Category: News

The Boston Globe: In ‘Birdy’, the scars of war, the bonds of friendship


William Wharton’s novel “Birdy” explores that conflict through the eyes of two boyhood friends who are shattered by war — one physically, the other mentally. The book was adapted into a 1984 film starring Matthew Modine and Nicolas… Read More

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Wicked Local: ‘Birdy’ takes flight at Commonwealth Shakespeare Company in Wellesley


The distinct tone of the movie is probably one reason why Naomi Wallace avoided watching it. In 1997, she was commissioned by a British theater company to write a stage adaptation of the story, which was a novel… Read More

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Edge Media: War and Friendship: Playwright Naomi Wallace on Her Stage Adaptation of ‘Birdy’


Playwright Naomi Wallace — recipient of a raft of prizes and accolades, among them an Obie Award and a MacArthur “Genius Grant” Fellowship — has nearly twenty plays to her credit, among them “One Flea Spare,” “The Inland… Read More

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Edge Media: Talking with Director Steven Maler on Making CSC’s ‘Birdy’ Take Flight


Steven Maler, the artistic director of the Commonwealth Shakespeare Company, just finished one major project — an innovative look at “Hamlet” as a virtual reality experience that was profiled in the New York Times — before taking on a new… Read More

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Babson Thought & Action: To Be or Not to Be—Now in Virtual Reality


Looking to the future, Maler sees VR occupying a “provocative intersection” between creativity, technology, and entrepreneurship. VR represents a new way to look at and make sense of the world, and its potential is vast. “There are massive… Read More

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American Theatre: What Dreams May Come: A VR ‘Hamlet’ Puts Us in the Room


I turned my head and looked around an immense but dilapidated great hall. Inches from my face was Hamlet himself, reciting his famous “To be, or not to be” monologue while sitting in a bathtub, reflecting on his life… Read More

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Wicked Local: Be the ghost of ‘Hamlet’ in new virtual reality video by Commonwealth Shakespeare Company


Imagine being in the mind of “Hamlet” as the prince descends into despair and madness and plots to avenge his father’s death. A new virtual reality experience puts Shakespeare fans on stage with Commonwealth Shakespeare Company’s actors as… Read More

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The New York Times: ‘Hamlet’ in Virtual Reality Casts the Viewer in the Play


“Hamlet 360: Thy Father’s Spirit,” is a joint production of two very different outfits: Commonwealth Shakespeare Company, which is known for staging free Shakespeare on Boston Common, and the tech giant Google. Its creators hope that beyond the… Read More

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The Boston Globe: All the virtual world’s a stage in ‘Hamlet 360’


Best known for the “Free Shakespeare on the Common” series he presides over each summer on Boston Common as artistic director of Commonwealth Shakespeare Company, Maler has taken a big, ambitious swing with “Hamlet 360.’’

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Press Release: Hamlet 360: Thy Father’s Spirit


For Immediate release: January 25, 2019 Contact: Kati Mitchell kmitchell@commshakes.org Commonwealth Shakespeare Company partners with Google to release Hamlet adapted to Virtual Reality: Hamlet 360: Thy Father’s Spirit Wellesley, MA— Commonwealth Shakespeare Company (CSC) Founding Artistic Director Steven Maler, announced today that in… Read More

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