On Monday, June 7, Members of Congress and distinguished Washington influencers from both sides of the aisle will travel back to Shakespeare’s day for one evening only! This year’s Virtual Will on the Hill will be online with pay-what-you-will pricing that benefits Shakespeare Theatre Company’s education and community engagement programs. The event begins at 7 p.m. ET.
This year’s witty script Will on the Hill and Far Away—written by playwright, director, and actor Nat Cassidy (Any Day Now, Old Familiar Faces) and directed by Senior Director of Engagement and Education Samantha Wyer Bello—follows a definitely-not-mad scientist who crashes a Congressional hearing held to determine what’s so great about Shakespeare’s works.
Some of DC’s favorite actors, including Felicia Curry (Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!) Yonatan Gebeyehu (Timon of Athens), Christopher Michael Richardson (Macbeth), Tom Story (Peter Pan and Wendy), Holly Twyford (Old Times) and Gregory Wooddell (The School for Lies) will join with members of Congress on the (virtual) stage for this outrageously funny fundraiser. Cameos include: Bianca Amato (Nöel Coward’s Private Lives), Tẹmídayọ Amay (School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play), Zoë Sophia Garcia (The Oresteia), Kimberly Gilbert (Marie Antoinette), Harry Hamlin (Mad Men, Law & Order), Patrick Page (All the Devils Are Here: How Shakespeare Invented the Villain, Hadestown), Tristan André Parks (The Amen Corner), Tony Roach (The Metromaniacs), Faran Tahir (Othello), Tracie Thoms (Rent, Falsettos), Craig Wallace (A Christmas Carol at Ford’s Theatre), Finn Wittrock (American Horror Story) and Jacob Yeh (Julius Caesar).
The illustrious cast will include Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) and Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND), Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA), Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-PA), Rep. André Carson (D-IN), Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA), Rep. Ted Deutch (D-FL), Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-NY), Rep. French Hill (R-AR), Rep. Alan Lowenthal (D-CA), Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA), Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN), Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV), Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R-TX), and Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT) are all confirmed to perform. Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the United States Dame Karen Pierce; Ian Liddell-Grainger, a Member of Parliament in the UK; Nury Turkel, who serves on the US Commission on International Religious Freedom; Founder and President of Americans for Tax Reform Grover Norquist; and longtime Will on the Hill supporters Marla Allard and Maggie Coons are also slated to join the performance. All cast members are subject to change.
Co-Chaired by Vincent Roberti and Karishma Page, Will on the Hill is an extraordinary fundraiser fostering bipartisan support for STC’s arts education programs, which reach nearly 20,000 students and teachers annually by providing workshops, teaching materials, and free/subsidized tickets and transportation to theatrical performances.
For additional information about Will on the Hill 2021, please visit ShakespeareTheatre.org/WillontheHill.
SPONSORS:
Lead Sponsor: Intuit Inc.
Playwright Sponsors: ICF, Roberti Family Foundation for Civic Engagement
Designer Sponsors: Altria Group, Capital One, Eversheds Sutherland LLP, Motion Picture Association, ServiceNow
Producer Sponsors: Bernard and Mary McKay, Stephen and Lisa Ryan, Lynn and Jonathan Yarowsky
Patron Sponsors: AFLAC, Nick and Marla Allard, Americans for Tax Reform, Gail and Jeff MacKinnon, Rock Central LLC, Story Partners
Benefactor: Ernst & Young LLP, National Association of Realtors
Streaming Sponsor: CoStar Group
Congressional Media Sponsor: The Hill
