King's Crown Shakespeare Troupe

The King's Crown Shakespeare Troupe (KCST for short) is a performing arts group dedicated primarily to free Shakespeare on Columbia's campus, although it produces four shows a year (two in the fall, two in the spring). Its primary claim to fame is its outdoor show in the spring of every school year. Other notable shows include the fall one-acts organized every other year and the Egg And Peacock festival of plays written, cast, directed and performed in a 24-hour time span.

History

KCST was founded in 1995 by a group of friends irritated at the Varsity Show's insularity and elitism at the time. They laid down the central tenets of the troupe as follows:

• All shows shall be free of charge (with donations accepted).
• Anyone who wants participate in the spring show shall be allowed to do so (this has often led to the creation of a "chorus" similar to the Varsity Show's, albeit one with no limits on membership).

Although at the time the group set itself up in direct opposition to the Varsity Show, with a smaller budget and larger heart, relationships between the two groups have become increasingly cordial as KCST expands its range beyond Shakespeare. Fall 2006 marked the first semester that the troupe elected not to perform a Shakespeare show when several were proposed, further broadening its appeal to those daunted or put off by the bard while maintaining its commitment to Shakespeare with the spring show.

CU Players was established following frustration with the lack of non-specialized straight drama groups on campus, and often cites KCST as a prime example, since its budget always is primarily devoted to the large Spring show and it often balks at straight drama, preferring experimental works such as bobrauchenbergamerica or black comedy such as WASP to pair off with the major shows.

Style

King's Crown's shows are famous for their wild and often innovative directorial choices, such as setting "Hamlet" in a nightmarish post-apocalyptic world (including a climactic chain-and-pipe fight in the pouring rain), casting a woman as the title character in "Richard III," or decking out the actors in "Troilus and Cressida" as football players.

As a group dedicated to non-elitist work, their casts often include first-years in starring roles alongside seniors and several grad students. "Pulling rank" is frowned upon, and attempts are made to avoid performers falling into "stock roles" (i.e., actors like Peter Mende-Siedlecki, known best for their comedy work, get cast as things like Horatio in "Hamlet," to great effect).

No group is without regulars. The KCST crowd can often be seen at 1020 or La Negrita on Wednesday nights for their famous "office hours," often commiserating with the various burnt-out Varsity Show participants.

List of productions

Academic year	Spring production(s)	Fall production(s)
2006-2007	Much Ado About Nothing; Egg and Peacock 24-Hour Play Festival II	Fall One-Act Play Extravaganza, Vol. VI; bobrauschenbergamerica
2005-2006	Richard III; Egg And Peacock 24-Hour Play Festival I	The Merchant of Venice; WASP
2004-2005	Hamlet; Kaspar	Fall One-Act Play Extravaganza, Vol. V
2003-2004	The Tempest	Romeo and Juliet
2002-2003	Taming of the Shrew	Fall One-act Play Extravaganza, Vol. IV
2001-2002	King Lear	The Comedy of Errors
2000-2001	Twelfth Night	Fall One-act Play Extravaganza, Vol. III
1999-2000	A Midsummer Night's Dream	Troilus and Cressida
1998-1999	Hamlet	Fall One-act Play Extravaganza, Vol. II
1997-1998	Much Ado About Nothing	Fall One-act Play Extravaganza, Vol. I
1996-1997	As You Like It	Macbeth
1995-1996	Macbeth	The Marriage of Bette and Boo
Spring 1995	Romeo and Juliet

• Spring 1998: Much Ado About Nothing
• Fall 1997: Fall One-act Play Extravaganza!, Vol. I
• Spring 1997: As You Like It
• Spring 1996: Macbeth
• Fall 1995: The Marriage of Bette and Boo
• Spring 1995: Romeo and Juliet