#vatheater

#TBT to our Vegas inspired production of 'Much Ado About Nothing'. Philip Fletcher and Irina Tsikurishvili made Much Ado About Synetic in this performance, and are making Much Ado about Revenge right now with our production of 'Titus Andronicus'

#TBT to our 2016 performance of 'The Taming of the Shrew' and one of the coolest pictures we have of our Shakespeare productions. Check out 'Titus Andronicus', No. 13 in our Wordless Shakespeare cannon, on stage now!

#TBT to our production of Shakespeare's 'Antony and Cleopatra'. This was one of our largest scale productions because how could do you that show and *not* have a pyramid on stage? Check out Lucky Number 13 in our "Wordless Shakespeare Series", 'Titus Andronicus', on stage now through May 27.

#TBT to Synetic Theater’s very first production in their Wordless Shakespeare Series, ‘Hamlet...the rest is silence’. Lucky Number 13 in the series, ‘Titus Andronicus’, is playing now!

Letter from the director of Synetic’s 13th Wordless Shakespeare production, ‘Titus Andronicus’

Fourteen killings, six severed limbs, one assault, one live burial, a case of insanity, and two acts of cannibalism involving meat pies…Shakespeare’s first play, Titus Andronicus, is not what anyone would call a light-hearted comedy. T.S. Eliot called it “…one of the stupidest plays ever written.” The poet Robert Burns was said to have nearly gone into convulsions when it was read to him as a child (though why anyone would read Titus Andronicus to a child…). Some scholars refuse to even acknowledge Shakespeare wrote it, and for more than 200 years, the play has had to fight against its reputation as a pointless, vulgar, gory, crude mess.

But Shakespeare, in attempting to trump his fellow playwrights and craft the greatest, bloodiest, most violent revenge play audiences had ever seen, created a smash hit—an Elizabethan ‘Game of Thrones,’ filled with gruesome violence, evil spirits, and all manner of family intrigue and drama. The themes of revenge and family explored in Titus have several qualities to which Shakespeare returns in later plays like Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, culminating in arguably his greatest play and the greatest piece of dramatic literature ever written: Hamlet, in which spirits, murder, insanity, suicide, and poisonings reached their Shakespearean climax. There is much of Lear in the elderly and discarded patriarch Titus Andronicus, Lady Macbeth in the similarly vicious Tamora, and Aaron clearly served as the inspiration for the supremely-manipulative masterminds Edmund, Iago, and King Richard III.

Renewed interest in the play has led to the stunning modern productions of great directors such as Peter Brook and Julie Taymor, allowing us to see how deeply moving the Titus story can be. It is a tale about the lengths that a parent will go to protect their family, about the cyclical nature of violence, about the overwhelming pull of vengeance, and the impact and horror of war. It’s all there-- even if it can be difficult to find underneath all of those severed limbs and human-meat pies.

Tori Bertocci is performing the role of Marcia (Marcus in the original text) in Synetic Theater’s upcoming production of Titus Andronicus - Opens April 25

Q: What sort of person is going to love this show/your character in particular? A: I love Titus Andronicus, it is one of my favorite productions. To me, this is one of Shakespeare's rawest excursions. No one is perfect, you feel for characters one moment and then the next you despise them. If you love a good revenge plot, you'll love Titus. If you're into family drama, you'll love this show. Synetic's Titus Andronicus fuses the elements of creative symbolism, passion, and vengeance in a new an exciting way. IF you want to be on the edge of your seat and watching each character’s every step, this is the show for you. I play Marcia (Marcus in the original text). Marcia is the one who witnesses everything. While her family and Rome seem to crash around her, she is one of the only survivors of the play. To me, that is pretty interesting.

Q: How is this character like you? Different? A: I am a Libra and I think Marcia would be one too. We both love balance and want to alleviate conflict. However, Marcia is much more complacent than I am. If Marcia would have only taken action (even if it was against her family) more people would have survived in the end.

Q: Is it easier to play this character or to be yourself on stage? A: No character is easy to me, because of the differences that define them and myself. I believe in finding the differences and then embracing them. That's what makes it fun.

Q: What do you love about this character? A: I love her strength. I love that she doesn't have to have a partner onstage to be powerful. She is an individual, a female leader and Rome and no one questions her authority.

Q: What do you hate about this character? A: I can't hate my characters because I must become them. I disagree with her complacent behavior, but I understand why she acts how she does.

Q: What’s the biggest challenge about taking on this role? A: Learning the power of stillness.

Q: Without giving anything away, what’s your favorite scene? A: I really like the Tryst ;-)

Q: Besides yourself, which actor in this production is going to blow people away? A: The Goth Brother Duo, Demetrius and Chiron (Dallas Tolentino and Alex Mills, respectively). They are killing the game. They play some wretched people but in reality are so kind and goofy!

Q: If you could play any other character in this show, who would it be? A: I'd love to play one of the brothers, Chiron or Demetrius and explore how that changes moments in the story.

Q: What makes a good scene partner? A: A good scene partner listens, shares idea, dives right in even if it is crazy and most of all you trust each other.

Q: When you have a five-minute break during rehearsal, what do you spend that time doing? A: Drinking red bull.

Q: Who’s the funniest person in the cast in real life? A: This is not a fair question - we have a whole clown crew! Audrey (Aaron) is hilarious as are Alex and Dallas...And when they are together, look out! Also, shout out to our Stage Manager Marley Giggey and Adaptor Emily Whitworth...they make me laugh all the time!

Q: What’s the last thing you do before you step out on stage / the curtain goes up? A: Take a deep breath and dedicate the performance to my Grandpa.

Q: Who in the show is most like their character? A: Irina is a lot like Tamora, in the sense that she would do anything to protect her family and the ones she loves.

Q: Who’s the least? A: Philip Fletcher is not like Titus. Philip a kind-hearted, loving, and dedicated person, he's just good at playing misunderstood characters ;-) I've always looked up to him.

#TBT to our wordless production of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' and the mischievous Puck played marvelously by Synetic Company Member Alex Mills!

Lucky Number 13 in our "Wordless Shakespeare" series is 'Titus Andronicus', and it's playing now!

#TBT to the time(s) Synetic performed Shakespeare's 'Romeo & Juliet'. Here are all three of our powerhouse pairings of Shakespeare’s famous star crossed lovers.

Lucky Number 13 in our "Wordless Shakespeare" series is 'Titus Andronicus', and it's playing now!