King Lear

Synopsis: A video recording of a production of King Lear with an all African-American cast. Directed for the stage by Harold Scott and videotaped for TOFT (Theatre on Film and Tape) by Patrick Hoffmann. The play is set among the Olmec peoples who lived between 1200 and 400 BC in Mesoamerica, an area which included most of present-day Mexico and the countries of Central America. Avery Brooks is Lear.
Language: English
Country: United States
Medium: Video
Technical information: Colour / Sound
Recording date: 13 Mar 2004
Duration: 162 mins

Director

Harold Scott

Writer

William Shakespeare

Music

Anthony Davis (2)

Production Design

Blythe R.D. Quinlan

Costume

Jessica Ford

Contributor

Patrick Hoffman

Cast

Avery Brooks	Lear
Roslyn Ruff	Cordelia
Charles Turner	Earl of Gloucester
Ray Ford	Fool
Justin Emeka	Edgar, later disguised as Tom o’Bedlam
Che Ayende	Oswald
David Toney	Duke of Cornwall
John Douglas Thompson	Edmund
John Livingstone Rolle	Duke of Albany
Johnny Lee Davenport	Earl of Kent
Jovan Rameau	Duke of Burgundy
Marie Thomas	Goneril
Petronia Paley	Regan
Wiley Moore	King of France

Theatre: Yale Repertory Theatre, New Haven
Theatre company: Yale Repertory Company
Production type: Stage Recordings
Historical period: Ancient Americas
Plays: King Lear
Subjects: Drama
Keywords: Shakespeare, William (1564-1616); Multicultural casting; Black actors

Notes: TOFT archives also holds: Videographer’s script and lighting and music cues script.
History: Opening night 13 February 2004
Reviews: David Dewett, ‘Demanding Love, Falling Into Chaos’. New York Times (February 29 2004). Manley Lawrence. Shakespeare Bulletin 22, no.3 (2004), pp75-7.

British Universities Film & Video Council