Photos of all 46 public figures who read as part of the ‘Speak the Speech’ event in Boulder. To see more, click the forward arrow on the image above. All are downloadable by clicking on the image. Photos by John Moore for the DCPA’s NewsCenter.

The University of Colorado culminated its month-long exhibition of Shakespeare’s First Folio with Speak the Speech, an evening of 46 Shakespeare readings by an eclectic variety of actors, educators, industry professionals and unexpected public figures.

Among those taking turns reading from the Bard on Aug. 25 at the CU Art Museum, right in the presence of the famous First Folio, were former CU women’s basketball coach Ceal Barry, retired Lockheed Martin CEO Norm Augustine, CU Chief of Police Melissa Zak and even An Act of God Director Geoffrey Kent’s dog, Titus. John Ekeberg, Executive Director of the DCPA’s Broadway Division took on Mercutio’s Queen Mab speech from Romeo and Juliet (pictured right).

The First Folio is arguably the most influential book in history after the Bible. It includes 36 Shakespeare plays, 18 of which had never before been printed. Without it, Macbeth, Julius Caesar, Twelfth Night, The Tempest, As You Like It and more – might have been lost forever. Compiled by two of his friends and fellow theater colleagues, the First Folio was published in 1623 – seven years after Shakespeare’s death. That is a story the DCPA Theatre Company will be exploring in the upcoming world premiere of  Lauren Gunderson’s The Book of Will, opening in January at the Ricketson Theatre.

CU has been honoring the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death throughout the year with more than 40 events and exhibitions.

The Speak the Speech event took its name from a famous speech from Shakespeare’s Hamlet, in which the prince offers advice to a group of actors he has enlisted to play for the court of Denmark.

The First Folio exhibition, hosted by the Folger Library, ended in Boulder on Aug. 31.

(Pictured above right: Actor and CU teacher Tamara Meneghini read as part of “Speak the Speech” at the CU Art Museum. So did her son, Henry Stalker, who read from “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” to bring the event to a close.)

More Colorado theatre coverage on the DCPA NewsCenter

The Book of Will: Information
Without William Shakespeare, we wouldn’t have literary masterpieces like Romeo and Juliet. But without Henry Condell and John Heminges, we would have lost half of Shakespeare’s plays forever. After the death of their friend and mentor, the two actors are determined to compile the first folio and preserve the words that shaped their lives. They’ll just have to borrow, beg and band together to get it done. Shakespeare-lover Lauren Gunderson weaves a comic and heartfelt story of the characters behind the collected stories we know so well.

• By Lauren Gunderson (DCPA Theatre Company Commission)
• Jan. 13-Feb. 26, 2017
• Ricketson Theatre
• ASL interpreted, Audio-described and Open Captioned performance: 1:30 p.m. Feb. 4
• Tickets: 303-893-4100 or Tickets: 303-893-4100 or BUY ONLINE
• Groups: Call 303-446-4829

Previous NewsCenter coverage of The Book of Will
Shakespeare in a season without Shakespeare
Read our interview with playwright Lauren Gunderson
Shakespeare’s First Folio comes to Boulder

Lineup of readers
Philip P. DiStefano
Chancellor, University of Colorado-Boulder
Duke Orsino, Twelfth Night, I.i.

Edwin Jordan
Graduate, BFA in Performance, CU-Boulder
Antipholus of Ephesus, Comedy of Errors, V.i.

Norm Augustine
Retired Chairman and CEO of the Board of the Lockheed Martin Corporation
King Henry VI, Henry VI, Part 1, IV.i

Bob Yates
Boulder City Council
York, Henry VI, Part 2, III.i.

Maggie Simms
“Til Death Do Us Party” mystery dinner theater owner Employee, CU-Boulder
Queen Margaret, Henry VI, Part 3, I.iv.

Joel Parker
Astronomer and Director, Southwest Research Institute Adjoint faculty, CU-Boulder
Gloucester, Richard III, I.iii.

Ceal Barry
Senior Administrator, Athletic Department, CU-Boulder
Duchess of York, Richard III, IV.iv.

Joe Rice
Director of Government Relations, Lockheed Martin Space System
Titus, Titus Andronicus, III.i.

John Tayer
President and CEO, Boulder Chamber
Katharina, Taming of the Shrew, V.ii.

Bud Coleman
Chair, Department of Theatre & Dance,  CU-Boulder
Launce, Two Gentlemen of Verona, II.iii.

Kevin Rich
Assistant Professor, Theatre & Dance CU-Boulder
Berowne, Love’s Labour’s Lost, IV.v.

John Ekeberg
Executive Director of DCPA Broadway, Denver Center for Performing Arts
Mercutio, Romeo and Juliet, I.iv.

Eva Balistrieri
Actor
Juliet, Romeo and Juliet, III.ii.

Mary Kraus
Vice Provost & Associate Vice Chancellor, CU-Boulder
John of Gaunt, Richard II, II.i.

Steve Ludwig
Regent, CU-Boulder
Richard II, Richard II, III.ii.

Cameron Varner
Graduate, BFA in Performance, CU-Boulder
Bottom, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, IV.i.

Sam Sandoe
Actor, Colorado Shakespeare Festival
Bastard, King John, I.i.

 
Kristofer Buxton

Student, BFA in Performance, CU-Boulder
Shylock, Merchant of Venice, III.i.

Melissa Zak
Chief of Police, CU-Boulder Police Department
Portia, Merchant of Venice, IV.i.

William Kuskin
Senior Associate Vice Provost for Education Innovation, CU-Boulder
Falstaff, Henry IV, Part 1, V.i.

Hadley Kamminga-Peck
First Folio Project Manager, CU-Boulder
Lady Percy, Henry IV, Part 2, II.iii.

Rick George
Athletic Director, CU-Boulder
Henry V, Henry V, IV.iii.

Chip Persons
Associate Professor, Theatre & Dance, CU-Boulder
Dogberry, Much Ado About Nothing, IV.ii.

Elise Collins
Student, BFA in Performance, CU-Boulder
Marc Antony, Julius Caesar, III.ii.

Jim Symons
Professor Emeritus, Theatre & Dance, CU-Boulder
Jaques, As You Like It, II.vii.

Jane Gray
Retiree, Senior Student, CU-Boulder
Viola, Twelfth Night, II.ii.

Katherine Eggert
Professor, English, CU-Boulder
Hamlet, Hamlet, II.ii.

Mary Young
Mayor Pro-Tem, Boulder City Council
Hamlet, Hamlet, III.i.

Leslie Arnold
Assistant Superintendent, Boulder Valley School District
Mistress Page, Merry Wives of Windsor, II.i.

Jami Goetz
Colorado Department of Education
Cressida, Troilus and Cressida, III.ii.

Nolan Carey
Ph.D. Student, Theatre, CU-Boulder
Coriolanus, Coriolanus, IV.v.

Bernadette Sefic
Graduate, BFA in Performance, CU-Boulder
Helena, All’s Well that Ends Well, I.iii.

Alphonse Keasley
Associate Vice Chancellor, Office of Diversity, Equity and Community, CU-Boulder Othello, Othello, I.iii.

Matthew Denton
Discus and hammer-thrower, CU-Boulder
Iago, Othello, II.iii.

Robert Boswell
Vice Chancellor, CU-Boulder
Angelo, Measure for Measure, II.iii.

John Stevenson
English Professor, CU-Boulder
King Lear, King Lear, III.ii.

Madalena DeAndrea
President of Internal Affairs, Student Government, CU-Boulder
Macbeth, Macbeth, V.v.

Anne Sandoe
Actor, Colorado Shakespeare Festival
Hermione, The Winter’s Tale, III.ii.

Casey Dean
BFA in Performance, CU-Boulder
Cleopatra, Antony and Cleopatra, V.ii.

Tamara Meneghini
Associate Professor, Theatre & Dance, CU-Boulder
Constance, King John, III.iv.

Titus
Canine Thespian
Timon, Timon of Athens, III.v.

Nicole Kenneally
Head Coach, Women’s Tennis, CU-Boulder
Imogen, Cymbeline, III.vi.

Michael Bautista
Director of Construction, Flatirons Habitat for Humanity
Caliban, The Tempest, III.ii.

Amanda Giguere
Director of Outreach, Colorado Shakespeare Festival
Prospero, The Tempest, IV.i.

Kiffany Lychock
Director of Educational Innovations, Boulder Valley School District
Prospero, The Tempest, Epilogue

Henry Stalker
Shakespearean Actor
Puck, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Epilogue