Shakespeare’s Richard III coming to Prague’s Estates Theatre in English

The play marks the acting return to Prague of PSC favorite, the former British Ambassador to the Czech Republic Jan Thompson OBE as Queen Elizabeth. PSC artistic director Guy Roberts directs and stars as Richard III, a man audiences have loved to hate for over 400 years.

“So delighted to be back in my beloved Prague and acting once again with the amazing Prague Shakespeare Company at the historic Estates Theatre. Now living in Delhi as the British Deputy High Commissioner to India, I leapt at the opportunity when PSC director Guy Roberts suggested I return to Prague to reprise my role as Queen Elizabeth in Shakespeare’s Richard III. It’s one of my favorite roles, in what is one of Shakespeare’s most powerful and compelling dramas,” Thompson said.

“It’s always gratifying to work with a company the caliber of Guy Roberts’ Prague Shakespeare Company. Combine that with the opportunity to perform in the incomparable Estates Theatre, and to be in Prague at Christmastime, and you have the makings of a perfect holiday,” Davies said.

The production uses a mix of costumes from different eras. Roberts said this production is set in an “everywhere and nowhere kind of world” where some of the costumes are historically accurate, while some are modern day. “We have guns and we have swords,” he said. The play also makes use of video to add another modern layer.

Other PSC favorites in the production include Jessica Boone, Scott Bellefeuille, Lane Davies, Taylor Napier, Vanessa Azyzah Gendron, Abigail Rice, Cathy Meils, Jeff Good Jeff Smith, John Poston, Daniel Brown, Bob Boudreaux, Stanislav Callas, Grant Podelco, Lea Skleničková, Lenka Olšanová, Erik Black and David Fisher among others.

The Prague Shakespeare Company (PSC) is a professional English-language troupe based in Prague. It focuses mainly on the plays of William Shakespeare. Its mission is to bring to the Czech Republic, European and World audiences English-language performances, using a multi-national ensemble.