rr "Much-heralded Star Deli slow-cooks its own tender temptations" — Danny Raskin Happy Birthday, Will! A Jewish woman behind the Bard? I Suzanne Chessler Contributing Writer A s theater companies schedule productions to celebrate the 450th anniversary of the birth of William Shakespeare, skeptics question the authenticity of his authorship — with some pondering whether the celebrated plays and poems might have been written by a woman of Jewish heritage. Could Amelia Bassano Lanier (also spelled Aemelia Bassano Lanyer), who lived from 1569-1645, be the Dark Lady of Shakespeare's sonnets or, beyond that, the actual writer of works attributed to Shakespeare? That's not the issue being raised by three Michigan companies as they pre- pare for summer performances of the works questioned by others. For them, the play's the thing. Shakespeare in Detroit will pres- ent A Midsummer Night's Dream and Romeo and Juliet. Water Works Theatre Company in Royal Oak is focused on Hamlet and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) (Revised), a parody by Adam Long, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield. The Michigan Shakespeare Festival in Jackson is staging Hamlet and Cymbeline. Away from Michigan, connections to Bassano have been put forth in an ana- lytic piece, "Unmasking Shakespeare by Michael Posner, who writes for Toronto's Globe and Mail: "The Bassano authorship theory's prin- cipal proponent is John Hudson, a gradu- ate of the Shakespeare Institute at the University of Birmingham, in England:' Posner has written. "Hudson has spent ... seven years por- ing over Shakespeare texts and scholarly material as well as mounting productions of the plays with his New York-based troupe, the Dark Lady Players. "He's also written an 800-page manu- script in support of his contention that if Amelia Bassano did not author all of Shakespeare in Detroit A Midsummer Night's Dream 8:30 p.m. Saturday, July 12 New Center Park (2990 W. Grand Blvd.) • Free Romeo and Juliet 7 p.m. Saturday, July 26 Grand Circus Park (Downtown Detroit) • Free shakespeareindetroit.com Water Works Theatre Company Hamlet July 31-Aug. 10 • 8 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays and 5 p.m. Sundays Starr Jaycee Park (13 Mile between Main and Crooks) Royal Oak • $20 the works, she was a major collaborator, influenced them all and contributed their underlying allegorical plots" Bassano was the daughter of a Venetian-born musician (he was a con- verso, or "secret Jew," who only outwardly recanted his Jewish faith during the time of the Spanish Inquisition), who played for the royal court of England, where his daughter came of age, assumed her place in society and was educated. It is argued that the absence of a worldly education and higher status in society in Shakespeare's life would have made it impossible for him to have many of the references made in writings attrib- uted to him. "Hudson and other scholars maintain that Merchant of Venice is not an anti- Semitic slander but an extraordinary appeal for equality:' Posner has contend- ed. Also argued are instances of Jewish subtext in A Midsummer Night's Dream and spoken Hebrew in All's Well That Ends Well. Sally O'Reilly, who has written a new novel, Dark Aemilia: A Novel of Shakespeare's Dark Lady (Picador), devis- es a romantic relationship shared by her protagonist, England's first female poet, and Shakespeare. Dark Aemilia, released in May, is writ- ten in narrative but divided similarly to a play with acts and scenes instead of chapters. For those interested in the topic, there is a free eBook by O'Reilly, Shakespeare's Dark Lady: The Lost Story of Aemilia Bassano Lanyer, which has a collection of Shakespeare's "Dark Lady" sonnets, historical details and her poetry "Dark Aemilia is a work of imagina- tion, based on fact:' O'Reilly wrote in the historical notes to her book. "I wanted to tell a story that was authentic and his- torically accurate. Equally importantly, I wanted to write about Shakespeare's London as if I was there:' For those wanting to see the plays pro- duced locally, here is a schedule listed by theater company: The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) (Revised) Aug. 2-10, 2 p.m Aug. 2-3, 9-10; 7 p.m. Aug. 5-6 • $10 (248) 399-3727; waterworkstheatre.com Michigan Shakespeare Festival Hamlet and Cymbeline July 17-Aug. 17 (rotating dates and times) Michigan Baughman Theatre at Jackson Community College 2111 Emmons Road, Jackson • $31-$40 (517) 998-3673; michiganshakespearefestival.com ❑ Order Trays for Your Summer Picnics! TAR Order your ELI Holiday Trays & • Specialties today! COMPARE OUR LOW PRICES WITH ANY DELICATESSEN IN TOWN. MEAT TRAY DAIRY TRAY SALAD TRAY $10.49g.„ $21.49 person $11.49 Pr.„ Potato Latkes * Handcut Lox Our Regular Tuna & Fat-Free Tuna Can't Be Beat! 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