Usually, when an audience comes to see a play, they would sit down at the main stage of Boston Court but for “Measure Still for Measure,” they will have to roam around the entire building to see the show.
“Measure Still for Measure,” is Boston Court Pasadena’s first-ever immersive play-within-a-play. It is written and directed by the theater’s Artistic Director, Jessica Kubzansky and will run from September 7 to October 15 at 8 p.m.
Kubzansky’s work confronts issues of power and gender politics, while also drawing from Shakespeare’s classic work.
In the play, a renowned director rehearses a spectacular new production of Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure, “the original #metoo story” but backstage, there is a bigger drama playing out.
“As they show up for the beginning of the play, they might see an actor running lines in the parking lot, or as they’re coming down the driveway, they might encounter a conversation that actors are having on their way into the rehearsal,” said Kubzansky. “There are also cameras giving you access to other parts of the building.”
Producing the upcoming play has been a challenge for the people behind Boston Court, who have done for the first time the concept of play within a play.
Kubzansky said every inch of the building will be used, one of the challenges is storage.
Kubzansky said she created the play as she has always been interested in the layered complexities of the rehearsal process and she wanted to share with the audience things they would never get to see.
“I’ve always been really excited to share the whole rehearsal process and the ways in which a building gets used when it’s not in public performance. And so that’s something I’ve been obsessed with for years, is to share as much of the building as is possible as a piece of the experience.”
She encouraged residents to see the performances saying access to the backstage and being able to see what happens behind the scene is a rare opportunity.
“The ability to really see what happens that goes on in the making of a play is an opportunity that you don’t often get. And also, I think that the actors are fascinating and there’s a lot of rich entertainment, both the silly and sublime, as well as things that are more difficult to experience when you attend.”
For more information about the upcoming performance, visit:
https://bostoncourtpasadena.org/events/measurestillformeasure/
