Richard III: The Terrible Reign

Some thematic material may not be appropriate for young children.

SYNOPSIS

The War of the Roses is over. England is at peace. And no one is safe. The War of the Roses between the Houses of York and Lancaster has raged for thirty years of bloody, civil strife. The Yorks are currently in power, and Edward IV (Richard’s eldest brother) is on the throne. Richard has spent his entire adult life fighting for his family’s cause; but in this time of relative rest, his soldier skills are no longer needed and his evil mind begins “to dream upon the crown.” He realizes that “many lives stand between him and home.” This is the story of Richard’s murderous, bloody journey to the crown, his terrible reign, and his cataclysmic downfall at Bosworth Field.

CAST & CREW

 

JOHN MICHAEL COX - RICHARD III

John Michael is thrilled to be performing in Richard III: The Terrible Reign as his twelfth production with The University Classic Players! Credits include The Taming of the Shrew, Nell Gwynn, and The Tempest (Texas Shakespeare Festival); Robin Hood (South Carolina Children’s Theatre); Hamlet and Love’s Labour’s Lost  (Hoosier Shakespeare Festival); The Tempest, and Love's Labour's Lost (Greenville Shakespeare Company); A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Tempest, Hamlet, and Twelfth Night (Classic Players).

John Michael earned his MFA in Classical Acting from Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Academy for Classical Acting at The George Washington University, and now teaches acting and theatre classes at Bob Jones University. He and his wife, Allison, live in Taylors with their beautiful daughter, Rosalind, and their dog, Kona!

 

ANNA BROWN - QUEEN ELIZABETH

Anna graduated from BJU with a BS in Speech Pedagogy (2013) and an MA in Theatre Arts (2015). Since then, she has utilized her theatre training in fields such as education, script writing, and business operations. 

Anna currently serves as the Vice Chair for the SC Theatre Association's Community Theatre Division and has been involved in numerous Upstate productions including Annie Get Your Gun (Mill Town Players), Pouf! (Centre Stage), and The Sound of Music (South Carolina Children's Theatre).

She performed as Queen Elizabeth in the 2012 production of Richard III and is thrilled to return to the Rodeheaver stage! Some of her other favorite BJU roles include Falstaff (Henry IV), the Fool (King Lear), and Lucio (Measure for Measure).

ANNETTE PAIT - DUCHESS OF YORK

Because of a life-long interest in storytelling, Annette earned a master’s degree in solo performance. For the past 30 years, she has participated in theatrical productions while teaching communication part-time and subbing for high school classes.  

Annette currently teaches a high-school Bible class and offers solo performances of the entire biblical prophecy of Revelation for audiences. 

ERIN NALER - OLD QUEEN MARGARET

Most recently Erin Naler played the role of Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, but has appeared in many Classic Players roles including Gertrude in Hamlet, Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing, and Goneril in King Lear. Erin has a PhD in Aesthetics from the University of Texas in Dallas, has taught Theatre for over twenty years, is the head of the Theatre Department at BJU, and loves directing her favorite works of American theatre—her favorite being The Trip to Bountiful by Horton Foote, for which she won an American Prize. 

HANNAH ALLEN - ANNE NEVILLE

Hannah Allen is a Junior theatre major at Bob Jones University. She has performed in Measure for Measure, A Christmas Carol, The Diary of Anne Frank, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Macbeth, and A Comedy of Errors. Also a hair and makeup designer, Hannah has offered her talents on several productions.  

LONNIE POLSON - DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM

Lonnie Polson teaches communication and theatre at Bob Jones University. As an active member of the BJU Classic Players, Lonnie has appeared in or directed over forty theatrical productions. He played the title roles in Shakespeare’s Othello, King Lear, Henry IV, and Coriolanus. Other notable credits include Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing, Claudius in Hamlet, Iago in Othello, Caliban in The Tempest, Prince Hal in Henry IV, Macduff in Macbeth, Toby Belch in Twelfth Night, Falstaff in Henry IV, Oedipus in Oedipus Rex, Algernon in The Importance of Being Earnest, Tom in The Glass Menagerie, and Everett in Marsha Norman’s Traveler in the Dark.

Since 1996, Lonnie has performed his acclaimed one-man show Behold: The Gospel Mark throughout the United States and Great Britain. In addition to his collegiate teaching ministry, Dr. Polson pastors White Oak Baptist Church in Greenville South Carolina. 

BILL BURKHOLDER - LORD STANLEY

Bill has served as a faculty member in the School of Business at BJU since 2009. His first foray into Shakespearian theatre was in the Spring of 2010, when he had the privilege of portraying Polixenes, the king of Bohemia in The Winter's Tale at BJU. He subsequently had the role of the high priest, Caiaphas, in a Living Gallery performance. In addition to these roles, Bill has performed in several student directed plays and even ventured into cinematic acting in an award-winning student film.

ERIC LANE- EARL OF RICHMOND 

Eric is honored to join the Classic Players in this year’s production of Richard III: The Terrible Reign. He has been involved in past Classic Players productions as Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Ariel in The Tempest. He is also credited as the titular character of a graduate production of Macbeth, as Peter in Silent Sky, and sound designer for Operation Turkey Lurkey and Susan Glaspell’s The Outside. He is currently enrolled as a senior Theatre student at Bob Jones University and enjoys good books and thought-provoking movies.

 

JEFFREY STEGALL- DIRECTOR & DESIGNER

Jeffrey Stegall has been directing, designing, and acting for almost 40 years.

He has played the title character in Hamlet, Henry V, Richard II, and The Merchant of Venice, as well as more than a baker's dozen of Shakespeare’s clowns. His play and opera directing and design credits include over 60 productions.

While at The National Shakespeare Conservatory in New York City, he studied with James Tripp, Mark Zellar, Peter Lobdell, Mary Lou Rosato, as well other Theatre professionals. He also studied Theatre Design at The University of Oklahoma with Forrest Newlin and Michael Buchwald.

He is founder of The Greenville Shakespeare Company, a nonprofit organization that exists to provide the Upstate of South Carolina and surrounding areas with family friendly, high quality, accessible productions of Shakespeare and other classic works of literature.