Original Practice Shakespeare Festival
OPS Fest brings a new style of Shakespearean performance to the Portland area by reviving the old.
First Folio editions of Shakespeare's plays include all the cues an actor needs to perform their role without rehearsal. This allows the truest reaction to the story as it progresses. OPS Fest performs using the same techniques as they did in Shakespeare's own time, which means limited rehearsal, an onstage prompter, fast paced, energetic acting, and lots of audience interaction. This lends a much more immediate, organic, and improvisational feel.
Casting and Diversity: Mission
The actors in our troupe receive their own lines and cues only--three or four words before they speak--culled from the First Folio, published in 1623. These texts preserve the original spelling, punctuation, capitalization, verse, and other original practice directives to guide the performance. You may see a show many times, but you will never see the same show.
Original Practice Shakespeare Festival is a safe space for persons from all walks of life. We believe that Shakespeare's work and characters benefit from exploration by a wide array of artists from different backgrounds and experiences.
In this spirit, we seek to employ artists of color, LGBTQ artists, differently-abled artists, all gender identities, all ages and all expressions of humanity and provide aid to those experiencing discrimination.
