Obie Award-winning director Robert O'Hara (Bootycandy, The Brother/Sister Plays (Part 2)) brings a warring King and his band of brothers to communities throughout New York with the Mobile Unit's spring production of HENRY V.
Insulted by the regent of France, Britain's King Henry V (Zenzi Williams) decides to wage war and claim the throne across the Channel. Resonating over the centuries, wherever there may be a kingdom for a stage and royalty to act, Shakespeare's drama about invasion, ego, and leadership delves into history's thorniest questions: What makes a person worthy of wearing the crown, and what do they owe the people they lead?
But this time, our King is played with startling freshness by an African-American actress, unearthing new meaning to our little touch of Henry, as our King makes his way through this bloody campaign.
The Mobile Unit is an incarnation of Joseph Papp's famous Mobile Shakespeare program. This was the original impulse of the New York Shakespeare Festival, which grew over time into Free Shakespeare in the Park and The Public Theater. The Mobile Unit presents programming for free to audiences in correctional facilities, homeless shelters, social service organizations, and other community venues throughout the five boroughs.
