Dramaturg Notes

Schiller’s dramatization of the final months of Mary Stuart’s life owes much to the historical record. Mary lived under the supervision of Sir Amias Paulet from 1585 until her death in February 1587. At this point in her life, Mary had not seen her native Scotland nor her son James for 18 years, and her execution by the English was, to many in Elizabeth’s privy council, a foregone conclusion in search of a reason.

Where Schiller departs from history, it’s to give a human face to political and historical forces. In the invention of Mortimer, he gives a face and a name to the dozens of young Catholic men galvanized to save the soul of their country, the woman they believed to be the true queen. Although Mary and Elizabeth never met in person, their confrontation here provides a chance for catharsis not only for the two queens but also for the audience watching these two women—and the ideologies they are made to represent—have a chance to speak face to face.

Every act of retelling history is fundamentally transformative, as the story takes on the timbre and unspoken feelings of the teller. Aristotle warns us that tragedy is not the story of people but of actions, and in straddling the line between history and theater, we risk losing the people at the center of the action. What we see in Schiller’s Mary Stuart is somehow more than the end of one woman’s life, and also exactly that. It is an intimate, entirely human look at the crashing waves of contemporary European politics, not always willingly embodied by these two women. Although we know their stories, Schiller does not allow us to forget that these women lived, that they felt the constant pressure of narratives being built around them already—flattening their choices into stories that are easier to tell, and losing track of the humanity at stake.

Griffin Voltmann, Dramaturg

Synopsis

One queen will win; one must fall. This highly charged political drama is about two mighty royals—Mary Stuart and Queen Elizabeth I—and the power play between two of history’s greatest monarchs. With inspiring, powerful characters and a theme grounded in the struggle of religion, womanhood and statesmanship, this play mirrors and explores many of the same issues present today.

TIME PERIOD AND SETTING

1587; the Castle of Fotheringhay

Palace of Westminster

A Park

Ante-chamber

Intermission Information

Mary Stuart is performed in five acts. There will be one 15-minute intermission between Acts 3 and 4.

Scenes

Act 1: The Castle of Fotheringhay, 1587

Act 2: The Palace of Westminster, 1587

Act 3: A Park, 1587

Act 4: Ante-chamber, Apartment of the Queen, 1587

Act 5: Mary’s Room, Apartment of the Queen, 1587

THE VIDEOTAPING OR MAKING OF ELECTRONIC OR OTHER AUDIO AND/OR VISUAL RECORDINGS OF THIS PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTING RECORDINGS OR STREAMS IN ANY MEDIUM, INCLUDING THE INTERNET, IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED, A VIOLATION OF THE AUTHORITY’S RIGHTS AND ACTIONABLE UNDER UNITED STATES COPYRIGHT LAW.

Cast (in order of appearance)

Dungeon Drury ....................................................................................... Stuart Fischer

Hanna Kennedy ....................................................................................Jessie Roberts

Amias Paulet ............................................................................................. Kirk Lambert

Mary Stuart .............................................................................................Sarah Cusenza

Mortimer ................................................................................................. John Paul Odle

William Cecil, Lord Burleigh ...................................................... John Henderson

Elizabeth I ........................................................................................... Maria Ciarrocchi

Count Aubespine ........................................................................ John Barclay Burns

Count Bellievre ....................................................................................... Richard Fiske

George Talbot ......................................................................................... Paul Donahoe

Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester ................................................ Thomas O’Neill

Officer Lee Swanson

O’Kelly ............................................................................................................ Sam Beeson

William Davison .................................................................................... Stuart Fischer

Page ................................................................................................................. Sam Beeson

Melvil ................................................................................................ John Barclay Burns

Kent .............................................................................................................. Richard Fiske

Sheriff ........................................................................................................... Lee Swanson

Crew

Producers Hilary Adams, Margaret Chapman

Assistant Producers .................................................... Helen Bard-Sobola, Fred C. Lash

Director ................................................................................................................. Kathleen Barth

Assistant Directors................................................................. Mia Amado, Jenna Dawkins

Stage Manager ............................................................................................ Dana Maksymova

Assistant Stage Manager Lauren Markovich

Dramaturg ........................................................................................................ Griffin Voltmann

Set Design ....................................................................................................................Matt Liptak

Set Construction .....................................................................................................Julie Fischer

Assisted by Margaret Chapman, Shah Choudhury, Rob Cork, Chris Feldmann, Jim Hutzler, Angela Lambert, Greg Matthes, Jeff Nesmeyer, Bill Pearson, Chris Rescherer, Maureen Roult, Matthew Trowbridge

Set Painting .......................................................................................................... Luana Bossolo

Assisted by Kacie Carlyle, Shannon Doyle, Ronnie Hardcastle, Rebecca Harrison, Gabrielle Hasenstab, Bobbie Herbst, Mary Hutzler, Stephanie Köhler-Backus, Matt Liptak, Patty Lord, Kathy Murphy, Diane Nesmeyer, Susan Prytherch, Sheryl Rakestraw, Wendy Sneff, Paul Volden, Karla Wescott

Set Decoration................................................................................................ Donna Reynolds

Properties Design ................................................................................ Allison Gray-Mendes

Lighting Design ............................................................................................. Matthew Cheney

Lighting Design Mentor Franklin Coleman

Master Electrician Julius Rosenwald Ware II

Assisted by Silas Andrews, Lloyd Bittinger, Pam Leonowich, Donna Reynolds, Marg Soroos

Sound Design ......................................................................................................... Janice Rivera

Assisted by Keith Bell, Manuel Medina, Mary Rutt, Sarah Smith, Matthew Trowbridge

Apprentice–Sound Design Peter Halverson

Costume Design ..................................................... Juliana Cofrancesco, Abbie Mulberg, Carol Pappas, Robin Worthington

Assisted by Lanae Sterrett and Lee Swanson

Wardrobe Coordinator ............................ Mary Beth Smith-Toomey, Margaret Snow

Makeup and Hair Design Robin Maline, Lanae Sterrett

Assisted by Karen Maline