Twelfth Night
by William Shakespeare
"This is one of those productions that make you feel lucky to be in New York.”
– The New York Times (Critic's Pick)
2023 – Classical Theatre of Harlem &
Yale Repertory Theatre
NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts
2022 – Classical Theatre of Harlem & Yale Repertory Theatre
Marcus Garvey Park
2019 – Yale Repertory Theatre
University Theatre, New Haven, CT
Directed by Carl Cofield
Choreography by Tiffany Rea Fisher
Original music by Frederick Kennedy
Set design by Riw Rakkulchon
Lighting design by Alan C Edwards (2022–2023);
Samuel Kwan Chi Chan (2019)
Costume design by Mika H. Eubanks
Sound design by Frederick Kennedy
Projection design by Brittany Bland
2023 — Nominated for 3 Henry Hewes Awards for excellence in design, including Best Sound Design
“A top-notch revival for audiences of all ages.”
– Victor Gluck, TheatreScene.net
“★★★★★ Classical Theatre of Harlem’s acclaimed summer staging returns for a short winter stint! Director Carl Cofield, choreographer/associate director Tiffany Rea-Fisher, and composer/sound designer Frederick Kennedy plunge us into a world of nearly nonstop music and movement.”
– Melissa Rose Bernardo, New York Stage Review
"Classical Theatre of Harlem’s production, playing just this week (February 11-19) at NYU’s Skirball Theater, is among the most inventive and entertaining I’ve yet seen. What makes this production special is its ability to simultaneously stay true to the original while being wildly fresh, original and inventive.... Frederick Kennedy’s music and sound design completes the play’s transformation...to a joyous dance festival.”
– JK Clarke, Theater Pizzazz
2022 — Nominated for 8 AUDELCO Awards, including Best Sound Design
"This is one of those productions that make you feel lucky to be in New York.”
– Laura Collins-Hughes,The New York Times (Critic's Pick)
"Shakespeare in the Park gets more attention, but the Classical Theatre of Harlem, in association with the Yale Repertory Theatre, delivers the better free outdoor production of a Bard play this summer."
– Elisabeth Vincentelli,The New Yorker
"Jester Feste (Israel Erron Ford), croons auto-tuned ditties that set the Bard's words to Frederick Kennedy's groovy, funky melodies. It's racy and riotous—an unabashed crowd-pleaser that inspires snaps and squeals of approval throughout. If whooping be the proof of love, this Twelfth Night is playing on all cylinders." 4/5 Stars
– Raven Snook, Time Out New York
"Vibrates with a playful spirit that keeps it fresh and entertaining, exemplified by choreographer Tiffany Rea-Fisher's exuberant interstitial dance sequences and composer-sound designer Frederick Kennedy's R&B-flavored settings."
– Kenji Fujishima, Theatermania
"... a seductive pop arrangement from composer/sound designer Frederick Kennedy."
– David Barbour, Lighting & Sound America
2019 — Nominated for 9 Connecticut Critics Circle Awards, including Best Sound Design
“Here, music is a central game changer. Gone is the standard-issue, minstrel-with-a-guitar version of “O Mistress Mine,” replaced with a rendition by Feste (a cool, far-out Erron Crawford) of the Bard’s verse involving techno beats and Auto-Tune.
“Twelfth Night” is one of the most musical of Shakespeare’s plays. Some of his most famous lyrics, including “O mistress mine” and “Hey ho, the wind and the rain," have been given stunning R&B/soul settings by composer/sound designer Frederick Kennedy. The songs are fluid, catchy and contemporary."
– Christopher Arnot, Hartford Courant
“Orsino’s famous speech concerning the nutritional value of music for a love-starved appetite morphs into a full-tilt boogie exaltation of his fantasy of Ideal Love, thanks to a game cast surrendering itself entirely to the spirit of the text and Frederick Kennedy’s exhilarating music."
– E. Kyle Minor, New Haven Register
“Cofield, with composer Frederick Kennedy, finds incredible music in the script—Feste lifts the play with a soaring and autotuned version of “O mistress mine” that channels Janelle Monae and Drexciya instead of a courtly afternoon.”
– Lucy Gellman, Arts Council of Greater New Haven
“Invaluable work from both Frederick Kennedy (composer and sound design) and Brittany Bland (projection design) make the show a visual and aural feast.”
– Tom Holehan, CT Critics Circle