Principal Casting Announced for The Old Globe's 2011 Shakespeare Festival

Online, February 10, 2011 (Newswire.com) - Executive Producer Lou Spisto today announced principal casting for the Globe's 2011 Shakespeare Festival, performed in repertory in the Lowell Davies Festival Theatre. Miles Anderson will return to the Festival after his award-winning turn as King George in last summer's celebrated production of The Madness of George III. Anderson received the 2010 San Diego Theatre Critics Circle Craig Noel Award for Best Actor for his riveting performance. Anderson will appear in the 2011 Festival as Salieri in Peter Shaffer's Amadeus and as Prospero in William Shakespeare's The Tempest. Adrian Noble returns as Artistic Director of the Shakespeare Festival and will helm Amadeus and The Tempest.

Also returning to the Festival are Jay Whittaker and Jonno Roberts. Whittaker received the 2010 Craig Noel Award for Best Featured Performance in honor of his outstanding body of work in all three of last season's Festival offerings. This season will feature the chameleon actor as Mozart in Amadeus and Don John in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. Roberts will play Benedick to real-life spouse Georgia Hatzis' Beatrice in Much Ado. Roberts seduced audiences as Petruchio in last year's smash production of The Taming of the Shrew directed by Ron Daniels, who will return to direct the production. Roberts will also appear as Caliban in The Tempest and Hatzis as a Venticella in Amadeus.

"I'm thrilled to have Adrian Noble return to lead this season's Shakespeare Festival," said Spisto. "Under his extraordinary direction, last season's Festival was both a critical and popular success. I'm especially pleased to welcome back the very talented Miles Anderson, Jay Whittaker, Jonno Roberts and Ron Daniels to the Festival and look forward to another season of thrilling performances and great productions."

The 2011 Shakespeare Festival runs May 29 - Sept. 25 and begins the Globe's 76th year as San Diego's premier theatrical institution. Tickets to the 2011 Shakespeare Festival are currently available by subscription only. Single tickets will go on sale May 1. The Tempest runs June 5 - Sept. 25. Previews run June 5, 16, 17 and 18. Opening night is June 19. Much Ado About Nothing runs May 29 - Sept. 24. Previews run May 29 and June 25, 26 and 28. Opening night is June 29. Amadeus runs June 12 - Sept. 22. Previews run June 12, 21, 22 and 23. Opening night is June 24.

Adrian Noble joined the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) in 1980 and served as its Artistic Director and Chief Executive from 1990-2003. His recent theater productions include The Madness of George III and King Lear at the Globe, Hamlet for the Stratford Shakespeare Festival of Canada, Così Fan Tutte for the Opera de Lyon, Kean for Thelma Holt Ltd at the Noel Coward Theatre, Summer and Smoke and A Woman of No Importance for Stanhope Productions, The Home Place by Brian Friel at Gate Theatre and the West End, Brand by Henrik Ibsen starring Ralph Fiennes, Pericles at the Roundhouse in Stratford and the West End and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang at The London Palladium starring Michael Ball and on Broadway. Noble's opera credits include Alcina at the Wiener Staatsoper, Vienna, Macbeth at the Metropolitan Opera, New York, Carmen in Paris and Mozart's Da Ponte Trilogy in Lyon. His film of A Midsummer Night's Dream was released in 1995 and his book, How to do Shakespeare, was published in 2010.

Ron Daniels' Globe credits include The Taming of the Shrew and the hip hop musical Kingdom, which was performed at both San Diego's Lincoln High School and the Globe. He is an Honorary Associate Director of the RSC and a former Artistic Director of its experimental theater, The Other Place. He is also the former Associate Artistic Director of American Repertory Theater. Born and raised in Rio de Janeiro, Daniels is a founding member of São Paulo's Teatro Oficina. He recently directed Il Postino for LA Opera starring Plácido Domingo. The production has since been seen in Paris and Vienna. Daniels' first feature film, The War Boys, is being distributed by Maya Entertainment.

Miles Anderson has been acting for stage and screen for many years. Last season's production of The Madness of George III (for which he received the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle Craig Noel Award) reunited Anderson with Adrian Noble after their work at the Royal Shakespeare Company, which included Macbeth and The Comedy of Errors. Other appearances include his Olivier-nominated Sigismund in Life's a Dream, Twelfth Night and Volpone and the receipt of three British Theatre Awards. His West End appearances include The Weir, Oliver! and The Rehearsal. His film work includes Cry Freedom! and The Shepherd. Anderson's television appearances include "Criminal Minds," and U.K. credits including Dempsey in ITV's "Ultimate Force," Roger O'Neill in BBC's award-winning "House of Cards" and Dan Fortune in the hit series "Soldier, Soldier." Originally from Zimbabwe, Anderson currently resides in Los Angeles with acting coach Bella Merlin.

Jay Whittaker appeared in the 2010 Festival productions of King Lear (Edgar), The Taming of the Shrew (Lucentio) and The Madness of George III (William Pitt), for which he received the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle Craig Noel Award honoring his work in all three productions. He has been seen Off Broadway in Frank's Home at Playwrights Horizons and Rose Rage at The Duke on 42nd Street. His other credits include Old Masters, Mother Courage and Her Children and David Copperfield (Steppenwolf Theatre Company), Sense and Sensibility and Awake and Sing! (Northlight Theatre), Shining City (Huntington Theatre Company), Tamburlaine and Edward II (The Shakespeare Theatre Company), Shining City and Frank's Home (Goodman Theatre), Henry IV (Royal Shakespeare Company) and multiple productions with Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Whittaker's film and television credits include Dustclouds, Let's Go to Prison, Death of a President, "Prison Break" and "Early Edition."

Jonno Roberts appeared at the Globe last year as Petruchio in The Taming of the Shrew and Edmund in King Lear. His other major credits include the original Broadway production of Take Me Out and Bug, Monster and Uncle Vanya Off Broadway. His regional credits include King Lear (Goodman Theatre and The Shakespeare Theatre Company), Mother Courage and Her Children, Richard II and Antigone (American Repertory Theater), Betty's Summer Vacation (Huntington Theatre Company), The Taming of the Shrew (Dallas Theater Center), A Streetcar Named Desire (Intiman Theatre) and Much Ado About Nothing, Twelfth Night, Henry V and Hamlet (Commonwealth Shakespeare Company). His television credits include "CSI: Miami," "Detroit 187," "The Flight of the Conchords," "Lie to Me," "Medium," "Without a Trace," "CSI:NY," "NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service," "Numb3rs," and "Law & Order."

Georgia Hatzis has appeared in IRNE Award-nominated performances as Ophelia in Hamlet and Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing (Commonwealth Shakespeare Company). Her regional credits also include Anne Bogart's La Dispute, Andre Serban's Pericles and Janos Szasz' Uncle Vanya (American Repertory Theater), Macbeth and Henry V (Commonwealth Shakespeare Company) and A Bright Room Called Day, Ghetto, Malady of Death and God's Country (Theatre Outlet). Hatzis has worked extensively in New York with Greek-language ensemble KEP Theatre Company and has toured Russia and Europe with Robert Woodruff's Phaedra 4:48, based on the writings of Sarah Kane. Her film and television credits include Adam Sandler's upcoming feature Jack and Jill, Bunker Hill, BTK, "The Defenders," "The Whole Truth," "CSI: NY," "Medium," "Lie to Me," "Without a Trace," "Numb3rs," and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent."

In addition to the Shakespeare Festival, the Globe's 2011 Summer Season features Hershey Felder in Maestro: The Art of Leonard Bernstein, July 15 - Aug. 28 in the Old Globe Theatre and John Morogiello's Engaging Shaw, July 29 - Sept. 4 in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre. Felder will also perform a limited engagement of his crowd-pleasing George Gershwin Alone from July 1 - July 10 in the Old Globe Theatre. Tickets to the 2011 Summer Season are currently available by subscription only.

SEASON SUBSCRIPTIONS offer substantial savings with special subscriber benefits. Subscriptions can be purchased online at www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE [234-5623] or by visiting the Box Office at 1363 Old Globe Way in Balboa Park. Subscriptions to the Globe's Summer Season range from $72 to $389. Five-play packages range from $146 to $389. Four-play packages (Festival plus musical) range from $111 to $328. Shakespeare Festival packages (3 plays) range from $72 to $243. Discounts are available for full-time students, patrons 29 years of age and younger, seniors and groups of 10 or more.

LOCATION: The Old Globe is located in San Diego's Balboa Park at 1363 Old Globe Way. There are several free parking lots available throughout the park. Valet parking is also available ($10). For additional parking information visit www.BalboaPark.org.

CALENDAR: Jane Austen's Emma - A Musical Romantic Comedy (1/15-3/6), Death of a Salesman (1/22-2/27), Rafta, Rafta. (3/19-4/24), Groundswell (3/12-4/17), August: Osage County (5/7-6/12), Life of Riley (4/30-6/5), Much Ado About Nothing (5/29-9/24), The Tempest (6/5-9/25), Amadeus (6/12-9/22).

PHOTO EDITORS: Digital images of The Old Globe's productions are available at www.TheOldGlobe.org/pressroom.