NOTE: Due to COVID, the Ubu’s Other Shoe presentation of Fortinbras and the 20th anniversary celebration of the staged reading series scheduled September 20-21 have been postponed. New dates will be announced when they become available.
Fortinbras, Lee Blessing’s self-described “metaphysical farce,” opens SLO REP’s 20th anniversary season of Ubu’s Other Shoe, its staged reading series under the artistic direction of Michael Siebrass.
A comic interplay of wry literary criticism and contemporary wit, the 1991 play takes up where William Shakespeare’s Hamlet leaves off. Young Fortinbras enters during the last scene of Hamlet only to order the bodies of the royal family shuffled off while he devises the best possible media blitz to legitimize his ascension to the throne of Denmark.
Directed by Jill Turnbow, Fortinbras features David Smith as Hamlet, Jonathan Shadrach as Osric, Todd Long as Horatio, John Geever as Polonius, and Jeremy Helgeson as Fortinbras. The cast also includes Abe Lincoln, Jed Authier, Jill Price, Olga Siebrass-Pauls, Amanda Thayer, Steve Evans, Mary Ann Maloof, Jude Walker, and Gregory Gorrindo.
Show times are 7 p.m. on Friday, September 20, and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Saturday, September 21. An opening night celebration is planned to honor Ubu’s Other Shoe Artistic Director Michael Siebrass and 20 years of Ubu. Refreshments followed by a brief presentation will begin at 5:30 p.m. before Friday’s performance, and after the show, the cast will join a toast to Siebrass in the SLO REP theatre lobby.
About Ubu’s Other Shoe
In 2004, Michael Siebrass directed a staged reading of The Best Man, Gore Vidal’s thought-provoking political satire, at SLO Little Theatre. Twenty years and 119 plays later, Ubu’s Other Shoe (named after the infamous play written by Alred Jarry—Ubu Roi—that was banned from the stage after riots erupted on opening night) offers actors, directors and audience members the opportunity to experience challenging, thought-provoking, and ground-breaking plays that do not fit into SLO REP’s regular season.
The 2024-25 season of Ubu’s Other Shoe offers staged readings of five plays: Fortinbras, Molly Sweeney, 17 Raccoons, Seminar, and Ada & the Engine. Season tickets to all five shows are $90.
Gina Kirk is the season sponsor, Pam & Mitch Nichter are sponsors of the artistic team, Judy Hemenway & Jonathan Fellows are the sponsors of Fortinbras, and Ann Robinson and Sharon & John Dobson are opening night celebration sponsors.