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The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged)[revised]

How on earth can three men do the impossible: act through Shakespeare’s entire canon – 37 plays – in 97 minutes? KWP Productions’ second offering in their newly expanded season will try to answer that question when they present The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised] at the Bhetty Waldron Theatre in West Palm Beach from October 14 – 23.

The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised]) cleverly and hilariously summarizes the beloved Bard’s works through football plays, rap songs, and outrageously condensed comedy mash-up titles (think: Four Weddings and a Transvestite) using comedic reenactments and audience participation. The show is famous for holding the (self-proclaimed) record for the shortest production of Hamlet at 43 seconds.

The ever popular play, written by Adam Long, Daniel Singer, and Jess Winfield, parodies all Shakespeare’s plays with all of them performed (in comically shortened or merged form) by only three actors. The writers, former founding members of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, first performed the show – originally titled The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, (abridged) – at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1987 and later at the Criterion Theatre in London, where it ran for nine years.

To celebrate its 20th anniversary Singer and Wingfield thoroughly revised the play, renaming it The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised], and bringing it up to date for 21st century audiences, incorporating some of the funniest material culled from numerous productions that have been performed around the world, as well as references to various contemporary cultural touchstones.   The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised] both entertains and teaches audiences facts about Shakespeare while ensuring them a rollicking good time.

Steve Enright will direct the production: “Directing this cast is like being given the keys to the shackles of incredibly powerful performers,” Enright says. “I’ve only needed to release them and show them how to find their way out of the box. It’s all about encouraging them to continually ignore all limits.Actors Christian Cooper, Alfredo Gonzalez, and Josh Nelson will take on close to 1000 roles in the production.

The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged)[revised] will run from October 14 – 23.  All performances will take place at the Bhetty Waldron Theater at Bob Carter’s Actor’s Workshop and Repertory Company, located at 1009 North Dixie Highway, West Palm Beach, Florida, 33401. Tickets are available for purchase on line at: http://kwpproductions.com or by calling 561-339-4687.