From Staff Reports 

The Montford Park Players, an Asheville theatrical tradition, will offer its production of William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” from May 28 through June 19 — at 7:30 p.m. 

on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. 

All performances will be held at the Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre at 92 Gay Street in the heart of Asheville’s historic Montford District.

“As per Gov. (Roy) Cooper’s current dictates, Montford Park Players will keep its audiences at 50 percent capacity, socially distanced and masked as appropriate,”an MPP press release  noted. “In order to keep it safe, only those with tickets will be allowed at each performance. Tickets are available at montfordparkplayers.org and are, as always, FREE.”

“‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ is always Montford Park Players’ biggest draw, whenever it is presented,” the release added.

“This tale of feuding fairies, inept actors and baffled lovers never fails to please. Although written in 1595, ‘Midsummer’s’ bawdy humor and screwball hijinks never fail to engage any crowd and delight all who see it.”

Director Hannah Williams was quoted in the release as saying, “This play is recognizable by most everyone, whether you like Shakespeare or not — and it’s remained as popular as it is for a reason! The text of this play is very accessible, and when doing a production of it, there are no rules.”

Williams said that “the design will live somewhere in the space between a rock show and a giant jungle gym. I’m really excited to explore the physicality of it,” she said. “Since we thankfully have so many COVID protocols in place for this production, masks and distancing will find their way into the work. The movement of physicality of it will be stylized according to every actor’s comfort level.”

The release added, “A stellar cast has been assembled for this production, with a lot of faces new to the Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre.” This includes Jonathan Robinson, Tasha Davis, Sydney Lyles, Helen Miller, Liz Mason, Bradley Langan, Noah Summers, Jayden Parton, among others.

In addition to directing, Williams will be assisting Noah Summers with the sets and costumes, while Jason Williams will “lend his capable hands” to the lighting design. Scott Williams will take on the sound design, the release noted.

From Staff Reports

GREENVILLE, S.C. — Artisphere, touted as one of Greenville’s most popular annual cultural events, will be held May 7-9, spokesperson Taryn Scher confirmed recently. 

The city’s plan to have its first downtown festival — after a year of cancelations and modified virtual experiences as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic — marks a big step in Greenville’s recovery process.

The gala will be “safe, small and socially distanced,” and it will span four gated blocks of South Main Street, from the intersection of River and Augusta streets to Markley Street at Fluor Field, according to a press release for the event. 

To manage crowd size, Artisphere 2021 will use timed and ticketed entry. Organizers encourage attendees to preregister for one or more of the 10 2½-hour time slots. 

Festival hours will be extended this year: May 7, noon to 8:30 p.m.; May 8, 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; and May 9, 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. 

The online reservation system at artisphere.org opened on March 1 to VIPs, or donors who receive hospitality passes for the entire weekend, and it opened to the public on March 15.

A $5 reservation fee will be required, then refunded to patrons at the gate through “Artisphere credit,” which can be used for purchasing art at the festival. 

Walk-up tickets will be available at the gate during the festival, but organizers encourage reservations in advance. 

To track entries for each session, every festival attendee will wear a lanyard with a chip that will activate when they enter the gated section, executive director Kerry Murphy told the local news media. The area will be sanitized between sessions. 

Other COVID-19 precautions include required masking and widespread hand-washing and hand-sanitizing stations. Social-distancing reminders will be posted throughout the festival site, according to the press release. 

“The city is proud to work with Artisphere, Prisma Health, Bon Secours healthcare professionals, and also to use the experience that we had this past summer,” Greenville Mayor Knox White said at a recent press conference. “We did a very successful re-opening of the Saturday farmer’s market, we learned a lot about social distancing, controlling the crowd, how that can work.” 

In addition to Artist’s Row, other signature Artisphere experiences feature Kidsphere, live art demonstrations and street chalk art.

Virtual experiences include the Art Lab and the “Artists of the Upstate” juried exhibition.

With more than 100 artists, the full artist roster is now online, with more details to come. 

“I’m so proud that the board of Artisphere and city of Greenville have decided to go forward with the 2021 festival. Rather than canceling, I’m excited to see events looking for solutions to keep everyone safe during the pandemic,” Greenville native and Artisphere award-winner Joseph Bradley said, according to the event press release.