Synopsis: Shakespeare's sublime late masterpiece sweeps breathtakingly from jealousy, rage and loss to redemption, reconciliation and, finally, wonder. Along the way it visits kings and queens, playful children, a singing street-hustler, dancing shepherds, a most extraordinary statue, and (of course) that famously hungry bear. A profound exploration of the simple miracles in life, and the forces that shape them: love, friendship and forgiveness.

Cast:
David Strathairn .... Leontes
Tom Bloom .... Antigonus/Old Shepard
Teagle F. Bougere .... Autolycus
David Costabile .... Clown
Angel Desai .... Emilia/Dorcas
Mark H. Dold .... Cleomenes
Gene Farber .... Florizel
Barbara Garrick .... Hermione
Michel R. Gill .... Polixenes
Andrew Guilarte .... Dion
Larry Paulsen .... Camillo
Elizabeth Reaser .... Perdita
Michael Reid .... Mamillius
Mary Lou Rosato .... Paulina
Elizabeth Sherman .... Mopsa
Joaquin Torres .... Jailer

Notes:
• Unlike other productions of Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale, the Classic Stage Company production was shown in contemporary, modern costumes and settings.
• The Winter's Tale is one of many Shakespearean plays that David has done.
• David received a Restie Award nomination for Best Actor in a Play for his work in The Winter's Tale, as well as a Drama League Award nomination.

Critical Praise & Commentary:
• "From the opening scene, when Polixenes, the King of Bohemia (Michel Gill) is saying farewell to his host, Leontes, King of Sicilia (a powerful David Strathairn), you know the production is special... Strathairn is unsettling as a man descending into neurosis. The play becomes a fascinating psychological plumbing of irrational jealousy as the restless Leontes prowls among the party folding chairs and broods perched on his son's red wagon." -Lucy Komisar, The American Reporter

• "David Strathairn, whose drooping eyes and graying hair make him practically a dictionary definition of melancholy, plays Leontes with tensed elegance... Strathairn speaks the verse with such a melodious lilt that his emotions sound true to the ear." -Aaron Leichter, NY Theatre

• "As the jealous Leontes, David Strathairn has wonderful reserve and dignity, which makes his jealous rage less theatrical, more human." -New York Daily News

• "David Strathairn's performance is compelling and works beautifully in a stirring new production of The Winter's Tale." -New York Times

• "Even in shirt sleeves, David Strathairn performing Leontes in The Winter's Tale at the Classic Stage Company evokes a sense of visiting royalty. It happens regularly in summer stock and regional theater, when a movie star comes to play repertory; and it happens this time in spite of Strathairn being a theater veteran with a modest and unassuming manner. Not to imply that the company's actors suffer in comparison to his professionalism. To the contrary, performances meet the play's occasion and complement their visitor. Strathairn's understated personal style is consistent with his slant on Leontes, the jealous king. He plays neither a raving monarch, nor a crazed Othello, but a reasonable man gripped suddenly by suspicion about the infidelity of his wife, Hermione, with his best friend, Polixenes." -Nina daVinci Nichols, Theatre Scene

• "Leontes is played by David Strathairn, whose bearing is more introspective than regal. With his darting, expressively uncertain eyes, his unathletic grace and nimbly eloquent diction, he brings a particular brand of self-questioning and ambivalence to the role that works beautifully in depicting a man whose power has been mocked by uncontrollable circumstance. He makes Leontes whole, showing how delusion, anguish and tempered gratitude can be cut from the same mortal cloth.

"Mr. Strathairn's performance is compelling enough that the production misses him when he's not around. And for a long stretch in the play's second half, when the action shifts across the sea, he isn't." -Bruce Weber, New York Times

(David On His Role:)
• "Leontes suddenly believes he's been cuckolded, but Shakespeare really doesn't explain why. Barry [Edelstein, the play's director] says the inspiration for doing the play now is it's plot: how out of the blue your life can change violently and then what ripples out from such moments. What happens when your life turns to jello and you seem to lose all footing? In this case, it's an absolute monarch going mad and what it does to the community." -David Strathairn, 2003

• "Well, a lot of Leontes' behavior is laughable--or should be scoffed at." -David Strathairn, 2003

Related Links:
Michael Torke (composer) - The Winter's Tale Press Release (off site)
Classic Stage Company (off site)