“All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players:
They have their exits and their entrances;
and one man in his time plays many parts…”
- Jaques
As You Like It
SEASON 2
2016
Bard comedy melds with French Cabaret
“The hilltop is transformed into a sultry French Cabaret, complete with multiple stages for the Bard’s tale. As You Like It is visually inspired by the French painter Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, represented in the production’s costumes, scenery, and live music.”
Sheila Doyle as Jaques and Holly Johnston as Forest Lord
Clocky McDowell as Touchstone
Elyse Sharp as Olive
Ensemble and Audience. Photo by Tara Kayton.
Alia Camille Ledford as Celia & Candice Goodman as Rosalind
Clocky McDowell as Touchstone, Alia Camille Ledford as Celia, and Candice Goodman as Rosalind
Elyse Sharp as Can Can Dancer
Sean M. Lewis as Charles, Charlene West as Duchess, Brandon Lancaster as Orlando, and Emily C. Wilson as Le Beau
Clocky McDowell as Touchstone, Alia Camille Ledford as Celia, and Candice Goodman as Rosalind
Emily C. Wilson as Audrey & Ross Aldrich as Corin
Sean M. Lewis as Silvius & Jeremiah Heath as William
Candice Goodman as Rosalind & Alia Camille Ledford as Celia
Ensemble
Sheila Doyle as Jaques
Candice Goodman as Rosalind & Alia Camille Ledford as Celia
Lillian McLeod as Phebe & Sean M. Lewis as Silvius
Lillian McLeod as Phebe & Sean M. Lewis as Silvius
Candice Goodman as Rosalind & Brandon Lancaster as Orlando
Photos by: Leda Mast Photography
Fundraising Video - 2016
Shakespeare on the Vine Theatre Company’s 2016 company speaks directly to our donors and patrons in this video produced by Tiffany Hopkins.
Director’s Program Note
“These trees shall be my books…”
Life here in Calaveras offers something different, something a little closer to nature and a freedom to try things your own way. As You Like It, a play about building a community away from the complications of the big city, at first seemed a natural choice for Shakespeare on the Vine’s second season at Brice Station. Just like the Forest of Arden, our little corner of the world—with its grapevines, its trails, and its tightknit communal spirit—is a pleasant escape for some and a return to a rooted and more authentic way of life for others.
This play’s meaning and poignant sensibility have only deepened since we chose it to reflect some of the values we share. We wanted to bring a piece of theatre that would entertain and bring relief to a community that experienced the Butte Fire.
We wanted to acknowledge the personal changes people live through as each hour passes in their lives. We chose a play that reminds us that our natural vulnerabilities are the whole reason we form bonds of community. You will see characters break bread, share wine, and sustain each other now just as we do here this evening.
Jaques’s famous revelation that “all the world’s a stage” is an understanding that every individual plays out the acts of a common human drama. We recognize the familiar script of human experience—the gleeful discoveries of childhood, the complex yearnings of love, the professional satisfactions, the struggles of aging, and the grief of loss.
The empathy we feel and the compassion we show for these passages in our life make up the fabric of community.
This is the reason our performance invites you, our community, to transform from the traditional forward-facing audience into a gathering in the round. Tonight’s performance of As You Like It is an opportunity to see things in a new way, to see ourselves, to see each other, and share all of that together.
Sincerely, Tara Kayton
Founding Artistic Director