Entertainment/Ticket

Thursday, Aug. 14, 2008

The Bard beneath the stars

Traveling theater company to present ‘The Taming of the Shrew’ and ‘MacBeth’ in Paso in two free shows

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What could be better than Shakespeare under the stars?

A Los Angeles-based touring company will present two plays by the Bard this weekend at Centennial Park in Paso Robles. Both are free and open to the public.

“Shakespeare is the best. …You can put it on indoors, outdoors, and it just thrives,” said Brad Ashten, founder of the nonprofit theater company INDEPENDant Players.

Although INDEPENDant Players spends most of the year performing contemporary works in Los Angeles, the 20- member company hits the road every summer with “Shakespeare Under the Moon” — visiting California towns from Redwood City to Ridgecrest.

This is the third year the theater company has stopped in Paso Robles, said Rose O’Sullivan, a member of the city’s special events staff. The group also presented plays at Dinosaur Caves Park in Pismo Beach earlier this month.

“The troupe is very energetic. You can always tell they love what they do,” she said.

Inspired by the Bard

Shakespeare was the inspiration for INDEPENDant Players in August 1999, Ashten said. Cast as the lead in a San Diego production of “Hamlet,” Ashten—who studied theater at the University of Houston—moved from Texas to California. The show was unexpectedly canceled two weeks before opening night.

Rather than quit, however, Ashten emptied his bank account, found costumes and recast actors to deliver “Hamlet” on time in the same venue.

Inspired, he started his own theater company. After stints in Oceanside and Chicago, INDEPENDant Players found its current home in Los Angeles.

The company’s touring program, “Shakespeare Under the Moon” was created four years ago.

According to Ashten, summer is the perfect time for outdoor theater—both for audiences with free time and actors looking for off-season work. Audience members pick each year’s program.

He compares INDEPENDant Players to companies from Shakespeare’s day that traveled England in horse-drawn carts.

“That’s how we do it. We just show up in town and people come by the masses,” he said.

Unlike Renaissance actors, however, Ashten’s company travels with a diesel truck stocked with Elizabethan-style costumes, stage lights, a movable stage, a smoke machine and a $10,000 sound system.

At the same time, “We try to do very traditional shows,” he said. “We’re not going to do ‘Romeo and Juliet’ and set it on the moon.”

Each production features local “guest artists” — hometown kids chosen to appear alongside the company’s professionals. Selected months before each show, they practice at home and spend a couple hours rehearsing with the cast before they take the stage as soldiers, messengers and noblemen.

“We believe they should get off their rears, stop playing video games, stop watching television, and do something,” joked Ashten. He wasn’t sure who would be participating in Paso Robles’ shows.

Two plays on tap

On this weekend’s program are “The Taming of the Shrew,” a tart comedy about feuding and befuddled lovers, and “MacBeth,” a tale of murder and ambition set in medieval Scotland.

“Shrew,” which will be presented Saturday, is “a fun, fast production.…The energy is just nonstop. There’s a ton of laughs,” the director said.

“I’m a blood-and-guts guy, so I prefer ‘MacBeth,’ ” added Ashten, promising plenty of spooky, scary moments during Sunday’s show. “We go through five gallons of (fake) blood per production.”

According to Ashten, each family-friendly show clocks in at 1 hour, 45 minutes.

An outdoor venue

O’Sullivan encourages theatergoers to arrive early and enjoy a picnic dinner on Centennial Park’s grassy slopes. Wine and other drinks will be available for sale.

Summer evenings in Paso can be cool, so she recommends sweaters and blankets —but not chairs, because seating is on a hill.