Cast
Rohan Degala
Robin Page
Teddy Gales
Bardolph
Timothy Edward Kane
Master Ford
Carmelo Kelly
William Page
James McCracken
Windsor Boy
Diego Sanchez-Galvan
Simple / Ford Servant
Nick Sandys
Sir Hugh Evans
Jason Simon
Sir John Falstaff
Justice Tatum
Windsor Boy
Bret Tuomi
Host of the Garter Inn
Alex Weisman
Slender
Myah Bridgewater
Understudy
McGuire Price
Understudy
Rohan Degala
Robin Page
Teddy Gales
Bardolph
Timothy Edward Kane
Master Ford
Carmelo Kelly
William Page
James McCracken
Windsor Boy
Diego Sanchez-Galvan
Simple / Ford Servant
Nick Sandys
Sir Hugh Evans
Jason Simon
Sir John Falstaff
Justice Tatum
Windsor Boy
Bret Tuomi
Host of the Garter Inn
Alex Weisman
Slender
Myah Bridgewater
Understudy
McGuire Price
Understudy
Creative Team
Phillip Breen
Director
Max Jones
Scenic & Costume Designer
Matthew Silar
Production Stage Manager
The Merry Wives of Windsor Full Staff Listing
A Note From Director Phillip Breen
There are no jokes in Merry Wives, only situation and character; bacchanalian laughter and chaos…
The Knight who is the least chivalrous character in the play, the preacher who is incomprehensible to his flock, the homicidal doctor, the cunning and wise young female love interest, the young male lead who seems not only disinterested in sex but only has a hazy idea of the mechanics, the justice of the peace constantly agitating for a fight, the publican who acts as the referee. We seemed to be in this strange underworld, where the received laws of the stage had been turned on their head. All this set in a town that is the spiritual home to the Order of the Garter at St George’s chapel and its old French motto “Honi soit qui mal y pense” (“Shame on the one who sees something bad in it”)—a place where the characters spend the bulk of their time doing the precise opposite of this.
What if instead of trying to solve all of these inconsistencies and rescue Shakespeare’s hack work, as production history tells us we should, we assume he meant everything? I junked all the cut scripts and went slowly though the folio again. It works.
I think The Merry Wives of Windsor is one of the great Shakespeare plays because it manages to deeply explore themes that Shakespeare was fascinated by throughout his whole career. I think it represents a bold experiment in character and structure and dramatic energy more dazzling than even As You Like It. I think it’s his funniest play by far because it’s his most troubling and people laugh at discomfort and when they’re most discomfited.”
Excerpted from Phillip Breen’s monograph entitled “Walking in a Windsor Wonderland: Some ramshackle reflections on directing Shakespeare’s greatest comedy.”
Falstaff: A Fan Favorite
“Setting the attractions of my good parts aside, I have no other charms.” (Falstaff, Act 2 Scene 2)
Did you know that Sir John Falstaff appears in several other Shakespeare plays? In fact, he is the only non-historical leading character to appear in more than one! Falstaff first appears in Henry IV, Part I as a bumbling, errant knight that the young Prince Hal cavorts with at the tavern. While it is evident that Falstaff is pretty corrupt, he quickly becomes a fan favorite for his charisma and humor. He appears next in Henry IV, Part II and is also mentioned in Henry V. Legend says that Falstaff was such a popular character that Queen Elizabeth herself demanded a play about Falstaff in love—so now, we have The Merry Wives of Windsor!
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