Performance Workshop Theatre is marking the 50th anniversary of Sir John Gielgud's triumphant debut of Ages of Man in America by presenting his intimate selection of Shakespeare's monologues and sonnets during their award-winning 2008-09 season. The one-man show features celebrated actor Marc Horwitz interpreting 24 of Shakespeare's characters in a brilliant tour de force that opens March 13 and runs through April 11.
Gielgud earned a Tony Award when he first performed Ages of Man on Broadway in 1959. Organized around the themes of Youth, Manhood and Age, the title is taken from Shakespeare's famous "Ages of Man" speech in the play As You Like It, "All the world's a stage and all the men and women merely players..." Horwitz, a trained Shakespearian actor, was awarded a fellowship by the British Theatre Association to study in London with the Royal Shakespeare Company. In 2008 Baltimore City Paper recognized him as Baltimore's Best Actor for his performance in Oedipus-the third time he has earned that honor.
Horwitz and director, Marlyn Robinson, with whom he has collaborated on countless productions, co-founded the non-profit company in 1978 in Pennsylvania. Performance Workshop Theatre is a theatre arts training school as well as a professional theatre company and since relocating to Maryland, they have continued their teaching tradition, at the University of Maryland, College Park, UMBC and Villa Julie College.
Performance Workshop Theatre is unique in Baltimore for its size. At 28 seats, its intimacy epitomizes the definition of "chamber theater" where, as one actor says, "You can hear the audience breathing." "The work we do is almost cinematic," Robinson says, "When the lights go down, a magical space appears, and people are drawn into it."
Ages of Man will be performed on Fridays through Sundays, March 13-15, March 20-22, March 27-29, April 3-5 and April 10 and 11. Show times are 8:00 pm on Fridays and Saturdays and 3:00 pm on Sundays. Tickets are $20 general admission and $15 for students. Tickets may be purchased by calling the theater or online. Performance Workshop Theatre is located at 28 E. Ostend Street in FederAl Hill, Baltimore. Reservations and more information are available at www.performanceworkshoptheatre.org or by calling 410-659-7830.
