So the company I’ve been touring with for the last 13 years, the Reduced Shakespeare Company, has played every single year since 1987 at the Reston Community Center in Reston, VA. How many touring groups can boast such a long, fruitful relationship with a presenter? So in honor of the 50th anniversary of Reston, many of the reducers went (along with managing directors / authors Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor) to Reston to perform SEVEN of the NINE abridged works over two weekends. It wasn’t a Shakespeare Festival. It was a Reduced Shakespeare Festival. The schedule was pretty hectic… luckily I was only in two of the shows, but one night I had to perform with someone I’d never performed with before (he was new) and another night with someone who practically retired years ago. Still it was an incredible time, where I got to make new friends (three generations of abridged Hamlets – Austin Tichenor (Current Head Co-Reducer), Jess Winfield (Founder and Originator of the role),  and Me. 

And in my copious down-time (not), I managed to record a little song, a little tribute to Austin and Reed, who have been authors and co-authors of every abridged show since the original Shakespeare show: “Complete History of America (abridged),” “The Bible, The Complete Word of God (abridged),” “All The Great Books (abridged)” “The Millenium A Musical (abridged),” “Completely Hollywood (abridged),” “The Complete World of Sports (abridged),” “The Ultimate Christmas Show (abridged),” and “The Complete History of Comedy (abridged).” The song was featured on one of the RSC podcast episodes dedicated to the extravaganza, but I present it here in full for your listening pleasure.

And here’s a fairly un-abridged selfie (Ellen style) featuring many generations of RSC members from founders to current fools, onstage and off, with some Restonites thrown in as well. Can you pick them out?