Rotary presents Shakespearean laugher

A trio of Sonoma County Thespians is planning the impossible
when they take the stage Sept. 18 at the Raven Theater in a Sunrise
Rotary Club fundraiser.
“We’ll be doing the 37 Shakespearian plays in 90 minutes,” said
Healdsburg’s Steven David Martin, one of the founders of the
Shakespeare on the Green program in Windsor. “Well, maybe they’re
not the entire plays, but we cover them all.
Actors Martin, Jonathan Graham and Arte Whyte are the lone cast
members of the one-night only presentation of The Complete Works of
William Shakespeare (abridged), a humorous retelling of the
playwright’s works seen Off Broadway and in London. The Healdsburg
Sunrise Rotary Club is presenting the show as part of a fundraiser
to support youth and education within the community.
The play has the unusual quality of satisfying those who
love—and who hate—attending Shakespearian events. “If you love it,
you’ll get all the jokes and if you hate it, it’s over in 90
minutes,” said Martin. “And it’s funny.”
Sunrise Rotary is offering individual tickets are special
“dinner and play packages” at Dry Creek Kitchen and the Bear
Republic Brewing Company. For $150, theatergoers will dine at the
Dry Creek Kitchen on whole-roasted Painted Hills New York Stripped
Steak, organic green salad farmers’ market vegetable soup and
Yulanda’s seasonal dessert.
For $100, theatergoers can eat a “foul dinner” at the Bear
Republic, which includes oven-roasted turkey, lobster tails,
asparagus and, of course, beer. Rotary will be pouring champagne at
both dining events.
Those wishing to skip dinner may buy tickets to the show for
$35.
Andy Esquivel, the chair of the Sunrise Rotary’s community
services committee, said money raised from the event will go to
youth organizations and programs in Healdsburg. “Our club has
decided we want to focus on youth,” he said. “We want to help youth
education, and health and human services for youth.”
Among the recipients will be the Healdsburg Education
Foundation, a non-profit Esquivel lauded for its willingness to do
the leg work on school-related projects. “It’s a good opportunity
for us,” he said of supporting HEF programs and projects.
The abridged Shakespearian comedy is the club’s first
performance fundraiser. Billed as “Swords, Skulls and Men in
Dresses,” all parts will be played by the three men. The show
includes “Othello” as a rap song, “Titus Andronicus” as a cooking
show and many other odd and funny variations to the classic
plays.
The show will be produced by the new Cloverdale Performing Arts
Center and its artistic director Jim de Priest—another veteran of
Windsor’s popular Shakespeare on the Green event.
For tickets, go online to www.healdsburgrotaryevents.com,
call 433-4207, or visit Sonoma Bank, Cousteau French Bakery, Anne
Marie Fine Jewelry or Copperfield’s Books.