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SHOTGUN PLAYERS PRESENT
Beardo
Book and Lyrics by Jason Craig
Music by Dave Malloy
Directed by Patrick Dooley
Berkeley— Royalty, peasantry, sex, dirt, grandeur and hemophilia: a weirdo with a beard arrives at the palace
of the last Tsar in this original SongPlay that takes one of Russia’s strangest and most tumultuous periods by
storm. Loosely based on the life of Rasputin, Beardo is a riotous, irreverent, musically ferocious telling of this
mad monk's mythical rise to glory. Beardo begins performances March 23rd and runs through April 24th at
The Ashby Stage.
Playwright Jason Craig and composer Dave Malloy, who brought you Beowulf: A Thousand Years of Baggage,
team up with Artistic Director Patrick to delve in the world of Russia’s famous bad boy mystic Rasputin. Touted
as a mysterious religious figure as well as an advisor to the Tsar Rasputin (1869 – 1916) was a singular figure in
Russian history who stepped from obscurity into the coveted inner circle of Russian Aristocracy. With his
strange habits and convoluted philosophies, “The Mad Monk” emerges as a highly theatrical character,
supported by rulers and countrymen alike. Rasputin’s sexual practices and mystical prowess create an
unbeatable narrative and a fabulous basis for fourteen original songs, supported by a string quartet, guitar and
percussion.
The music for Beardo features a full string quartet, plus upright bass, guitar and percussion, performing a dark,
driving score inspired by the ballets of Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev, the quartets of Borodin, Bartok and Crumb,
Russian gypsy music, Tuvan love songs, Captain Beefheart and Prince.
Playwright Jason Craig has this to say about the legendary persona of Rasputin:
“So much of what we know about Rasputin is built on legend and myth, on fear and fiction. He has
become a fabricated ultra-villain as an attempt to easily explain the downfall of an entire empire. Yet
underneath this myth is a fascinating man who, with a bit of mischief and a lot of desire, was able to
climb the social ladder and rise from common peasant to royal adviser. It is the ultimate underdog
story - an aspect of the human spirit that has always fascinated me.”
The actor playing Rasputin is Ashkon Davaran, who you may recognize as the diehard cult hero of
Giants fans. Ashkon unexpectedly took Youtube by storm this fall when his fan video and cover of
Journey’s Don’t Stop Believing became the official Giants 2010 Anthem. His vocal abilities are even
more incredible live onstage. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyVdbfyvwso
Jason Craig (Playwright) is Co-Founder/Co-Artistic Director of Banana Bag & Bodice for which he is a writer,
performer and set designer. His writing with BBB has won him awards nationally and internationally.
Commissions outside of BBB include The Exit Theatre (SF) Juggernaut Theatre (NY) and The Shotgun Players
Berkeley, Ca.) His adaptation of Beowulf entitled Beowulf : A Thousand Years of Baggage received the Will
Glickman Award for Best New play in the Bay Area. He has been a featured artist in many publications,
including Theatre Forum, Theatre Bay Area, Time Out New York, The New York Times and American Theater
Magazine. For Space//Space he received an Individual Artist Commission from NYSCA. He received a BA
(hons) in Architecture from Hull University, England.
Dave Malloy (Composer) is one of the co-creator/performers of Three Pianos, a drunken romp through
Schubert’s Winterreise (Ontological-Hysteric Theater, New York Theater Workshop; Special Citation OBIE
Award), and the composer for the Brooklyn based ensemble Banana Bag & Bodice. He has written six full
length musicals, including Beowulf - A Thousand Years of Baggage (Shotgun Players/BB&B; 2008 Glickman
Award, New Yorker Best of 2009), Sandwich, and Clown Bible (Ten Red Hen; “Best Play of the Year,” East
Bay Express 2007). Other notable shows include (The 99-cent) Miss Saigon, a shoe-string adaptation complete
with a toy helicopter on a zip line, for which he was musical director, pianist and Chris. He is the winner of a
2009 Jonathan Larson Grant, a recipient of the 2009-11 NEA/TCG Career Development Program for Theatre
Designers, and the 2011 composer-in-residence at Ars Nova. He lives in Brooklyn.
Beardo is a new play commissioned by The Shotgun Players. Written by Jason Craig, with Original Music by
Dave Malloy. Set Design by Lisa Clark, Light Design by Michael Palumbo, Costume Design by Christine
Crook, Properties Design by Tunuviel Luv, Choreography by Chris Black.
The cast of Beardo features Kevin Clarke, Ashkon Davaran, Dave Garrett, JP Gonzalez, Juliet Heller, Anna
Ishida, Sarah Mitchell, Josh Pollock, Eleanor Reinholdt.
The band for Beardo includes Olive Mitra (Bass), Janet Johnson (Viola), Gael Adcock (Cello), Jo Gray (Violin)
and Jessica Ling (Violin).
CALENDAR LISTING
WHAT: Rasputin: healer or hedonist of both? One thing is for sure - he’s a weirdo with a beard. Riotous and
irreverent, Beardo is an original songplay that takes one of Russia’s strangest and most tumultuous periods by
storm. Royalty, peasantry, sex, dirt, grandeur and hemophilia all mix together in a musically ferocious telling of
Rasputin’s rise to glory. Playwright Jason Craig and composer Dave Malloy, who brought you Beowulf: A
Thousand Years of Baggage, team up with Artistic Director Patrick Dooley to delve in the world of Russia’s
famous bad boy mystic Rasputin.
WHEN: Previews Wednesday – Friday, March 23 – 25. Opens Saturday, March 26. Runs Thursday – Saturday
at 8PM, Sundays at 5PM through April 24. Wednesday performances at 7PM begin April 6.
WHERE: The Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Avenue, Berkeley
TICKET PRICES: March 23, 24, 25 & 27 are Pay-What-You-Can. Regular performance nights are $17
Wednesday, $20 Thursday, $23 Friday and Sunday, $26 for Saturdays. Advance reservations strongly advised.
For more information go to www.shotgunplayers.org or call 510.841.6500