Antony & Cleopatra

PlayShakespeare.com

“Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival approaches the play’s disparate moods and expansive plots with ambition and enthusiasm, and with Holdridge’s confident direction and the talents of the cast and crew, brings it all together into a sweeping, epic, prestige drama.”

“Bledsoe plays Antony with a sense of careless authority and confidence.”

“Tembe portrays Cleopatra’s emotional extremes as layers of deliberate performance…Tembe shows her effortlessly calibrating her dramatic presentation to her perceived audience.”

“Antony and Cleopatra frames the title characters’ sweeping passion as inextricably linked with the shifting political and military turmoil of post-Republic Rome, and the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival brings all its varied features to life.”

“The cast overall is quite strong, handling the tonal shifts from romance to comedy to drama and back with aplomb.”

“Ilia Isorelýs Paulino is a charming and confident Charmian, with excellent chemistry with Tembe.”

“Liam Craig as Enobarbus emphasizes the contrasting side of loyalty with a growing weariness and disillusionment.”

“Director Eleanor Holdridge does an excellent job wrangling the sprawling text into a steadily- paced saga.”

“Holdridge wisely composites numerous bit parts into consistent supporting characters who provide the production with additional emotional depth.”

“Holdridge tackles the text’s avalanche of action and exposition with a calm proficiency.”

“Tying together the production is the music, Middle Eastern-inspired, with a driving beat urging the action ever onwards.”

“The costume design by Sarah Cubbage establishes a modern setting that nevertheless has a deliberately timeless air, with the Romans’ formal dress uniforms and Egypt’s high fashion recalling several centuries’ worth of style.”

“The wardrobe of Cleopatra and her attendants perfectly conveys Egypt’s high-powered glamor.”

“Scenic designer Roman Tatarowicz provides a fitting opulence and grandeur with the Art Deco-inspired set of gold-spattered black marble…(creates) a constantly metamorphosing visual display that complements the ever-changing characters and plot.”

The Morning Call

“Intriguing….”

“Powerful, nuanced performances.”

“Outstanding production….”

“Director Eleanor Holdridge has created a fascinating world that feels both ancient and present-day in its scope.”

“Nondumiso Tembe is memorable as Cleopatra, the Queen of the Nile. She perfectly captures the queen’s mercurial nature.”

“Neal Bledsoe is every bit a match for Tembe’s Cleopatra, exhibiting a forceful presence.”

“Tembe makes Cleopatra’s power, even in her final moments, undeniable.”

“Bledsoe effectively captures how Antony is torn between his desire to be with Cleopatra and his desire to maintain power in Rome.”

“Bledsoe’s Antony is still noble as he confronts his own defeat.”

“The clever casting of Eleanor Handley as Agrippa, Caesar’s efficient lieutenant, juxtaposes against the sensuous world of Cleopatra.”

“Luigi Sotille is notable as the opportunistic Pompey.”

“Sarah Cubbage’s wonderful costumes range from Cleopatra’s fabulous outfits to a range of assorted militaristic uniforms.”

The Lehigh Valley Press

“Big, sprawling and grand…”

“Lavish Egyptian stylized gowns by Costume Designer Sarah Cubbage.”

“Director Eleanor Holdridge emphasizes the dynamics as a triangle of power politics between Marc Anthony (Neal Bledsoe), Cleopatra (Nondumiso Tembe) and Octavius Caesar (Justin Mark).”

“Bledsoe and Tembe each convey the conflicted loyalties of their respective characters.”

“Bledsoe is a tall, stoic presence, and yet represents well the ambiguity of his character.”

“Memorable are Matthew Floyd Miller (Eros), providing a modicum of comic relief; Liam Craig (Domitius Enobarbus), strong in audience direct-address speeches; Eleanor Handley (Agrippa), Luigi Sottile (Thidias) and Shpend Xani (Lepidus).”

Features & Press Releases