A vibrant new production of the gender-bending, heart-mending comedy Twelfth Night. When a young shipwrecked immigrant named Viola takes a chance on the “wet foot, dry foot” policy of the mid-‘90s and washes up amidst the shore of glitzy Illyria, Florida, she finds herself a stranger in a fabulously strange new land. Thinking her twin brother has drowned, Viola throws herself into a new gig as assistant to Orsino, a wealthy Floridian with a serious case of love sickness for a wealthy lady, Olivia. Having disguised herself as a boy to become Orsino’s right hand man, Viola (now Cesario) is tasked with delivering his adoring valentines. But as Viola woos in her boss’s name, she falls head over spiky heels for the man himself, while Olivia turns her affections to the intriguing young messenger boy, Cesario (also Viola). Set to the rhythms of house, Cuban and ‘90s beats, Saheem Ali directs this colorful comedy about the power of new people and new experiences that throw the world into beautiful disarray, and open hearts and minds to the possibility of love. Continuing its commitment to bringing free Shakespeare to the community and strengthening audience engagement with the arts, The Public Theater will mount its mobile unit again this spring. Now in its seventh year, the Mobile Unit’s free tour celebrates the 60th Anniversary of the mobiler unit bringing Shakespeare to audiences who have limited or no access to the arts.
New York City, NY; NYC