Brooklyn 30 Lafayette Avenue Academy Brooklyn NY 11217-1 486 of Telephone: 718.636. 4 111 Music Fax: 718.857 .2021 Press Department Elena Park SusanYung Adriana Leshko NewsRelease 718.636.4129 BRITAIN'S ROYAL NATIONAL THEATRE CONCLUDES WORLD TOUR OF SAM MENDES'S PRODUCTION OF SHAKESPEARE'S OTHELLO AT THE BROOKLYN ACADEMY OF MUSIC (BAM) BAM HOSTS SOLD OUT NEW YORK PREMIERE OF INTERNAT IONALLY ACCLAIMED NEW PRODUCTION, SPONSORED BY TIME WARNER INC. BAM Majestic Theater (651 Fulton Street) Six performances: April 8-11 at 7:30 PM April 11 at 2 PM April 12 at 3 PM $60, 40,20 BROOKLYN, MARCH 5, 1998 - Britain 's world-renowned Royal National Theatre presents Shakespeare's psychologically complex and compelling tragedy, Othello. This production is Royal National Theatre 's third engagement at BAM , following the 1992 Spring Season presentation of Richard III, staning Sir fan McKeUen, and directed by Richard Eyre , and The Madness of George Ill , starring Nigel Hawtho rne, and directed by Nicholas Hytner , in the fall of 1993 - both subseque ntly developed into highly acclaimed feature films. With gifted director Sam Mendes's Othello, Royal National Theatre continues its tradition of extraordinary theater. John Peter of Britain 's Sunday Times called Othello "one of the most overwhelming and elementally powerful accounts of the play I have ever seen and one of the finest Shakespeare productions in the National 's history." The New York premiere of this new staging of Othello will be performed only six times between April 8-12 at BAM' s Majestic Theater (651 Fulton Street). BAM' s 1998 Spring Season is sponso red by Philip Morris Companies Inc. For ticket information, call BAM Ticket Services at 718.636.4100. - more- BAM 1998 Sorin2 Season Othello press release, page 2 Othello Director Sam Mendes and designer Anthony Ward set Shakespea re's explosive tragedy firmly in the twentieth century, in a "world of Somerset Maugham and colonial smoulderings" (Susanna Clapp, Observer). Their Venice is full of war maps, phones, and late night stratagem sessions, providing an effective backdrop for this highly-charged production. Lighting for Othello was created by Paul Pyant , music by Paddy Cunneen and movement by Jonathan Butterell. At its core, however, the play is a timeless study of twisted human nature, with actors and audiences alike drawn into its complex network of sexual jealousy, racial divisiveness, and violent death. The production was recently nominated for two of Britain's prestigious Olivier Awards: Sam Mendes for Best Director and Simon Russell Beale for Best Actor. The performances of new star David Harewood as Othello , Claire Skinn er as Desdemona, and renowned stage actor Simon Russell Beale in a captivat ing turn as Iago, inves t the famil iar story with dazzling potency. Sam Mendes commented on the casting of his Othello in a recent New York Times profile (February 1, 1998): "I wanted a believable sexual relationship between Othello and Desdemona, which I'd somehow never seen before. Othello is always treated as a father figure, whereas I wanted electricity; I wanted to feel that embryonic relationship which is destroyed.'' Sam Mendes is the Artistic Director of the Donmar Warehouse in London. His previous work at the National includes The Birthday Party (1994), The Rise and Fall of Little Voice (1992) and The Sea (1991); recent productions at the Donmar include The Fix; Habeus Corpus; Company (Olivier and Critics' Circle Awards); and The Glass Menag erie (Olivier and Critics ' Circle Awards). For the Royal Shakespeare Company he has directed Troilus and Cressida, The Alchemist, Richard III and The Tempest, and his West End work includes Oliver! at the London Palladium. He is currently directing Cabaret, starring Natasha Richardson , for Roundabout Theater productions, which opens at a specially created venue, the Kit Kat Klub, in New York on March 19. Anthony Ward 's previous work for the National includes Sweet Bird of Youth, Napoli Millionari a, The Way of the World (Olivier Award for Best Costume Design), La Grande Magia (Olivier Award for Best Costume Design), John Gabriel Barkman. His work for the Royal Shakespea re Company includes A Midsummer Night's Dream (also on tour and on Broadway, Olivier Award for Best Costume Design), Cymbeline, The Winter's Tale and Troilus and Cressida. He has also designed extensively for opera (The Makropulos Case for the Metropolitan Opera, -more- Othellopress release, page 3 Manon Lescaut for the Paris Opera, among others) and ballet, as well as working on the film production of the RSC's A Midsummer Night's Dream. David Harewoodmakes his Royal National Theatre debut as Othello. He recently played Antony to Vanessa Redgrave's Cleopatra in her production of Antony and Cleopatra at the Public Theater in New York, winning a Drama League Award for Best Actor. His other theater roles include Mark Antony in Julius Caesar at the Alley Theater and Edmund in King Lear for Talawa Theater. He has previously played Othello at the Swan Theatre in Worcester. Simon Russell Beale received a 1998 Olivier Award Best Actor nomjnation for his performance as Iago. He has previously appeared at the Royal National Theatre as Guildenstern in Rosencrantz and Guildenstem are Dead (1995), and as Mosca in Volpone (1995), for which he won the 1996 Olivier Award as Best Supporting Actor . His many roles for the Royal Shakespeare Company include the title role in Richard Ill, Ariel in The Tempest and Thersites in Troilus and Cressida (all directed by Sam Mendes). His films include Jane Austen's Persuasion, directed by Roger Michell, and Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet. Claire Skinn er, who plays Desdemona, last appeared at the National in Alan Ayckborn's Invisible Friends (1991) . Her many theatre credits include Laura in The Glass Menagerie, directed by Sam Mendes, at the Donmar Ware house and Comedy Theatre; Cecily in The Importance of Being Earnest, directed by Nicholas Hytner, at the Aldwych Theatre; and Moonlight at the Almeida and Albery Theatres. Her films include Life Is Sweet and Naked (both directed by Mike Leigh), The Rachel Papers, and The Return of the Native. Royal National Theatre Created in 1949 by an Act of Parliament, the Royal National Theatre of Great Britain has lately enjoyed a creative rennaissance the likes of which has not been seen since the heady early days when Sir Laurence Olivier was at the helm. Under Richard Eyre's uniformally lauded leadership the National captivated audiences with internationally acclaimed productions like Richard III and The Madness of George III. Trevor Nunn , formerly Artistic Director of the Royal Shakespeare Compa ny, as well as the director of Les Miserables and Cats for Broadway, took over as director of the National in October of 1997, ushering in yet another promisi ng era for one of the world's most sigruficant and influential theater companies. The chief aims of the National are to present a diverse repertoire, - more- Othellopress release,page 4 embracing classic, new and neglected plays from the world of drama in productions of the very highest standards. Credits Time Warner Inc. is the major sponsor of this production. Additional support is provided by The Shubert Foundation, Inc., with special support provided by the American Associates of the Royal National Theatre and Goldman Sachs. Othello student performances by special arrangement with the National Actors Theatre , Tony Randall, Artistic Director. The BAM facility is owned by the City of New York and its operation is made possible, in part, with public funds provided through the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs with support from the Brooklyn Delegation of the New York City Council and Brooklyn Borough President Howard Golden. General Information The BAMcafe, located in the Lepercq Space (30 Lafayette Avenue), will open two hours prior to performances of Othello. The BAMbus offers convenient round-trip transportation between Manhattan and BAM . The BAMbus departs from the Whitney at Philip Morris, 120 Park Avenue at 42nd Street, one hour prior to every performance, unless otherwise noted. For further information about events and services, or to purchase tickets, call BAM Ticket services at 718.636.4100. BAM Prefers VISA®. #### .