Full Circle Players opened up their first performance of The Tempest, with a pre-show of La Mujer Dormida, in their Shakespeare in the Park series at the California Citrus State Historical Park in Riverside Ca on July 11.

Shakespeare in the Park is an idea born from Joseph Papp in the 1950's, and was originally a series of workshops held in the park, and then eventually moved towards doing free shows in Central Park in New York, and to this day, Shakespeare in the Park brings to mind New York early evenings in Central Park with up and coming actors getting their start, and Shakespeare performed for free for whomever came to watch.

These days you don't have to go all the way to New York to enjoy Shakespeare and thanks to Full Circle Players, you can enjoy it right here in Riverside. FCP opened up their Shakespeare in the Park series on July 11 at the California Citrus Historical Park with a rendition of The Tempest. As a treat for those who came early, they also did a pre-show performance of La Mujer Dormida. The troupe will be moving around the greater Inland Empire area throughout July and finishing back in Riverside on August 1st and 2nd.

La Mujar Dormida, "The Sleeping Woman", adapted and directed by Steve Llamas tells a sweeping tale of love and sacrifice, and the actors provided amazing emotional performances that enhanced the story, even for me, who doesn't speak fluent Spanish. Maya De La Torre, who plays Itza, was so much fun to watch and the chemistry between their character and Ivan Valencia, who plays Popo, really draws you into their story and struggle.

After a brief intermission, to allow the actors a costume change, we begin the main performance of The Tempest. Shakespeare stories have been told and re-told in just about every form of media you can think of, and there are tons of variant versions of The Tempest out there as well. FCP put their own spin on the story as well, playing with gender and time period to bring a relevant story to stage. Rebecca Reber, who plays the gender flipped Prospera, does such a great job of providing the anchor to the story, and brings all the pieces together throughout the performance, and the range of emotions that she conveys to the audience throughout was enthralling.

Celina Rong, who plays Ariel a spirit that is bound to Prospera despite continued promises of freedom, brings my favorite version of this character to the stage. Rong brings a mischievous tone to the character, and the absolute glee she emotes to the audience as she wreaks havoc to the other character is so much fun to witness. Rong also showed a lot of skill in making her range of emotions clear to the audience, and you never felt like you couldn't understand what was happening with her character.

Julian Carrasco, who plays Sebastian and Stephano, and Sadaf Sharif, who plays Gonzalo and Trinculo, had a daunting task bringing multiple characters to life, and did a extremely well with that. Whenever they would switch into the other role, it wasn't jarring, and you didn't feel like you were watching the same actor, and if I am being honest, I didn't even realize they were the same actor until well into the play. Also, as the duo Stephano and Trinculo brought some hilarity to the evening. Both did great as drunken fools, and joined by Caliban, played by Ivan Valencia, created a scene both on and off stage, as they spent much of the second act mingling amongst the audience, and bringing everyone into the show.

I could go on and on about all of these actors, as each brought something special to their performance, and the direction from Wendi Johnson helped tell a clear story that allowed the audience to full immerse themselves into the set and story and brought a delightful night of open air theatre.

The show is, of course, outdoors and it is very hot these days, but the surrounding shade trees, and the timing for the show both help as the sun falls and the air cools I was very comfortable throughout the entire presentation. Feel free to bring outdoor chairs and sit in the grassy area behind the large terraced steps that also provide ample seating for the performance. Food and beverages are also welcome and bottled water is available for sale on site. Friday and Saturday will be the final performances at the Citrus Park, and then the production moves to Menifee, Redlands, and Perris throughout the month of July, with a return to Riverside for weekend at Fairmount Park on August 1st.

I cannot recommend going out and seeing this performance enough! It is a great way to introduce kids to Shakespeare, and the actors provide exceptional performances that are worth seeing. Full Circle Players is a local Riverside Community Theatre group that has done performances at The Box in Downtown Riverside and will have another show opening there in October. They are always looking for actors, and supporters, and you can visit their website to find ways to do both.