Taking Shakespeare

January 10 - 28, 2012

"warm, wise, witty..." - Bob Clark - Calgary Herald
"the goods do live up to the hype..." - Jessica Goldman CBC Eyeopener

Featuring John Murrell and Denise Clarke
Written by John Murrell
Directed by Blake Brooker
Lighting design by Sandi Somers
Set and Costume Design by Fiona Kennedy
Sound design by Richard McDowell
Stage Manager: Oliver Armstrong
Associate Producer - High Performance Rodeo: Mark Hopkins

The first new play in a dozen years from Canadian dramatist, translator, and librettist John Murrell, Taking Shakespeare is the eccentric and compassionate story of an extremely unlikely threesome:

Prof is sixty-seven years old, stuck in a job he hates at a small university where he has remained for far too long. The only universe in which he travels happily is literature. His only close friend is William Shakespeare.

Murph is twenty-four years old, out of focus, lost in his life. He's never traveled anywhere happily, and he's never had a really close friend.

William Shakespeare is four hundred and fifty years old, an icon of art and humanity, with hundreds of millions of admirers and students, and with friends everywhere.

Shakespeare is the agent who brings Murph and Prof together, introduces them, and propels them through a few explosive tutoring sessions that will shake up both their lives forever. Through real-life comedy, real-life tragedy, and an intense hunger for human understanding -- above all, through Shakespeare's powerful realities -- Murph and Prof will transcend the borders of age, education, and isolation, to discover connections, disconnections, needs, and consolations which all three of them share with the rest of us.

"very engaging play..." - Bob Clark - Calgary Herald
"charming, funny, poignant..." - Jessica Goldman - CBC Eyeopener
"Murrell's writing as always was excellent..." - Jessica Goldman - CBC Eyeopener

Tickets for Taking Shakespeare are available at hprodeo.ca or by calling 403 294-9494 or at the EPCOR Centre Box Office.

Wine Stage

Saturday January 28, 2012 - One Yellow Rabbit will be hosting the 13th annual Wine Stage, Calgary’s most dramatic food and wine event. This mainstay of Calgary’s cultural sector is the major fundraising event of the year for One Yellow Rabbit. With seven of Calgary’s finest wine merchants and ten dynamic dining establishments, Wine Stage is must attend event for those who enjoy fine wines and great food. One Yellow Rabbit is pleased to return to Hotel Arts for what is anticipated to be another sold out event.

Gilgamesh La-Z-Boy on Tour

February 12-20, 2012

One Yellow Rabbit has just completed another successful international tour to Bielefeld, Germany to perform at the home venue of Theatrelaboour. Enthusiastic crowds enjoyed the One Yellow Rabbit Ensemble as they presented Gilgamesh La-Z- Boy and Sign Language during the week long tour. Read a review from the Bielefeld newspaper by Mira Klose.

Tour Photos

This tour was part of an ongoing exchange with Theaterlabor that we've dubbed Doppelgänger, after an article in Swerve magazine that compared the two companies' eerie international similarities. Read it here.

The relationship began with presentations of Theaterlabor's Body Fragments and Absurdesque at the 2009 and 2011 Rodeos, mixed with performances of OYR's The Whaler and Sign Language in Bielefeld. Denise Clarke will be heading back to Germany to work with Theaterlabor on Zertrümmernschnittfrost, a German translation of OYR's 2011 Rodeo show, SMASH CUT FREEZE.

Check them out: Theatrelabor

Zirtrimmernschnittefrost

In late April, at the invitation of Theatrelabor, Denise Clarke will be directing the German premier of Zirtrimmernschnittefrost (or as we like to call it SMASH CUT FREEZE) in Bielefeld, Germany.

Back in the Lab

MAy 7 to May 18, 2012 - The Ensemble will congregate in the Big Secret Theatre to develop a new production they expect to premier at the 27th annual High Performance Rodeo in January 2013.

Summer Lab Intensive

June 25 to July 14, 2012 - The Big Secret Theatre will explode with excitement when over twenty creative talents from across North America will attend the 16th annual Summer Lab Intensive. Denise Clarke, the Ensemble and guest artists will work to develop performance creation skills for current and future generations of theatre artists.

Hotel Arts Ballroom: 119-12 Av SW

Tickets $115 per person. (Includes unlimited wine and food tastings.)

Join Us for Calgary’s Most Dramatic Wine Event

Experience fine wines and learn from the experts from these seven premier Calgary wine merchants along with culinary delicacies from twelve superb Calgary Restaurants.

All proceeds from this fundraising event support One Yellow Rabbit Performance Theatre.

Participating Wine Shops

• Banff Wine Store
• Bin 905
• J. Webb Wine Merchant
• Kensington Wine Market
• Metrovino
• Richmond Hill Wines
• Vinestone Wine Co.

Participating restaurants to date - 12 (12 more to come)

• Brava Bistro
• Cookbook Company Cooks
• Raw Bar and Chef’s Table
• Red Tree Catering
• The Oyster Man
• CRMR at Home catering
• Shef’s Fiery Kitchen
• Ox and Angela Restaurant | Bar
• Janice Beaton Fine Cheese and FARM
• Grumans Extraordinary Catering
• Redwater Rustic Grille
• The Living Room