written by John Heimbuch
directed by Amy Rummenie
August 2 – 10, 2008
The Minnesota Fringe Festival
at the University of Minnesota’s
Rarig Thrust Theatre
London 1599. Shakespeare’s Henry V opens the Globe Playhouse, but while the actors strut and fret, an excess of bile plagues the populace. A true and accurate account of the Elizabethan zombie plague!
As flesh transformed Lycaon into raging beast,
these dead now awaken for one final feast.
Their bite brings affliction – wounds that don’t heal –
so sever their necks with thy good English steel.
Cast
Production Team
| will kemp | Craig Anderson | director | Amy Rummenie |
| kate braithwaite | Ariana Prusak | stage manager | Rachel Mullins |
| richard burbage | Keith Prusak | technical director | David Pisa |
| william shakespeare | John Heimbuch | fight choreographer | Matt Franta |
| john rice | Michael Curran-Dorsano | dialect coach | Joseph Papke |
| john “sinklo” sinckler | David Pisa | movement coach | Galen Treuer |
| francis bacon | Joseph Papke | makeup artist | Betsy Jorgenson |
| queen elizabeth tudor | Ellen Karsten* | promo video director | Kevin Obsatz |
| doctor john dee | Jeff Huset | promo video writer | John Heimbuch |
| sir robert cecil | Shad Cooper | photography | Dan Norman |
| soldiers | Jena Young | ||
| Eric Zuelke | |||
| afflicted, etc. | Christopher Bauleke | ||
| Jon Cole | |||
| Katherine Glover | |||
| Jennifer Walker | |||
| Andrew Northrop | |||
| Valerie Rigsbee | |||
| Erin Sheppard |
Reviews
William Shakespeare’s Land of the Dead was the Best Attended production of the 2008 Minnesota Fringe Festival.
William Shakespeare’s Land of the Dead has been published by Concord Theatricals and is available for licensing. Click here to purchase a copy.
Shakespeare Gets Zombified at the Fringe! I’m always a sucker for anything with zombies (or sharks, but that’s another story) so this fun Fringe play immediately caught my eye. Described as a “true and accurate account of the Elizabethan zombie plague,” Walking Shadow Theater Company takes us on a wild ride set during the opening night of Sheakespeare’s Henry V at the Globe Playhouse. Mayhem rages throughout the streets in this well done zombie/Shakespeare mashup set in 1599 London. Walking Shadow manages to balance historic authenticity with zombie horror in a funny and clever manner – and even features some special guest stars such as Queen Elizabeth and Sir Francis Bacon for comedic effect.
– Kate Iverson, The Rake
“If there’s one show that deserves to be resurrected after the Fringe, it’s John Heimbuch’s brilliant and hilarious zombies-meet-Shakespeare epic … If you know Shakespeare, you’ll be roaring as the show lampoons everything about the Bard and ludicrously reuses famous lines while the heroes battle invading zombies … MUST SEE.”
– Saint Paul Pioneer Press
“Methinks I hear the cartmen in the streets shouting, “Bring out your un-dead!” Plague was far worse than we think, turning victims to flesh-eating zombies. Something this funny and wonky can only come from those who respect and love the period and the people whom they lampoon. John Heimbuch’s script is witty, clever, peppered with self-referential humor and wordplay on some of the Bard’s best lines. Every performance in the large cast is a standout. Do not miss this show!”
– Brian Leehan, Minneapolis Star Tribune
The big hit of the 2008 Minnesota Fringe Festival is Shakespeare’s Land of the Dead. It starts with an alarmingly simple concept — what if a George A. Romero-style zombie apocalypse happened in 1599, the night Shakespeare’s Henry V opened — and builds from there. The show deserves its hit status. The play is polished, well-conceived, written and acted. Beyond that, playwright John Heimbuch understands the conventions and rhythms of this kind of horror story, with echoes of Night of the Living Dead (either staying in the safety of the Globe theater or making a go of it outside) and I Am Legend (destroying London Bridge to stop the spread of the plague; though this is a motif that could have been pulled from any number of films).
– Ed Huyck, Noise Annoys
“Both Shakespeare and horror nerds will enjoy this brilliant Elizabethan production of bloody proportions, taking zombies into new and exciting terrain.”
– Fangoria Magazine
It’s opening night in 1599 at Shakespeare’s newly reconstructed Globe Theatre, and backstage the biggest problem in the early going is the reappearance of Will Kemp (Craig Anderson), who has previously cheesed off the English language’s greatest playwright (played here by John Heimbuch, who also penned the script) by hamming it up as Falstaff.
There’s a bit of intrigue involving Francis Bacon (Joseph Papke), but then we get to the real heart of the drama: the appearance of growling, flesh-eating zombies. If anything, the results are even better than they sound. Heimbuch’s script is unerringly witty and unapologetically referential, and the performances are unabashedly crisp and fun. The undead are rarely so enjoyable.
– Quinton Skinner, City Pages
