Riverland Community College Theatre continues its 2020-2021 season with a musical adaptation of As You Like It that will be prerecorded and available as video on demand.

Named one of The New York Times' best shows of 2017, As You Like It is an immersive, dream-like tale of faithful friends, feuding families, and lovers in disguise. Forced from their homes, Orlando, Duke Senior, his daughter Rosalind and niece Celia escape to the Forest of Arden, a fantastical place of transformation where the refugees find community and acceptance under the stars. Featuring an original folk-pop score by Taub and adapted from William Shakespeare's original text, As You Like It celebrates the power of community and love. The production is appropriate for all ages.

As You Like It features music and lyrics by Shaina Taub, adapted by Shaina Taub and Laurie Woolery.  Lindsey Duoos Williams directs. The technical direction and video design is by John Deyo. Musical direction is by Audrey Kristufek. Costumes are by Madlain Vander. Choreography is by Marny Rohr.

As You Like It stars Brianna Ahlbrecht (Celia), Alexis Ayers (Silvia), Yasmin Bacelar de Souza (Rosalind), Wren Clinefelter (Phoebe), Jon Cochran (Duke Frederick), KariLynn Cook (Touchstone), Morgan Dickman (Miss Amiens), Megan Dilley-Jones (Agent/Minion), Jeremiah Grabau (Announcer/Papa Corin), Caitlin Graff (Minion), Jake Gustine (Oliver), Jessica Jayes (Referee/Attendant) Blythe Johnson (Jaques), Lucas Johnson (Duke Senior), Piper Kellner (Hisperia/Minion), Kea Maxwell (Attendant), Dick McIntosh (Adam), Kim Potter (Mama Corin/Attendant), Oscar Quintero-Guttierez (Orlando), and Celeste Rose (Attendant).

“Musicals present a challenge when creating socially-distanced performances,” said director Williams. “We were able to perform the play She Kills Monsters live on Zoom this fall, but because of the sound delays on Zoom, it’s not possible to sing live and have the sound be in sync. We knew that in order to do a musical, we would need to prerecord the performance so that the sound can be edited together. This time, we’re taking the green screen technology we used this fall and taking it a step farther. Each actor recorded their part solo on the green screen, and then our technical director, John Deyo, is able to edit the performances together to make it look as if they are in the same scene.”

“We were one week into rehearsals for this show in the spring of 2020 when everything shut down,” continued Williams. “It was disappointing because we’d already done so much work on the production and were so excited to start bringing it to life. Even though our 2021 version will look very different than what we originally intended, we were able to keep much of the same cast together and finally get to share the work we started over a year ago.”

“The show seems even more relevant now than it did a year ago,” said Williams. “This is a story that is centered around the importance of community, reminding us to continue to love each other even through the darkest times in our lives. This past year, our theatre community in particular has felt the disconnect of not being able to gather together to rehearse and perform, so it’s a comfort knowing that better times lie ahead.”

As You Like It will be available for viewing on demand starting April 30 through May 8. Audience members will be able to watch the prerecorded performance at any time during those dates from a computer or mobile device.

Individual tickets to As You Like It are $16 per viewer, with a “Group Viewing” pass available for $35 for groups of 3 or more. Tickets are currently on sale at www.riverland.edu/tickets 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The online ticketing system allows customers to pay by Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover. All ticket sales will be handled by phone or internet for this production and the on campus box office will not be open for in person sales. Riverland students receive a free ticket (good for up to two viewers) with a valid student ID. Contact the box office at 507-433-0595 or by emailing boxoffice@riverland.edu.  

After purchasing tickets, audience members will receive a code that will allow them to access the recording for 48 hours.

Riverland Theatre strives to provide quality productions that are entertaining and challenging to both the audience and the artists.  Because we reach such a diverse audience, some audience members may find some subject matter, language, or situations objectionable. If you have concerns about a specific production, we encourage you to become familiar with the material before attending the performance.