Thinking Shakespeare Live: Sonnets! Finale

Tuesday, October 20, 2020 at 6:30 p.m. PDT

When The Old Globe shut down all live theatre operations in March due to the COVID-19 crisis, the Artistic and Arts Engagement Departments immediately pivoted several of their programs online to continue to serve the San Diego community. On March 31, Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein launched his Thinking Shakespeare Live: Sonnets! online to instant audience raves from around the nation. Sonnets! is an online version of Edelstein’s beloved Thinking Shakespeare Live! presentations, which he has staged at the Globe’s home in Balboa Park for years to widespread acclaim. Throughout the summer Edelstein presented his unique exploration of the language of Shakespeare as he featured a different sonnet each episode that both enlightened and entertained a growing global audience. The program is based on Edelstein’s book Thinking Shakespeare: A How-To Guide for Student Actors, Directors, and Anyone Else Who Wants to Feel More Comfortable with the Bard. Previous episodes can be seen on the Globe’s website or YouTube channel.

The illustrious Shakespearean actors who will bring the Bard’s sonnets to life are Globe alumni Opal Alladin (Hamlet, Tiny Beautiful Things, Hurricane Diane), Michelle Beck (The Wanderers), Kate Burton (The Tempest), Angel Desai (The Winter’s Tale, Double Indemnity), Monique Gaffney (Globe for All’s Much Ado About Nothing, Red Velvet), Michael Genet (Hamlet), Bill Irwin (In-Zoom), Lizan Mitchell (The Tempest), Aaron Clifton Moten (Romeo and Juliet), Herbert Siguenza (The Rainmaker), Jennifer Paredes (Globe for All’s Twelfth Night, American Mariachi), Keith Randolph Smith (August Wilson’s Jitney, Water by the Spoonful), Ruben Santiago-Hudson (director of August Wilson’s Jitney), and Blair Underwood (Othello).

Press Release