Mixed Media

Alas, poor Yorick...

A human skull will no longer appear in the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Hamlet as it may distract the audience, the company has said.

The skull of concert pianist and Holocaust survivor Andre Tchaikowsky has appeared in the Stratford production, starring David Tennant.

It was his dying wish to have his skull used in Hamlet and he bequeathed it to the RSC.

But the company says a fake skull will be used when it transfers to London.

Tennant was the first actor to use Mr Tchaikowsky's skull during Hamlet's famous grave-digger scene.

Audiences in Stratford were unaware the skull belonged to the Oxford pianist, but the secret was revealed by Tennant.

The RSC told Channel 4 News that now the secret was out, it would be "too distracting for the audience" if the skull was used.

Mr Tchaikowsky was devoted to Shakespeare, often visiting Stratford-Upon-Avon to see performances of his plays.

He died of cancer at the age of 46 in 1982 and donated his organs to medical research, with the exception of his skull.

From BBC News.

'The Two of You' onstage at the Kitchen Theatre in Ithaca

The Kitchen Theatre opened its season with THE TWO OF YOU, a new play by New York City playwright Brian Dykstra.

Dykstra is well known to Kitchen Theatre audiences through his plays CLEAN ALTERNATIVES and STRANGERHORSE, his one-man political piece THE JESUS FACTOR, and his performance as an actor in A MARRIAGE MINUET. THE TWO OF YOU employs Dykstra's signature wordplay and sense of humor in quite a different way than in his other Kitchen Theatre-produced works; this is a love story, albeit one that is complex and full of surprises.

"I am truly thrilled to open the season with this new play. It has everything I love - a great story, wonderfully complex characters, unexpected events, altered theatrical formats and a deep message about relationships and the meaning of commitment. Oh, did I miss saying—it makes me laugh? Well it does—and some tears, too. I think it is a wonderful way to begin our 18th season," says Kitchen Theatre Artistic Director Rachel Lampert.

Directing the play is Margarett Perry, a NYC-based director known to Ithaca audiences for her many successful productions, including CLEAN ALTERNATIVES, A MARRIAGE MINUET, STRANGERHORSE, OLD TIMES and the 2008 summer revival of THE SOUP COMES LAST.

Perry directs a veteran cast of three. Returning to the Kitchen are Matthew Boston (STRANGERHORSE, A MARRIAGE MINUET) and Ithaca College graduate Heather Frase (A MARRIAGE MINUET). New York City actor Nance Williamson makes her Kitchen Theatre debut. Williamson performs extensively on stages across the country and on television. Her Broadway credits include HENRY IV, BROKEN GLASS, and CYRANO DE BERGERAC, and TV credits include "Law & Order," "Law & Order: SVU," "Dawson's Creek" and "Prince St."

THE TWO OF YOU will feature set design by Brian Prather, Professor of Scenic Design at Ithaca College, lighting design by E.D. Intemann, Senior Lecturer and Resident Lighting Designer at the Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts, costume design by Hannah Kochman (OLD TIMES, BED NO BREAKFAST, THE CLEAN HOUSE, and many other KTC productions), and sound design by Ithaca College Professor of Sound Design, Don Tindall.

The play runs through September 21st. For show times and ticket information, visit the Kitchen Theatre's website or call 607-273-4497.