News

Churchill Downs Opening Night Series Expands Derby Week Celebration And Support of Local Arts Throughout The Year

https://www.churchilldowns.com/racing-wagering/news/churchill-downs-opening-night-series-expands-derby-week-celebration-and-support-of-local-arts-throughout-the-year New Series Supports 2020 Seasons and Opening Night Performances of Actors Theatre of Louisville, Louisville Ballet and Kentucky Shakespeare LOUISVILLE, KY (December 10, 2019) – Churchill Downs Foundation and Fund for the Arts today announced the Churchill Downs Opening Night Series to support the 2020 opening night productions of Actors Theatre of Louisville’s Humana Festival … Continued

Buttons, snaps and fabric: Inside the workshop with Louisville’s theater costume designers

https://www.courier-journal.com/story/entertainment/theater/2019/11/21/look-backstage-into-costume-room-louisvilles-leading-theates/2489426001/ It was five days before opening night when Louisville Ballet costume designer Alex Ludwig got an email that her fabric order had been canceled. Artistic and creative directorRobert Curran had insisted on a very specific linen for the dancers to match the ballet’s Cambodian setting. Ludwig had been planning to custom dye the white and metallic gold ordered fabric black so … Continued

LEO Weekly: Plenty of Time to Get Thee to a Ky Shakes show!

The other night, I was seated low on the left side of the C. Douglas Ramey Amphitheatre in Central Park for a performance of Kentucky Shakespeare’s bluegrass-infused adaptation of “As You Like It.” This is a production that is really putting the “Kentucky” into Kentucky Shakespeare by setting the play in 19th century Kentucky and … Continued

LEO Weekly review: Ky Shakes’ ‘King Lear,’ A Dark, Human Tragedy

https://www.leoweekly.com/2019/07/ky-shakes-king-lear-dark-human-tragedy/   Jon Huffman as King Lear in Kentucky Shakespeare’s ‘King Lear.’ | Photo by Bill Brymer. THEATER Ky Shake’s ‘King Lear,’ A Dark, Human Tragedy JUL032019 BY ALEX ROMA Kentucky Shakespeare’s first play of its festival in Central Park was a production of “As You Like It” set in 1800s rural Kentucky. The second, “Henry … Continued

When Madmen Lead the Blind: Arts Louisville reviews King Lear

Jon Huffman. Photo: Bill Brymer Kentucky Shakespeare Festival: The Tragedy of King Lear By William Shakespeare Edited by Gregory Maupin Directed by Matt Wallace Review by Keith Waits Entire contents are copyright © 2019 by Keith Waits, All rights reserved. Among the greatest of the plays written by William Shakespeare, there are several titular roles … Continued

WFPL: Kentucky Shakespeare’s King Lear Doesn’t Disappoint

https://wfpl.org/kentucky-shakespeares-king-lear-doesnt-disappoint/ Since the beginning of the Kentucky Shakespeare Festival’s current leadership under Artistic Director Matt Wallace, Louisville audiences have had the yearly treat of seeing Jon Huffman on stage. He’s played characters that run the gamut of humanity, imbuing roles large and small with palpable life. Given his age and his record of excelling in every role … Continued

Insider Louisville: Kentucky Shakespeare’s King Lear Remains as Socially Relevant as Ever

https://insiderlouisville.com/lifestyle_culture/review-kentucky-shakespeares-king-lear-remains-socially-relevant-as-ever/ By Ben Gierhart Out of all of Shakespeare’s plays, “The Tragedy of King Lear” is perhaps my favorite, if ultimately devastatingly bleak. Did you know it was considered too tragic to perform in its original form for nearly a century? Thanks, Wikipedia. Its themes have always resonated with me, and some of its more … Continued