Shakespeare’s “King Phycus”
Play Description
A laugh-out-loud parody par excellence of Shakespeare's tragedies. Wickedly whimsical, delightfully devious, with six blended tragedies, thirty-one parts, forty location changes and one enormous sword-swinging battle of twenty thousand men.
Production Info
Cast: 6 total (2 female, 4 male)Full Length Comedy (about 100 minutes)
Minimal Set Requirements
Period Costumes
- Reviews
- About the Author(s)
- About the Book
- Special Notes
- Productions
Press Quotes
“Much like the bit in Reduced Shakespeare’s COMPLETE WORKS (ABRIDGED) that combines all of the Bard’s comedies into one gigantic super-comedy, SHAKESPEARE’S ‘KING PHYCUS’ is a pithy mash-up of the more memorable Tragedies. In this hilarious parody, Hamlet and Juliet are siblings, the former married to the Scottish Macbetty, the latter betrothed to the deformed Gloucester by their father the great King Phycus, whose Queen, Gertrude, has recently been murthered. Meanwhile, incongruously, Brutus is an Italian ambassador and Romeo a Roman spy. If this seems like a lot to handle, it is — and that’s not even all of it. Yet the ingenuity of Tom Willmorth’s script is well matched by an ensemble of energetic performers and increasingly clever staging … Miraculously, the plot somehow comes together, despite its many comedic detours. Although it does end with a bunch of dead bodies onstage, SHAKESPEARE’S ‘KING PHYCUS’ is no tragedy.” —Neal Ryan Shaw, Newcity (Chicago)
“… from the delightful opening pantomime, set to a recording of Frank Sinatra singing ‘If I Had You,’ of a young couple meeting, courting, and deciding to marry, it’s clear that a refreshingly original sensibility is at work. Mitnick has a lot more on his mind than obvious laughs in this consistently inventive and surprising comedy-drama.” —Erik Haagensen, Backstage
“Mitnick seems to be the rare young playwright more interested in his elders than in his contemporaries.” —Alexis Soloski, Village Voice
“Mitnick displays classy wit, gentle humanity, and flashes of formal innovation.” —Scott Brown, New York
Author(s)
Tom WillmorthTom Willmorth's playwriting career began with Chicago's Illegitimate Players, co-authoring a trio of full-length parodies: THE GLASS MENDACITY (spoofing Tennessee Williams), A CHRISTMAS TWIST (Dickens), and OF GRAPES AND NUTS (Steinbeck). OF GRAPES AND NUTS received a Joseph Jefferson Citation for play adaptation. Willmorth has scripted four commissioned works for Idaho Theater for Youth, including FURNITURE THAT TALKS, NO FISH IN THE HOUSE, and FOOL'S GOLD. His COMMEDIA DELL LAZZI was presented at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC as part of its Imagination Celebration for young audiences. Willmorth is uniquely suited to edit Shakespeare's KING PHYCUS, having performed as an actor for 25 seasons with the Idaho Shakespeare Festival. For 15 years, he has co-produced I S F's pre-curtain Green Shows with writer/actor Joe Golden. The team recently scripted and performed THE KRUMBLIN FOUNDATION, a two-man comedy, for Boise Contemporary Theater. Tom is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University Drama Department, and the Second City Training Center in Chicago. He lives and works in Boise, Idaho with his wife, Christina Lang, and daughter, Katie.
Special Notes
If original stage producers credits appear in bold below, all licensees are required to include them in the following form on the title page in all programs distributed in connection with performances of the Play and in all advertising in which the full cast appears in size of type not less than ten percent (10%) of the size of the title of the Play:
First presented by the Strange Tree Group and The Lord Chamberlain's Men, Chicago
In addition, the following must appear within all programs distributed in connection with performances of the Play:
by special arrangement with Broadway Play Publishing Inc, NYC
www.broadwayplaypub.com
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