1 Cleopatra – From the Script
This proves me base:
If she first meet the curled Antony,
He’ll make demand of her, and spend that kiss
Which is my heaven to have.
Come, thou mortal wretch,
With thy sharp teeth this knot intrinsicate
Of life at once untie: poor venomous fool
Be angry, and dispatch. O, couldst thou speak,
That I might hear thee call great Caesar ass
Unpolicied!
Antony and Cleopatra 5:2
2 Cleopatra – At the Festival
One of Shakespeare’s lesser known tragedies, Antony and Cleopatra was a daring choice for the Utah Shakespeare Festival’s second season, along with the comedy, As You Like It and the Tragedy of Othello. After directing all three shows in the inaugural season the year before, festival co-founder Fred Adams shared directing duties in 1963 with Michael Addison, a PhD candidate studying at Stanford University. Mr Addison not only directed that summer’s production of Othello, he also played Octavius Caesar in Anthony and Cleopatra.
In the next fifty seasons, Antony and Cleopatra only returned to the Festival stage two more times, once in 1985 and again in 2006.
3 Cleopatra – Artist: Dennis Smith
Dennis Smith is a talented artist working in both sculpture and painting. Best known for his representations of families, mothers, and children, his work can be found across the United States and around the world in hundreds of public and private collections, in galleries and museums, and in beautiful community spaces like this one.
This statue was added to the Character Garden in 2018 on the 454th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s birth. The Festival has been celebrating this important date since 2002 and the annual festivities have developed into one of the most anticipated events in their year-round involvement with the local community. School children are particularly fond of the fun, learning-centered programming the Festival’s Education Department provides at the Bard’s Birthday Bash each year. If you are ever in the neighborhood on April 23rd be sure to drop by.