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All the Daughters of Viola's House

Presented by Ladies & Fools at So Many Shakespeares Festival

July 23, July 30, August 6, 2024 ~ The Vino Theater

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Conceal me what I am…

Through monologue, scene, and tableau, All the Daughters of Viola’s House explores the variety and evolution of “breeches roles” in classical theatre, from beloved Shakespearean heroines to fascinating variations on the trope from female+ dramatists.

Join us as we probe the social and gender commentary wound within this popular theatrical device and celebrate the range and power of these daring characters, iconic and lesser-known alike.

How will this fadge, indeed?

Text Credits

for scenes appearing in this play

By William Shakespeare

Principally:

As You Like It, 1599 . Cymbeline, 1610 . The Merchant of Venice, 1597 . The Two Gentleman of Verona, 1594 . Twelfth Night, 1602 

As well as excerpts from:

Antony & Cleopatra, 1608 . Henry VI, Parts I & III, 1590-91 . Macbeth, 1606 . Much Ado About Nothing, 1599. The Winter's Tale, 1611 â€‹

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By Ana Caro Mallén de Soto

Valor, Agravio y Mujer  (Valor, Outrage, and Woman), 1640.

Translated by Donna Lazarus and Amy Kaminsky

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By Elizabeth Polwhele

The Frolicks, 1671.

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By Hannah Cowley

A Bold Stroke for a Husband, 1783.

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By Charlotte von Stein​

Neues Freiheitssystem oder die Verschwörungen gegen die Liebe 
(New System of Freedom or The Conspiracy Against Love), 1798.

Translated by David Clauson

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All text used in All the Daughters is in the public domain

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For more information on our featured plays and playwrights beyond Shakespeare,

​visit our friends at Expand the Canon!​

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Natalie Kane (she/her, Creator & Director) is a New York-based director and dramaturg passionate about expanding the definition of classical theatre and introducing resonant plays to new audiences. Favorite credits include Dinosaur on the Moon (WTFringe), The Winter’s Tale (Evergreen Theatre Collective), and Lady Percy Will Not Sing (Shakespeare Moves Festival). Natalie has directed and assisted for not-for-profit theatres including The Growing Stage, Gloucester Stage, Shakespeare Theatre of NJ, and Gingold Theatrical Group. She currently facilitates the research committee for Hedgepig Ensemble Theatre's Expand the Canon initiative.

Meet the Cast

Tia Cassmira (she/her) is a multi-hyphenate, Trinidadian-American artist born and raised in Queens, New York. When she's not acting or dancing, she can be found miming alongside Broken Box Mime,

and working in non-profit theaters in NYC.

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What draws you to classical theatre?

Rich text and complex characters with a vast range of emotions.

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What resonates with you about Viola, your primary character?

I love getting to see Viola, as Cesario, show her strength through words,

but not through action as she cannot and does not want to put up a fight.

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Who's your favorite additional character to play?

Victoria, from Hannah Cowley's A Bold Stroke for a Husband

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... And a line from the show that sticks with you?

And with a green and yellow melancholy,

She sat like patience on a monument,

Smiling at grief.

Tia Cassmira

Viola, and others

Meet the Cast

Rhiannon Ling (she/her) is a multi-industry artistic professional, specializing in work revolving around gender and sexuality and its entwining with history, politics, the arts, and identity. Some favorite credits include: Best Time to Be Alive, Monsters in Our Blood, Manic Pixie Dream Girl Goes to Brunch, The City of Forget-Me-Nots (writer); Beethoven: Live in Concert, (beyond) Doomsday Scrolling (dramaturg); Rebound, Seasons, The Interview (actor).

Rhiannon Ling

Leonora, and others

What draws you to classical text?

To me, this answer is fourfold: the poetry found within the text; the universality of that poetry;

a glimpse into our ancestry; and just how silly it all can be.

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What do you want audiences to learn about Leonara, your primary character?

Leonora is a woman who stands in her own space with intense confidence and determination. She's a woman who knows her own mind and fights for it: often, modern audiences don't think of a woman written in the 17th century behaving that way, and I love that she does.

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Among the Shakespeare characters you play, is there one you most enjoy?

Gotta be Margaret of Anjou (from Henry VI)!

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Do you have a favorite classical theatre trope?

I'm a sucker for a good shipwreck.

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Meet the Cast

Piper Woods (they/she) is an actor, musician and songwriter. They most recently performed in the New Jersey Renaissance Faire in their character cast as Briar Rose. 

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What draws you to classical plays?

I love that people have always been people. That really shines in classical texts like Shakespeare, but also in so many playwrights of the time. We are all the same kind of silly, angry, loving human beings.

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Which character resonates most with you in All the Daughters?

Rosalind, though perhaps I am a bit biased.

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Do you have a favorite classical character beyond the scope of this play?

Mercutio (from Romeo and Juliet).

That Queen Mab speech lives in a special place in my heart.

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Is there a line of verse you'd want to make your catchphrase?

Lord, what fools these mortals be!

(A Midsummer Night's Dream) 

Piper Woods

Rosalind, and others

Thank You

for your support

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The So Many Shakespeares Festival is curated and produced by

Sour Grapes Productions

Thank You to Genny Yosco, Chris Weigandt, and Sam Bessler

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All the Daughters of Viola's House is presented by

Ladies & Fools

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Special thanks to Emily Lyon & Hedgepig Ensemble Theatre​

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