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British International Theatre Program Celebrating Our 20th Year! For our 20th Anniversary, the BRIT program will produce the Dion Boucicault classic melodrama,
The Shaughraun. Directed by Malachi Bogdanov, Associate Artistic
Director of the English Shakespeare Company, and designed by Bruce
French, winner of the Theatre Design Trust Award, the production will undertake a determinedly physical theater
approach, in keeping with the Theatre Department's commitment to
vigorous, exciting, and challenging performance.. Additional guest artists
conducting workshops and masterclasses will be Matthew Kelly - Olivier
Best Actor Award for Lenny in Of Mice and Men; Barbara Houseman - former vocal coach for the Royal Shakespeare Company; and Olivier Award winning director Michael Bogdanov. The production team will be doing extensive work with
materials from the USF Libraries’ Dion Boucicault Theatre Collection in the
development of this interpretation of
The Shaughraun. The collection consists of approximately 81 items contained in 20 boxes, including printed and manuscript play scripts, sides, stage directions, letters, prompt books, photographs and musical scores. When the founding artistic directors, Hinks and Elaine Shimberg, Lisel and John Gale and Denis Calandra first discussed the idea of the British International Theatre Program (BRIT), little did they anticipate the success it would turn out to be. With the financial assistance of Hinks and Elaine Shimberg, Sir Cameron Mackintosh, Dan Doyle and the State of Florida Matching Grant Program, the BRIT Program has now become an established annual event and is the envy of many universities in the U.S.A. and even some conservatories! For years The British International Theatre Program has sought out professional directors and choreographers, leading actors in theatre, television and film, voice and speech experts and top rate designers. These artists have brought their knowledge and experience in British classical theatre and contemporary cutting edge theatre to the students at USF in the form of hands on master classes and workshops. From William Shakespeare to Howard Barker, USF students are immersed in the best that British Theatre offers. A passion for teaching and artistic excellence are the driving forces behind the British International Theatre Program (BRIT Program). Since 1991, USF School of Theatre and Dance has been carefully designing an undergraduate curriculum which integrates guest artists' skills into the everyday activitiy of each Spring semester. At 25 years of age, the film and theatre director Sam Mendes was our youngest teacher; at 90, dramatist Christopher Fry our eldest. As this suggests, British classical theatre is a living force, spanning generations and styles. We are privileged to have our students partake of the classical and contemporary training, and we are eager to work with our British cousins on the continuing development of this marvelous tradition. Now under the leadership of Director Marc Powers and Associate Director Matthew Gale, the BRIT program strives to bring the best of both classical and contemporary approaches of the British theatre to the students in the USF School of Theatre and Dance and to audiences in Tampa. The BRIT program has also been exploring the potential of reaching a greater audience and sharing workshops on both sides of the Atlantic through the use of Internet 2 technology. Through this means, we hope to make the impact of the BRIT Program far more significant and globally engaged. 2009Bobby and the Chimps
2008The Taming of the Shrew
2007The Birthday Party
The BRIT Program also presented
2006Romeo and Juliet
2005The Golden Ass
2004The Tempest
2003'Inferences' Workshop, Selected scenes from Howard Barker's Seven Lears and Gertrude
Putting Across a Song
2002The Comedy of Errors
2001As You Like It
2000The Beaux Stratagem By George Farquhar
1999Turgenev To Chekhov Directed by Bill Bryden, C.B.E. 1998A Midsummer Night's Dream
1997Shakespeare on Tour
1996The Winter's Tale
1995Golden Girls
1994Twelfth Night
1993The Importance of Being Earnest
1992The Boy With a Cart
1991Much Ado About Nothing
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