 there will be a reception and conversation with Huff in the theatre with a cash bar.

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Performance Schedule

 

Friday, March 30 at 7:30 p.m.*

 

Saturday, March 31 at 7:30 p.m.

 

Sunday, April 1 at 2 p.m.**

 

Thursday, April 5 at 7:30 p.m.

 

Friday, April 6 at 7:30 p.m.

 

Saturday, April 7 at 7:30 p.m.

 

Thursday, April 12 at 7:30 p.m.

 

Friday, April 13 at 7:30 p.m.

 

Saturday, April 14 at 7:30 p.m.

 

Sunday, April 15 at 2 p.m.

 

There will be no performance on Sunday, April 8.

 

*Reception and conversation with playwright Keith Huff in the theatre with a cash bar immediately following the opening night performance on Friday, March 30.

 

**Talkback Sunday, April 1 - Stay after this performance to chat with company members and gain behind-the-scenes info about the play. Free and open to the public.

Iowa City, IA -Don't miss the fun and excitement of Walking the Wire, Riverside Theatre's annual festival of original monologues, which will bring to the stage a wide variety of crazy situations as part of this year's theme, This Will Never Work.

Walking the Wire: This Will Never Work opens Friday, March 2 and runs through Sunday, March 11, for 7 performances only. The show is directed by Jody Hovland and sponsored by Integrated DNA Technologies.

With over 100 submissions from across the U.S. and beyond, the dozen monologues in the show reflect a diverse range of original work.

The 12 playwrights whose work will be presented are: Brent Boyd (North Hollywood, CA); Dave Carley (Toronto, ON); Ron Clark (Iowa City); Mark Harvey Levine (Pasadena, CA); Deborah Magid (Cleveland Heights, OH); Gordon Mennenga (Iowa City); Mike Moran (Mount Vernon); Amanda Petefish-Schrag (Maryville, MO); Gwendolyn Rice (Madison, WI); Janet Schlapkohl (Iowa City); Jen Silverman (Astoria, NY); and Amy White (Mount Vernon).

Three area writers, Clark, Moran and Schlapkohl, will perform their own work, with an additional cast of local actors including Tim Budd, David Busch, Fannie Hungerford, Katherine Smith, and Jessica Wilson.

Performances are Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $28 for adults, $25 for 60 and over/30 and under, $15 for youth (18 and under).

Tickets can be purchased online at www.riversidetheatre.org or by phone at (319) 338-7672. The Riverside Theatre Box Office is located at 213 N Gilbert St, Iowa City. Box office hours are: 12 - 4 p.m. Monday - Friday and 1 hour before performances.

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Iowa City, IA -Diamonds or Denim, Riverside Theatre's annual fundraising gala, will include a new and unique element this year, one-of-a-kind birdhouses.

The birdhouses were decorated by local artists, community members, members of Riverside Theatre's Board of Directors and patrons of the theatre and look like anything but ordinary birdhouses.

Using paint, paper, cloth, lights, feathers, beads, metal and repurposed materials, the birdhouses have been transformed by their designers into original pieces of art.

"When we distributed birdhouses to area artists and friends of Riverside - we had no idea they would come back to us with such unique designs," said Riverside Theatre Artistic Director Jody Hovland.  "They are truly one-of-a-kind art objects - who would have thought a simple wooden birdhouse would generate such wildly imaginative and whimsical ideas?"

The only way to see these creative creations is to come to Diamonds or Denim.

The birdhouses will be part of the table decorations at this year's fundraising gala and will be sold within the evening's silent auction.

This year's Diamonds or Denim will be held at hotelVetro suites & conference center in the Plaza Towers, 201 S. Linn St. Iowa City, on Friday, February 24, starting at 6 p.m.

The event features a silent auction, live auction, raffle drawing, music by Iowa City's most eclectic ensemble The Recliners, appetizers and desserts provided by local eateries, and a cash bar.

This year's raffle offers two fabulous prizes. The first raffle prize is a 14K two-toned white and yellow gold diamond bracelet. The second raffle prize is a $1,000 Visa ® Gift Card, usable anywhere Visa is accepted. Raffle tickets are $10 each or 3 for $25 and can be purchased by calling 319-338-7672. Raffle tickets will also be for sale at the event.

The professional live auction by Sharpless Auction offers a wide variety of unique experiences including dinners, excursions, accommodations in popular vacation destinations, and parties.

The silent auction will feature many unique items including jewelry, art, autographed books, handmade creations, and much more.

Regular tickets for Diamonds on Denim are $55 each ($45/ticket is tax-deductible) and tables of 10 are available for $500 ($40/ticket is tax-deductible). Discounted tickets are available for Riverdog Pass Holders for $50 each ($40/ticket is tax-deductible). Tickets can be purchased online at www.riversidetheatre.org, by phone at (319) 338-7672 or at the Riverside Theatre Box Office. The Box Office is located at 213 N. Gilbert St, Iowa City. Box Office Hours are: 12 - 4 p.m. Monday - Friday. Tickets can also be purchased at the door the night of the event. Tables of 10 must be arranged through the Box Office.

All proceeds from the evening will support Riverside Theatre programming.

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