The Tempest

On a wooden trestle, a black veil covers a body, like a layer of dark oil… which suddenly rises. We’re underwater, with the sprite Ariel, as the tempest rocks the surface. With this first image, the stage is set: through this simple yet spectacular artifice, we are thrown into another world, beyond the veil of appearances—in the depths of William Shakespeare’s text. After his powerful Macbettu, performed in Sardinian, Italian director Alessandro Serra and his company Teatropersona offer us a new adaptation of The Tempest, sticking closely to Shakespeare’s dramaturgy. There unfolds the political dimension of the play. But the ultimate power remains that of theatre. Prospero’s magic is that of a director expert in trickery… and The Tempest is an homage to theatre—through the means of theatre.

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) is one of the greatest English-speaking poets and playwrights. Working during the reign of Elizabeth I, he wrote 39 plays in many different genres—comedies and tragedies, as well as historical plays inspired by English history—characterised by a unique mix of styles—high and low, grotesque and sublime. The Tempest (1610) is one of his last known works.

The Tempest
Former Duke of Milan Prospero lives with his daughter Miranda on an unknown island where, thanks to the magic found in his books, he has enslaved the elements as well as two creatures, Ariel and Caliban. But a terrible storm soon leads to a shipwreck. The survivors are none others than nobles Prospero knows all too well, including Antonio, his own brother… and the man behind his exile. Using his mastery of magic and illusion, Prospero decides to punish them for their treachery.

With Fabio Barone, Andrea Castellano, Vincenzo Del Prete, Massimiliano Donato, Paolo Madonna, Jared McNeill, Chiara Michelini, Maria Irene Minelli, Valerio Pietrovita, Massimiliano Poli, Marco Sgrosso, Bruno Stori

Text William Shakespeare
Translation, adaptation, direction, set design, costumes, sound and lights Alessandro Serra
Light assistant Stefano Bardelli
Sound assistant Alessandro Saviozzi
Costumes assistant Francesca Novati
Masks Tiziano Fario
French translation for surtitles Max Perdeilhan

Production Teatro Stabile di Torino Teatro Nazionale
Co-production Teatro di Roma Teatro Nazionale, ERT Teatro Nazionale (Modène), Sardegna Teatro (Cagliari), Festival d’Avignon, MA Scène nationale (Montbéliard)
With the support Fondazione i Teatri Reggio Emilia, Compagnia TeatroPersona, Onda - Office national de diffusion artistique