Macbeth

July 19 - August 6, 2023

Parkman Bandstand on Boston Common

By William Shakespeare

Directed by Steven Maler

Amid intense civil strife and a decaying social fabric — an insurrection takes hold. In Shakespeare’s classic tragedy, an unexpected prophecy sends Macbeth (Faran Tahir) on a fervent and murderous quest to become the new King of Scotland. A timeless story of ambition versus loyalty and a mainstay of Shakespeare’s canon, our production of Macbeth will be directed by Commonwealth Shakespeare Company’s visionary Founding Artistic Director, Steven Maler, and performed for FREE in the heart of Boston at the Parkman Bandstand on Boston Common.

SEE THY WORDS: All Performances will be Open Captioned as part of our new Access Infrastructure Initiative,

made possible through the generous support of the Richard and Susan Smith Family Foundation.

Powered by CC Theater from Access Tech

Audience Information
    • Performances are FREE of charge. Advanced registration is not required for this summer’s production.
    • Audience members are permitted to bring modest food items to consume at the show. Alcohol is not permitted on the Boston Common.
    • Audience members can bring their own blankets or chairs, or can rent chairs online in advance or on-site for $10 Cash and $12 Credit.
    • Reserved premium seating in our Friends Section is available now, when you make a donation of $100 or more!  Check out our Friends Section page for more information or click the button below to reserve yours today! All donations are non-refundable.
    • Our 2023 Dinner-and-a-Show Package will be available in partnership with our Premier Restaurant Sponsor, Boston Chops Downtown Crossing. Enjoy an exclusive prix fixe menu at the elegant Boston Chops, just steps from the Common, followed by a performance of Macbeth from reserved seating in our Friends Section, all for a donation of $200 per person (tax-deductible portion is $100) including all taxes and gratuity. Diners my arrive for dinner between 5:30-6pm (with the exception of Aug. 5th when diners may select a pre-show 4pm seating or a post-show 8:30pm seating time). For more information about this package or our Friends Section seating, email . For information about the meal, contact .

Boston Chops Logo

For updated weather information, please view the weather updates on our homepage or call our weather hotline at 617-426-0863 then follow the menu options.

Our Partnerships
  • Get dinner before the show at Boston Chops DTX and receive 10% off your meal with proof of ticket! Info here: bostonchops.com
  • Pick up a picnic basket at High Street Place and CSC will receive $1 for each basket!
  • Indulge in a delicious Macbeth themed charcuterie box from Kured, available for order on their site or in-store. Support CSC with this box or any order (10% of profits shared of orders sold with the code “Macbeth”) and you will receive 10% off your order!
  • Need a bite and a brew? Grab a pint of the limited-edition “Toil and Trouble” from Democracy Brewing, and they will donate $1 for every glass sold! 
Performance Dates and Times

The Boston Common Stage at the Parkman Bandstand

Content Advisory: Macbeth is one of Shakespeare’s most violent tragedies. War, murder, violence against children, sexuality, domestic violence, and suggested suicide are all amongst the themes that the play explores. In addition, our modern interpretation may highlight the realism of these events for audiences. For these reasons, it is important to consider carefully whether this play may be appropriate for kids, particularly young children. We always encourage parents/teachers/guardians to read the play script and screen an earlier free performance if they are unsure.

Accessibility

CSC provides a range of accessibility services including assistive listening devices, large print programs, and open captioning at every performance, and ASL interpretation and audio description at selected performances.

 ASL Interpretation: Friday, August 4, 2023 at 8:00 PM

Audio Description and ASL Interpretation: Sunday, August 6, 2023 at 8:00 PM

A Tactile Tour will be offered at 6:15pm.

Please meet at our front gate to House Left of the Stage on August 6th.

All performances of Macbeth will be Open Captioned.

For more information about accessibility, please email audienceservices@commshakes.org

View more resources on our Access Page.

About CSC

Now entering its 27th season, CSC’s Shakespeare on the Common has become an annual Boston tradition, modeled along the lines of “Shakespeare in the Park” in Central Park and the many other free outdoor summer Shakespeare events throughout the country.

Beginning in the summer of 1996, CSC Founding Artistic Director, Steven Maler collaborated with the City of Boston, the Boston Parks and Recreation Department, and the Mayor’s Office for Cultural Affairs to present a free outdoor production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream in Copley Square.  This event was described by Ed Siegel of the Boston Globe as “fully engaging, with one of the most diverse audiences ever seen in Boston.” The production was chosen as one of the top ten theatrical events of 1996 by the Boston Globe, and Mr. Maler received the Eliot Norton Award for his outstanding direction.  Carolyn Clay of the Boston Phoenix wrote, “how proud it is for Boston to finally offer free Shakespeare.”

Following the success of its first production, CSC presented Romeo & Juliet at the newly renovated Parkman Bandstand on Boston Common in August of 1997. Performing annually at the Parkman Bandstand — centrally located, handicapped-accessible and accessible to all by public transportation — CSC has become one of Boston’s most attended annual arts events.  Each summer CSC welcomes approximately upwards of 50,000 people to our shows on the Boston Common, and over the past 27 years CSC has performed for over 1 million audience members.

Free Shakespeare on the Common is possible thanks to the support of friends like you. There are a number of ways to support CSC. Donations will be collected on the Common or you can also CLICK HERE.

As Featured on Boston Hotels!

Cast

Faran Tahir
Macbeth

Faran Tahir has appeared in over 50 theater productions, 20 films and countless
television roles. He has a long history with Commonwealth Shakespeare Company. He
appeared in the very first production of CSC in 1996 as Oberon/Theseus in A Midsummer
Night’s Dream.
Tahir was most recently seen as Baba in the Broadway production of The Kite Runner. He has also worked off-Broadway at Lincoln Center and Manhattan Theatre Club and in major theaters across United States such as American Repertory Theatre and Goodman Theatre. Tahir’s work ranges from classical to contemporary. In 2012, Tahir performed
the title role of Othello at Shakespeare Theatre Company to rave reviews. In summer of 2018, Tahir took on the title role of Richard III at Commonwealth Shakespeare Company for which he earned a nomination for Elliot Norton Awards for best actor, as well as the best actor nomination from IRNE awards. He received the 2010 Male Actor of the Year award and the 2010 Elite Asian Award in Canada. Tahir was also nominated for the Robert Prosky Award for Best Theatre Actor in 2000.
Tahir’s film credits include the President in Elysium (2013), with Matt Damon and Jodi Foster; Escape Plan (2013), starring alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone; Star Trek (2009); and as the unforgettably vicious nemesis in Iron Man (2008), opposite Robert Downey Jr. and Gwyneth Paltrow. He can be seen in three upcoming
movies, The Martial Artist, The Window, and Coup!
Tahir’s work on television spans across all genres, with recurring roles on Scandal, Prison Break, Once Upon a Time, 12 Monkeys, American Crime, Satisfaction, Dallas and Warehouse 13, and over a100 guest lead appearances on shows like Supergirl, Blacklist, Criminal Minds, Elementary, Supernatural, Lost, NYPD Blue, Grey’s Anatomy amongst many others. He was awarded a “Voices of Courage and Conscience Award” from the Muslim Public Affairs Council and submitted by ABC network for a 2010 Emmy Award for his performance in Grey’s Anatomy.
Tahir was born in Los Angeles. He holds a B.A. in Development Studies from University of California, Berkeley, and an MFA in Theatre from Harvard University.

Joanne Kelly
Lady Macbeth
Joanne Kelly
Lady Macbeth

Joanne Kelly is from Bay D’Espoir, Newfoundland. Her recent television credits include Showtime’s “City on a Hill,” Apple TV+’s Emmy-nominated series “Severance,” and Epix’s “Godfather of Harlem.” Other favorite television credits include SyFy’s “Warehouse 13,” City TV’s “The Disappearance,” and “Slings and Arrows.” Film credits include Closet Monster, Runoff, Away from Everywhere, and The Bay of Love and Sorrows. She appeared onstage in Canada in Shakespeare by the Sea’s productions of Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar, and Measure for Measure, HurlyBurly Theatre Company’s Macbeth, Same Plan Co-op’s Seven Stories, Castawayhorse Productions’ Oleanna, QED Theatre Co-op and Red One Theatre Collective’s Proof, and The Dynasty Collective’s House of Yes.

Marianna Bassham
Malcolm

Marianna Bassham returns to CSC after appearing as Desdemona in Othello.  Other credits include Becoming Cuba (Huntington Theatre) and The Cherry Orchard with Actors’ Shakespeare Project where she is a resident acting company member.  She is an IRNE and Elliot Norton award winner and has worked with SpeakEasy Stage, New Repertory Theatre, Elm Shakespeare, The Lyric Stage, and many others.  Film: “Moonrise Kingdom” and “Olive Kitteridge”.

Jesse Hinson
First Witch/First Murderer/Seyton
Jesse Hinson
First Witch/First Murderer/Seyton

Jesse Hinson is excited to be making his CSC debut.  Merrimack Repertory Theatre: Christmas at Pemberly.  Speakeasy Stage Company: Shakespeare in Love.  Central Square Theatre: Photograph 51. Actors’ Shakespeare Project: Exit the King, The Tempest, The Winter’s Tale, King Henry VI Part 2, The Comedy of Errors, As You Like It, Pericles, Twelfth Night, Antony and Cleopatra. New Repertory Theater: The Whipping Man, Holiday Memories. Greater Boston Stage Company: Seminar, Miracle on 34th Street. The Sandra Feinstein-Gamm Theater: As You Like It, ArcadiaThe Winter’s Tale, Morality Play Berkshire Theatre Group: The Puppetmaster of Lodz, Moonchildren, Macbeth, The Einstein Project, A Christmas Carol. Georgia Shakespeare: Twelfth Night, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing, Coriolanus, Cymbeline. Jesse earned an MFA in acting at Brandeis University and a BA in theatre at Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, GA. He is an assistant teaching professor at Northeastern University.

Nael Nacer
Macduff

Nael Nacer has previously appeared with CSC as Caliban in The Tempest. He recently performed in NYC alongside Mikhail Baryshnikov and Jessica Hecht in Igor Golyak’s The Orchard, a new adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard (Arlekin Players/B.A.C). Other credits include: People, Places & Things, Small Mouth Sounds, Tribes (SpeakEasy Stage), The Merchant of Venice, Macbeth, Equivocation (Actors’ Shakespeare Project), Romeo and Juliet, A Doll’s House, Bedroom Farce, Awake and Sing!, Come Back, Little Sheba, and David Cromer’s celebrated production of Our Town (Huntington Theatre), The Return (Israeli Stage),The Seagull and ChekhovOS (Arlekin Players Theatre), Tiny Beautiful Things, True West, The Flick (Gloucester Stage), Constellations (Central Square Theatre), Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play, Intimate Apparel (Lyric Stage), The Kite Runner, A Number, Lungs (New Repertory Theatre), Rhinoceros, Windowmen (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre), and Shear Madness (Charles Playhouse). Nael is the recipient of multiple Elliot Norton and IRNE awards, and is a resident acting company member of Actors’ Shakespeare Project.

Omar Robinson
Banquo

CSC: Debut. Regional: Huntington Theatre Company, Hartford Stage, Trinity Repertory Company, Dorset Theatre Festival, Actors’ Shakespeare Project, SpeakEasy Stage Company, Lyric Stage Company, Central Square Theater, and Boston Playwrights’ Theatre. Film: The Finest Hours. Education: BA, Emerson College.

Joe Penczak
Duncan/Siward
Joe Penczak
Duncan/Siward

Joe Penczak is Artistic Director, Troupe of Friends. Regional Theatre: Macbeth (Hanover Theatre), A Lie Agreed Upon (Gamm Theatre). Film: The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, Blood Feuds, and Maniac.

Daniel Rios Jr.
Ross

Daniel Rios Jr.

Regional Theatre: Young Nerds of Color (Central Square Theater), Fences (The Umbrella Stage Company), ROE (WAM Theatre), Comedy of Errors (Shakespeare & Company), White, Black, and Blue (Silverthorne Theatre Company),The Merchant of Venice (Valley Shakespeare Festival). TV/Film: HBO Max Series The Other Two, Shadows of the Dust, Katie Fforde: Ein Haus am Meer (A House at the Sea) Training: Fitchburg State University (BA), University of Southern California (MFA)
Daniel would like to thank every teacher he’s had for giving their time and sharing their knowledge with him. In honor of Andrei Belgrader, Charlotte Cornwell, and Michael Keenan.
Fred Sullivan, Jr.
Sergeant/Porter/Doctor
Fred Sullivan, Jr.
Sergeant/Porter/Doctor

Fred Sullivan is celebrating 16 seasons with CSC. On the Common, Fred has played Bottom, Jaques (Norton Award winner), Ageon, Brabantio, Parolles, Menenius, First Gangster (Kiss Me Kate at the Hatch Shell) Malvolio (Norton Award nominee), Gloucester, Holoferness, Capulet, Buckingham, Stephano  and he directed 2019’s Cymbeline and adapted our one-man A Christmas Carol. Most recently, Fred appeared at the Lyric Stage Company as Ben Jonson in The Book of Will and as Tim in The Cake. He spent 35 seasons as a resident actor at Trinity Repertory Company in RI where he appeared in 130 plays and received Norton and IRNE awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in Blithe Spirit and His Girl Friday. His Trinity roles included Falstaff, Harold Hill, Captain Hook, Oscar Madison, James Tyrone, Jr, Daddy Warbucks, Creon, Peer Gynt,  Joe Pitt, Alfie Doolittle, Scrooge, Nick Bottom and 118 others. At Trinity, Fred directed Shooting Star, A Christmas Carol and Boeing Boeing. Fred is a  Resident Director for the Gamm Theatre (25 seasons) where he directed 35 productions including Much Ado About Nothing and Hamlet (each twice) The Winter’s Tale, Macbeth, The Tempest , King Lear, and Awake at Sing (Norton Award for Outstanding Production). As an actor at Gamm, he played Donny in American Buffalo, Autolycus in The Winter’s Tale, Potter/Clarence in It’s a Wonderful Life, Aslasken in A Lie Agreed Upon and Mark Rothko in Red. Fred has also performed at NJ Shakespeare Festival, Dallas Theatre Center, Berkeley Rep, and Actor’s Theatre of Louisville. He is featured in the films: Vault, Saving Christmas (w/ Ed Asner), Mister Birthday, Agent Toby Barks and Almost Mercy. He teaches acting at Gamm and RISD.

 

John Kuntz
Sergeant/Porter/Doctor
John Kuntz
Sergeant/Porter/Doctor

John Kuntz has appeared with CSC previously in Henry V, Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing, and Twelfth Night.  He is the author of over 15 full-length plays including Necessary Monsters, The Hotel Nepenthe, Starfuckers and The Salt Girl.  As an actor, he has appeared with The Huntington, ART, Speakeasy and many others. He is the recipient of five Elliot Norton Awards, two IRNE Awards, a New York International Fringe Festival Award and a 2015 MCC Fellowship Award in Dramatic Writing.  He is a lecturer in Theatre, Dance and Media at Harvard University, an Associate Professor at The Boston Conservatory at Berklee and is the Artistic Director of The Derrah Theatre Lab.

Eviva Rose
Young Macduff
Eviva Rose
Young Macduff

Eviva Rose (Charlie) is honored to have the opportunity to debut with the Commonwealth Shakespeare Company. Previous credits include another Boston Common fan favorite, Make Way For Ducklings, with Wheelock Family Theater, and Peter Pan, Jr., (Michael Darling) with Sheehan Elementary School.

Lily Ayotte
Fleance, Third Apparition
Lily Ayotte
Fleance, Third Apparition

Lily Ayotte iss excited to be making her debut on the Common after performing as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet with the CSC Stage2 program and 2022 Apprentice Program. Regional: Into the Breeches!, Pilgrims of the Night, Seven Deadly Sins. Virtual: To Gather Apart, Noted. Film: “Lightkeepers,” “UAP,” “Mr. Winslow’s Bell,” “I Want Time to Move Faster,” “When Max Met Lorelai.” Lilyayotte.com. @lilayotte

Nick Baum
Angus

Nick Baum is honored to perform with CSC after their first production (Romeo and Juliet) this Spring. Nick is a New York-based actor who has performed regionally as Mercutio in Isle of Shoals Productions’ Romeo and Juliet as well as in Woodstock Playhouse’s M. Butterfly and A Charlie Brown Christmas. Other credits include: John Willoughby in Sense and Sensibility as well as Jesus of Nazareth in The Last Days of Judas Iscariot. More can be seen from Nick @nickbaumactor on most platforms.

John Blair
Second Witch, Second Murderer
John Blair
Second Witch, Second Murderer

John Blair – Commonwealth Shakespeare Company: Romeo and Juliet (Stage2), Macbeth (2nd Witch), Romeo & Juliet (Apprentice Repertory Company, 2022).  Off-Broadway: On How to Be a Monster (The Tank), Macbeth (South Shakespeare Company). NYU/Tisch (Atlantic Theatre School, Stonestreet Studios, RADA). @johnblairdc

Elijah Brown
Caithness

Elijah Brown is absolutely thrilled to be a part of
CSC’s production of Macbeth on the Common! He is a graduate of Emerson’s Acting BFA program. Recent credits include: Antigone (Creon), As You Like It (Duke Senior), Marisol (Angel), Men on Boats (Sumner), This Girl Laughs, This Girl Cries, This Girl Does Nothing (Narrator), and Pippin (Berthe).

Annika Burley
Third Witch, Third Murderer
Annika Burley
Third Witch, Third Murderer

Annika Burley recently made her CSC debut as Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet and is honored to perform on the Common this summer after being a virtual apprentice in 2020! In 2022, she made her London debut as Phoebe in As You Like It as well as her New York debut at 54 Below. Annika is the voice of Jane in “Dead Sea Squirrels” a new animated series by the creators of Veggie Tales, premiering on streaming platforms in 2024! Select credits: You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown (Sally; Berkshire Theatre Group), As You Like It (Rosalind; Nashville Shakespeare), Love’s Labour’s Lost (Scranton Shakespeare), She Reached For Heaven (Nashville Repertory Theatre). BFA Musical Theatre Lipscomb University. annikaburley.com, @annikaburley

Alexa Cadete
Menteith, Lord
Alexa Cadete
Menteith, Lord

Alexa Cadete is delighted to be a part of the 2023 CSC2 Company! Guerilla Opera: The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage (Assistant Director). Lyric Stage Company of Boston: The Play That Goes Wrong (Annie). Guerilla Opera: I Give You My Home (Rose’s Mother). Studio Theatre Worcester: Doubt, A Parable (Sister Aloysius). Intermittent Theatre Company: Sisters (Louise), Titus Andronicus (Demetrius). A graduate of Green Mountain College, Alexa has trained at the Dorset Theatre Festival Conservatory and was a Virtual Apprentice in 2021 at Commonwealth Shakespeare Company. @alexacadete

Jack Greenberg
Donalbain, Young Siward
Jack Greenberg
Donalbain, Young Siward

Jack Greenberg was most recently seen as
Romeo in Romeo and Juliet with CSC2 and is an alum of CSC’s Apprentice Program. Recent training includes studying with the British American Drama Academy at the University of Oxford and the School of Theater at Boston University (BFA Acting and Theater Art.). Up next: The Soldier in The Soldier’s Tale with the Aston Magna Music Festival.

Jessica Golden
Lady Macduff, First Apparition
Jessica Golden
Lady Macduff, First Apparition

Jessica Golden is delighted to be back on the Common! Her previous credits with CSC include: Much Ado About Nothing (Military Messenger/Nikkole), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Oberon and Theseus), and The Tempest (Iris). She was a 2019 CSC Apprentice, and played Oberon in Midsummer, also directed by Bryn Boice. Other local credits include: Into the Breeches!, Love’s Labour’s Lost, and Much Ado About Nothing (Hub). Jessica is a proud graduate of NYU/Tisch. @_jessicagolden

Bella Grace Harris
Gentlewoman, Attendant, Second Apparition
Bella Grace Harris
Gentlewoman, Attendant, Second Apparition

Bella Grace Harris – Commonwealth Shakespeare Company: Macbeth (Gentlewoman), Romeo and Juliet (Stage 2), Much Ado About Nothing (u/s), Romeo and Juliet (Apprentice Repertory Company 2022). What 1F?: Magic Girl…! and her Demons. Wheelock Family Theater: A Wrinkle in Time (Upcoming Spring 2024!). Training: BFA (Honors) from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

Cleveland Nicoll
Lennox

Cleveland ‘Mac’ Nicoll (Nick Bottom) – Commonwealth Shakespeare Company: Macbeth (Lennox), Romeo & Juliet (Stage2). Hub Theatre Company of Boston: The Book of Will. Sundance: Wizard of Oz. Hale Centre Theatre: Baz Lurman’s Strictly Ballroom (U.S. Premier), Phantom. An Other Theatre Co.: Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Renaissance Now Theatre & Film: Twelfth Night, The Tempest. Mac is also a member of the SDC and has directed for Hale Center Theatre Orem, Renaissance Now Theatre & Film, Utah Valley University, and Bentley University. He is the founding artistic director of Klouns Theatre Co. @klounstheatreco @cleveland_nicoll

Xander Viera
Messenger, Servant
Xander Viera
Messenger, Servant

Xander Viera is extremely grateful to be back with CSC this summer, having performed in Much Ado About Nothing directed by Megan Sandberg-Zakian last year and CSC’s Stage2 productions of Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer’s Night Dream both directed by Bryn Boice. Regional: As You Like It (Touchstone). Salem State University: The Laramie Project (Hing/ Minister), Gunplay, Harvey (Chumley), A Free Man of Color, among others. A special thank you to my loved ones for your support and guidance. @thexanderv

Creative Team

Steven Maler
Director

Steven Maler is the Founding Artistic Director of Commonwealth Shakespeare Company (CSC). At CSC he has been directing Free Shakespeare on the Boston Common productions since 1996, including Richard III, Love’s Labour’s Lost, King Lear, Twelfth Night, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Coriolanus, All’s Well That Ends Well, Othello, The Comedy Of Errors, As You Like It, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Taming of the Shrew, Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing, Macbeth, Henry V, The Tempest, Julius Caesar, and Romeo & Juliet. Other CSC works include his critically acclaimed production of Naomi Wallace’s adaptation of William Wharton’s novel Birdy, Ariel Dorfman’s Death and the Maiden, the world premiere of Jake Broder’s Our American Hamlet, and the world premiere of Robert Brustein’s The Last Will.  In collaboration with Boston Landmarks Orchestra, he directed A Midsummer Night’s Dream, featuring the Overture and Incidental Music of Felix Mendelssohn, as well as concert stagings of The Boys from Syracuse and Kiss Me Kate at Boston’s iconic Hatch Shell.  For CSC he has also directed one-night-only readings of iconic plays featuring Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Paul Rudd, Anthony Mackie, Blair Brown, Tony Shalhoub, Brooke Adams, Leslie Uggams, David Morse, and Jeffrey Donovan among others.  He conceived and directed Shakespeare at Fenway, an evening of Shakespeare scenes performed at Boston’s iconic Fenway Park, featuring Mike O’Malley, Neal McDonough, Maryann Plunkett, Jay O. Sanders, Kerry O’Malley, Seth Gilliam, Zuzanna Szadkowski, Max Von Essen, Christian Coulson, Jason Butler Harner, and many others.

In collaboration with Google, he adapted and directed a first of its kind sixty minute virtual reality film of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, entitled Hamlet 360: Thy Father’s Spirit, starring Jack Cutmore-Scott, Jay O. Sanders, Brooke Adams, and Faran Tahir.  It is currently available for viewing on Boston public media producer GBH’s YouTube channel; for more information, visit www.wgbh.org/hamlet360.

Outside of CSC, he directed Maria, Regina D’Inghilterra for Odyssey Opera, Péter Eötvös’ operatic treatment of Tony Kushner’s Angels in America (U.S. Premiere) and Thomas Adès’ Powder Her Face for Opera Boston, The Turn of the Screw at New Repertory Theatre, Santaland Diaries and Chay Yew’s Porcelain at SpeakEasy Stage Company, Top Girls and Weldon Rising at Coyote Theatre, and The L.A. Plays by Han Ong at A.R.T. His New York City credits include the New York Musical Theatre Festival production of Without You, written by and starring Anthony Rapp. The production has been seen in Boston, Edinburgh, Toronto, London, and Seoul.

He received the prestigious Elliot Norton Award for Sustained Excellence, as well as for Best Production for Twelfth Night and All’s Well That Ends Well; Outstanding Director, A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Best Production, SubUrbia; Best Solo Performance, John Kuntz’s Starf***ers (which also won Best Solo Performance Award at New York International Fringe Festival). His feature film “The Autumn Heart,” starring Tyne Daly and Ally Sheedy was in the Dramatic Competition at the Sundance Film Festival.

William Shakespeare
Playwright

William Shakespeare was a renowned English poet, playwright, and actor born in 1564, in Stratford-upon-Avon. His birthday is most commonly celebrated on 23 April, which is also believed to be the date on which he died in 1616. Shakespeare was a prolific writer during the Elizabethan and Jacobean ages of British theatre (sometimes referred to as the English Renaissance or the Early Modern Period). Shakespeare’s plays are perhaps his most enduring legacy, but they are not the only things he wrote. Shakespeare’s poetry has also remained popular to this day.

Shakespeare’s work includes 38 plays, 2 narrative poems, a collection of 154 sonnets, and other poems as well. No original manuscripts of Shakespeare’s plays are known to exist today, and about half of Shakespeare’s plays are only available to us because a group of actors in his company collected them for publication after his death. These writings were brought together in what is known as the First Folio (‘Folio’ refers to the size of the paper used). It contained 36 of his plays, and none of his poetry. Shakespeare’s legacy is as rich and diverse as his work; his plays have spawned countless adaptations across multiple genres and cultures, and his plays have had an enduring presence on stage and film.

His writings have been compiled in various iterations of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by different entities, which usually include all of his plays, his sonnets, and his other poems. From Stratford to London and beyond, William Shakespeare was and is one of the most important literary figures of the English language.

 

Riw Rakkulchon
Scenic Design
Riw Rakkulchon
Scenic Design

Riw Rakkulchon is a Set & Costume Designer, Animator, and Chef from Bangkok, Thailand. He/They has worked at Yale Repertory Theatre, Syracuse Stage, The Old Globe, Drury Lane Theatre, Asolo Rep, The Acting Company, 59E59, Edinburgh Fringe, Primary Stages, Hartford Stage, The Public Theatre, amongst others . He/They also works with designers Wilson Chin, Riccardo Hernandez, Jason Ardizzone-West, Donyale Werle, Santo Loquasto, Dane Laffrey, Rachel Hauck, Clint Ramos and Walt Spangler. Board member of WithAll, a non-profit Organization on a fight to end eating disorders. @riwrdesign, B.F.A. Ithaca College, M.F.A Yale School of Drama (Donald & Zorca Oenslager Fellowship Award in Design Recipient).

Nancy Leary
Costume Design
Nancy Leary
Costume Design

Nancy Leary is a Costume Designer who’s visionary work for Opera and Theater has graced stages across the United States. Experienced in producing both highly conceptual and more traditional models of Opera and Theater costuming, Nancy has successfully applied her expertise to a wide array of theatrical styles and artistic endeavors.  From 2000 to the present Nancy has worked on well-established productions, recently developed pieces, and the premier of new works for such places as; Opéra Royal Château de Versailles, Glimmerglass Festival, The Pittsburg Symphony, Virginia Opera, Utah Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, Opera Saratoga, Mannes Opera, Chautauqua Opera, Mobile Opera, Juilliard Opera, Opera Boston, as well as Commonwealth Shakespeare Co.mpany, Westin Playhouse, The Julie Harris Theatre, The Barrow Group Theatre, and New York Live Arts to name a few.

Maximo Grano De Oro
Lighting Design
Maximo Grano De Oro
Lighting Design

Maximo Grano De Oro is a Lighting Designer for theater, opera, dance, and music originally from New Jersey. He is currently an MFA candidate at Northwestern University studying Lighting Design which he is expected to complete in June 2023. This is his first production with CSC and he is excited to be here. Recent design credits include: Resiliencia (Northwestern Dance), Albert Herring, Gianni Schicchi, Il Tabarro (Rutgers University Opera), and Bitter Greens (Station 26 Productions).

Eric Southern
Lighting Design
Eric Southern
Lighting Design
Eric Southern is a lighting designer for theater, opera, music, and dance. With CSC Richard III (set and Lighting Design, IRNE Nomination), Cymbeline, Twelfth Night, Coriolanus, Love’s Labor’s Lost, and Two Gentlemen of Verona.  Other recent projects include: Echo Mine an evening length dance by Robyn Mineko Williams with music by Caliphone (Harris Theater); Knee Plays a semi staged re-orchestration of the seminal works of David Byrne and Phillip Glass (The Crossing); Riddle of the Trilobites (Collaboration Town, New Victory Theater); The Good Swimmer, a pop requiem created by Heidi Rodewald, Donna DiNovelli, and Kevin Newbury (BAM Next Wave); After the Blast, Ghost Light, Bull in a China Shop, and The Harvest (Lincoln Center); Buyer and Cellar (Barrow Street Theater, Mark Taper Forum, London and National Tour). He is a longtime collaborator with the award-winning theater group 600 HIGHWAYMEN where he has designed Manmade Earth, The Fever, Employee of the Year, The Record, Empire City, This Great Country, and Everyone is Chanting Your Name. Internationally, his designs have been seen in London at the Mernier Chocolate Factory, in Paris at the Pompidou Center and at Park de la Villette, in Avignon at the Avignon Opera House, as well as in Seoul, Greece, Australia, Canada, Ireland, Bosnia, Switzerland, Germany, The Netherlands, Abu Dhabi, and Hungary.In the US, his work has been seen at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, Manhattan Theater Club, Hubbard Street Dance Atlantic Theater Company, The Guthrie Theater, Dallas Theater Center, Playwrights Horizons, The Goodman Theater, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, Westport Country Playhouse, Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, Baltimore Center Stage, Asolo Rep, Virginia Opera, Portland Center Stage, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Commonwealth Shakespeare Company, The Arden Theater, The Magic Theater, Kansas City Repertory, and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (among others).  He is an assistant professor at Northwestern University and received his B.F.A. and M.F.A from NYU Tisch School of the Arts.
David Remedios
Sound Design
David Remedios
Sound Design

David Remedios CSC: Romeo and Juliet (2017); Our American Hamlet, Love’s Labour’s Lost, Twelfth Night (2014, IRNE nom.), The Last Will, Coriolanus, All’s Well That Ends Well, Othello. Recent: Knyum, The Royale, Women in Jeopardy!, The Making of a Great Moment, Merrimack Rep; The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, The Scottsboro Boys (IRNE Award), SpeakEasy Stage; Wild Horses, The Niceties, Contemporary American Theater Festival; The Effect, Gloucester Stage; Faithful Cheaters, Trinity Rep; Finish Line, Boston Theater Company at Shubert Theatre. Other regional and local credits include Geva Theatre, 59E59, Huntington Theatre, Studio Theatre, Portland Stage, Theatre for a New Audience, American Repertory Theatre, Centerstage Baltimore, LaJolla Playhouse, Cincinnati Playhouse, among many others. International: prominent arts festivals in Bogotá, Paris, Hong Kong and Edinburgh. David is Assistant Professor and Program Head of Sound Design at Boston University. remediosssound.com.

Mackenzie Adamick
Original Music by/ Assistant Sound Designer
Mackenzie Adamick
Original Music by/ Assistant Sound Designer

Mackenzie Adamick is a Boston-based Sound Designer and Composer. Her previous Sound Design credits include Macbeth [Composer] (Commonwealth Shakespeare Company), How I Learned to Drive, As You Like It, Coriolanus, Let the Right One In (Actors’ Shakespeare Project), The Normal Heart, Aurora, Organic, By Any Other Name (New Repertory Theatre). Mackenzie is an aural storyteller and bases her theatrical soundscapes on a musical foundation. A couple of her upcoming projects include Romeo and Juliet (Actors’ Shakespeare Project) and composing music for CSC’s The Winter’s Tale this summer. She is currently pursuing her MFA in Sound Design at Boston University. Take a listen to her soundscapes and original compositions on her website: www.mackenzieadamick.com

Robert Walsh
Fight Direction
Robert Walsh
Fight Direction

Robert Walsh (Fight Director) is delighted to be a part of the production team for Macbeth.
One of the earliest members of the Society of American Fight Directors, he has previously acted
in and staged fights for past CSC productions of: Coriolanus (Cominius), Macbeth (Macduff),
Henry V (Exeter) and Julius Caesar. Other fight direction credits include: the American
Repertory Theater, Huntington Theatre Company, Hartford Stage Company, Long Wharf
Theatre, Portland Stage Company and most of the theater companies in and around Boston. A
founding member of the Actors’ Shakespeare Project, Robert has enjoyed acting in, directing or
staging the fights for many of the Bard’s plays over the last eighteen years. From 2014 – 21, he
served as the Artistic Director of Gloucester Stage Company and prior to that, was the Producing
Artistic Director of the American Stage Festival in Milford, N.H. Recent films include: “Fourth of
July”, “Black Mass” and “Dead Reckoning” (as a stunt performer). Most recently, he appeared in The
Gaaga, produced by Arlekin Players, written and directed by Sasha Denisova. He is a member of
the theater faculty at Brandeis University, as well as AEA, SDC, SAG-AFTRA, & the SAFD.

Jessica Scout Malone
Intimacy Consultation
Jessica Scout Malone
Intimacy Consultation
Bryn Boice
Text Coach
Bryn Boice
Text Coach

Bryn Boice is an award-winning director, educator, actor, and producer, as well as CSC’s Associate Artistic Director and Director of Education & Training. Also for CSC, Bryn helmed Universe Rushing Apart: Blue Kettle & Here We Go – two Caryl Churchill one-acts – which garnered her the Elliot Norton Award for Outstanding Director, Large Theatre. Other recent Boston-area credits include: The Sound Inside and The Children (both Elliot Norton nominated for Outstanding Production, Speakeasy Stage); The Book of Will, Into the Breeches! (Elliot Norton nom. for Direction and Production, Hub Theatre Company); Tall Tales from Blackburn Tavern, Gloria (Gloucester Stage); The Half-Life of Marie Curie (The Nora Company); Admissions (The Gamm Theatre); Last Night at Bowl-Mor Lanes (Greater Boston Stage Company); an all-female production of Julius Caesar for Actors’ Shakespeare Project; and a number of Apprentice Repertory Company and Stage2 productions for CSC. New York, regional and other Boston credits as an actor and/or director include work with Asolo Repertory Company, Boston Playwrights’ Theatre, Anthem Theatre Company, Okoboji Theatre, InProximity Theatre, Theatre Row, Martha’s Vineyard PAC, Monomoy Theatre, Caroline’s on Broadway, and Manhattan Theatre Club. Before turning full-time to CSC, she taught at Salem State University, where her wide-ranging experience allowed her to teach Voice for Performance, Applied Stage Movement, Public Speaking, Directing, Acting III (Early Realism), Dramatic Theory & Criticism, and Dialects, among others. MFA in Directing, Boston University. MFA in Acting, Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training (FSU). Member AEA. For more information visit www.brynboice.com

 

Nikta Sabouri
Assistant Director
Nikta Sabouri
Assistant Director

Nikta Sabouri is very excited to be part of CSC again after being the assistant director on the “Death and the Maden” performance in 2018. She is an Iranian-American freelance theatre director, translator, and actor based in Boston.
As an artist living in the diaspora, she finds her way of expressing herself and contributing to socio-cultural activities by presenting part of her culture that is less known to the rest of the world. To do so, she embarked on a multi-year project to translate and direct the works of Bahram Beyzaie, one of Iran’s essential contemporary playwrights. She co-translated the book “Naqqali Trilogy,” by Bahram Beyzaie, published in the spring of 2023 by Ilex Foundation and Harvard university press. She is currently doing a residency at New Repertory Theatre in the Pipeline Project program.

Jenna Worden
Production Manager
Jenna Worden
Production Manager

Jenna Worden is a producer, director, and stage manager with a passion for storytelling, education, and access to the arts. Favorite CSC credits include Birdy, Universe Rushing Apart, and Our American Hamlet. Additional regional credits include New Rep Theatre, Gloucester Stage Company, Phoenix Theatre, and Childsplay AZ. She collaborates often with Brian O’Donovan and is the director and producer of A Christmas Celtic Sojourn. She earned both her BA in Theatre Studies and BSEd in History from Northern Arizona University and is constantly looking for new ways to teach and be in conversation with the past. Proud member of Actors’ Equity Association.

Brian M. Robillard
Stage Manager

Brian M. Robillard returns to CSC after previously working on Romeo & Juliet and King Lear. Recent Area Credits Include Jersey Boys (Ogunquit Playhouse). 1776, We Will Not Be Silent, The Bakelite Masterpiece, Lonely Planet, Statements After an Arrest Under the Immorality Act, Ideation, The Gift Horse, Brecht on Brecht, Fiddler on the Roof (New Repertory Theatre). Bedlam’s Pygmalion and A Christmas Carol (Central Square Theatre); as well as credits with Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra and Boston Opera Collaborative. Brian received his BFA in Stage Management from Boston University and is a proud member of Actor’s Equity Association. Upcoming projects include the premiere production of Bedlam’s The Crucible at Central Square Theatre.

CSC’s production of Free Shakespeare on the Common performs on land now known as The Boston Common which is on the traditional lands of the Pawtucket and Massachusett tribes, as well as the historic lands of the Wampanoag nation.

The Boston Common, in particular, has a bloody history towards Indigenous peoples that is seldom discussed. We wish to express our sorrow for this history and extend our deepest gratitude for the use of this space. We ask you to learn more about this, the process and importance of land acknowledgement, and ways to support Indigenous communities who are still here by exploring the materials we have gathered below.

Performances take place at the Parkman Bandstand on the Boston Common, across from the AMC Loews Boston Common movie theater on Tremont Street.

For Locations of our Merch Booth, Front of House Booth, and Stage, see this Google Map.

“The emotional temperature has never been as high as it is in Commonwealth Shakespeare Company’s stunning production of “Macbeth” on Boston Common.” – Terry Byrne, WBUR

“Director Steven Maler has conscripted a potent cast lead by Faran Tahir’s rampaging Macbeth.” – Joyce Kulhawik, Joyce’s Choices

“Director Steven Maler and his design team have conjured a gothic atmosphere that is both haunted and haunting, steeped in shadows literal and psychological…” – Don Aucoin, Boston Globe

“Commonwealth Shakespeare’s productions are accessible and riveting to witness. This year is no exception. With the text running on a screen beside the stage, the drama is easy to follow, should you need it.” – Michele Markarian, Theatre Mirror

Support for Commonwealth Shakespeare Company Provided by

Join our E-Newsletter!

Get the latest CSC News, directly to your inbox. From discounts and production announcements to educational opportunities and partnerships.