By Kathi E.B. Lewis for ARTS-LOUISVILLE
August 10, 2017
This week sees the closing of Kentucky Shakespeare’s 57th season of free, continuous, outdoor Shakespeare productions, making it the oldest company of its kind in the country. To mark the second and final Community Partner Week, they are teaming up with the Louisville Ballet, one of the oldest ballet companies in the country – a fine pairing.
Following on from last summer’s first Ballet in the Park, choreographer Roger Creel continues his exploration of Shakespeare through movement and dance. Last season it was an exploration of the love triangle in the sonnets, Will’s Folly, this time he tackles one of Shakespeare’s late, great plays, King Lear. Once again his music collaborator is Scott Moore, who has created a suite of music for the ballet.
I come to this experience both as a balletomane and as a lover of Shakespeare – both curious and cautious of how the cross-genre exploration will go – while recognizing that in that crossover some things get left out and others amplified.