Death and the King’s Horseman
The Department of Theatre Arts
In association with Shakespeare Theatre Company
Presents a staged reading of
Death and the King’s Horseman
By Wole Soyinka
To culminate the first year of STC’s collaboration with Howard University as part of The Shift, there will be a free staged reading at the Michael R. Klein Theatre at the Lansburgh. This event will include a post-show discussion.
“Death and the King’s Horseman blends European literary theater with total-theater traditions from the Yoruba tribe in Southwest Nigeria. Through poetry, chorus, politics, and storytelling, Soyinka both entertains and asks subtle questions about mass psychology, individual psychology, and universal human struggles of the will.” –The Chicago Tribune
This free staged reading will be also livestreamed by the National Museum of African American History and Culture. To RSVP for the livestream please click here.
Read the digital program:
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Jared Alexander
Ezinelia C. Baba
Tymetrias Bolden
Rashad Davis
Khyrin Debose
Chloé Gill
Patrick Hamilton
Kennedi Hendrix
Jacques Jean-Mary
Amiah McGinty
Elizabeth Mpanu-Mpanu
Lauren Smith
Shawn Smith
John Woods III
Attending Professor: Ricky Ramόn
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WOLE SOYINKA was born in 1934 in Nigeria and studied at the University of Leeds. He was director of the Drama School of Ibadan University in Nigeria until 1967, when he was arrested for writings sympathetic to secessionist Biafra and imprisoned for twenty two months. Soyinka’s other writings include A Shuttle in the Crypt, Madmen and Specialists, and Idanre and Other Poems. In 1986 he became the first African writer ever to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. He is president of the International Theater Institute.
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Over the past two years Shakespeare Theatre Company has connected with Howard University’s Department of Theatre Arts for a series of events, showcases, and experiences. As a way of deepening the connections between Howard University’s Department of Theatre Arts and to engage with new talent that will shape the future of theatre, we are collaborating to create a new course that will take place annually. Within this two-semester course with Shakespeare Theatre Company, students will explore a classic play and find ways to expand the term “classic” while learning how a major classical theatre operates. Sessions will include master classes with renowned directors, playwrights, authors, and theatre administrators at Shakespeare Theatre Company, performance opportunities, and more.
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Health and Safety
STC requires that all patrons provide proof of vaccination to attend any performances or events. In addition to audiences, STC has mandated COVID-19 vaccinations for all performers and theatre staff. Please visit our Health and Safety page for full guidelines about providing proof of vaccination at the theatre.
Only performers and people invited onstage for talkbacks will be unmasked. We ask that attendees remain masked while within our venues, including during performances, unless they are eating and drinking in designated lobby areas. STC is committed to the safety and wellbeing of everyone in our spaces, and we are monitoring the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and will make adjustments as needed. Thank you for your understanding.