Streaming Run Extended Amidst Praise for Bard’s Feature Film Done/Undone
September 15, 2021, VANCOUVER, B.C. – Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival is extending the streaming run of its feature film Done/Undone to October 31, in the wake of critical praise for this entertaining, provocative response to the question “why Shakespeare, why now?” The film, an ambitious new enterprise for Western Canada’s biggest Shakespeare festival, was launched online in August and industry and public praise is rolling in:
“The more I reflect on this piece, the more I admire all aspects of it. As long time Chair of the Vancouver Film Festival I saw hundreds of films. Very few have stayed with me to the same extent as Done/Undone.” (Michael Francis, FCA)
“(Done/Undone) addresses the question with wit and intelligence and a sense of nuance. It’s a really great film. It sets out in a playful way, by which I mean a theatrical way and with a sense of fun, what these questions are – questions that sometimes become very fraught or very adversarial.” (Emma Smith, Oxford University, UK, bestselling author of This is Shakespeare (Pelican)
“The acting of Charlie Gallant and Harveen Sandhu is impeccable, fierce, jokey, engaging and so full of life and confidence that the whole experience of watching Done/Undone is exhilarating. Kate Besworth has written a wonderful, challenging play that holds a mirror up to reflect our world and who we are, and in the middle of it is Shakespeare. Loved it.” (Lynn Slotkin, The Slotkin Letter)
Done/Undone, by Kate Besworth, was shot in multiple spaces at Burnaby’s Shadbolt Centre for the Arts. Directed by Vancouver theatre artist Arthi Chandra, Done/Undone stars Charlie Gallant (Shakespeare in Love, 2019) and Harveen Sandhu (As You Like It, 2018). The two accomplished actors play a range of characters, including two cast-members in a Hamlet production, a pair of battling scholars, a theatre-going couple who are deeply split on Shakespeare’s appeal – and a cameo appearance by the Bard himself.
The film’s viewing platform, OVERTURE+, offers high-quality playback across all devices, as well as closed captioning in multiple languages, including English, French, Spanish, (Simplified) Chinese and Arabic, to expand the film’s reach to new audiences in Canada and around the world.
Single digital-access tickets for Done/Undone are $29 and include all fees & taxes; Household and Educational rates are also available. All pricing and access details are available at bardonthebeach.org or by calling the Bard Box Office at 604-739-0559 (M-F, 12 noon to 4pm PT).
Bard’s 2021 Season – September & October Online Events
Bard Explored – Simon Fraser University’s Paul Budra talks with some of the world’s leading literary scholars: Oxford University’s Emma Smith (This is Shakespeare, Pelican), actor and academic John “Ray” Proctor (Tulane University), Paul Yachnin (McGill University) and Farah Karim-Cooper (Shakespeare’s Globe). Livestreamed on Saturdays at 11am PT, September 25 and October 2. Details on upcoming sessions and recordings of past episodes here.
Done/Undone: Artist Talkback – Join members of the film’s artistic team as they have conversations about Done/Undone’s themes and take attendees’ questions. Streamed online September 21. Details here.
Wine Wednesday – hosted by Artistic Director Christopher Gaze and Vancouver International Wine Festival Executive Director Harry Hertscheg. Join them online to sip and savour a variety of BC wines, with special guests from the wine industry. October 6. Details here.
A Shakesperience – a new film, conceived and scripted by Bard Director of Education Mary Hartman and directed by Dean Paul Gibson (dir. Coriolanus, 2019). This lively, engaging introduction to Shakespeare is slated for free on-demand viewing starting in October.
For more information on all events and to register or buy tickets, visit bardonthebeach.org.
Bard on the Beach gratefully acknowledges the corporate sponsors and donors who support and sustain the Festival and its programs. 2021 support comes from two Season Sponsors – the Peter and Joanne Brown Foundation and BMO Financial Group; Done/Undone Production Sponsor – BlueShore Financial; A Shakesperience Production Sponsor – Lawson Lundell LLP; 2021 TV Sponsor – Global BC; as well as many other valued sponsors and partners. Bard also thanks the City of Vancouver Cultural Services Department, the Vancouver Park Board, the Province of British Columbia, the B.C. Arts Council, Canadian Heritage and the Canada Council for the Arts for their continuing support.
About Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival
Bard on the Beach is one of Canada’s largest not-for-profit, professional Shakespeare festivals. Established in 1990 in Vanier Park/Sen̓áḵw, Bard’s mission is to create transformational experiences through exceptional theatre, training, and education opportunities that inspire, resonate, and promote the exchange of ideas. As well as an annual summer Festival, Bard offers year-round education and training programs for youth, adults and theatre professionals both online and in its administrative home at the BMO Theatre Centre in Olympic Village, as well as in schools and community facilities throughout the Lower Mainland of British Columbia.
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2021 Season photography is currently available on the Bard website. Please contact Cynnamon Schreinert for password access, or for interviews. Tel: 604-802-2733; email: [email protected]