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WELCOME TO THE
ENGLISH
THEATRE
OF ROME

SERVING THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE COMMUNITY IN ROME SINCE 1996

The English Theatre of Rome, a division of Ford Entertainment, is dedicated to spring-boarding artists in the Eternal City by producing full seasons of theatrical work in English.

From October to June, our repertory spans five categories: a classical piece, a contemporary play, a world premiere, the work of a featured female writer, and a bilingual production. Each season is curated to introduce a new author to Roman audiences, revitalize a classic, and amplify the voice of a female playwright.

For more than a quarter century, our company has served as a vital platform for directors, playwrights, performers, designers, and technicians from across the globe to showcase their talents to international audiences in the heart of Rome.

Up Next

UP NEXT : EURYDICE

The English Theatre of Rome is thrilled to announce the second show of our '22-23 season, the Roman premiere of Sarah Ruhl's haunting, lyrical EURYDICE. The New York Times named Ruhl's fantastical adaptation One of the 25 Best American Plays of the last 25 years. "[M]ortality and loss in a contemporary context, [...] woe and wonder are walking a tightrope between the mythic and the mundane," writes the The New Yorker.

Directed by Carl Granieri, EURYDICE runs April 30 - May 14 at Teatro Arciliuto, Piazza di Montevecchio, 5, 00186. The piece runs 90 minutes with no intermission.

General Admission (walk-up) €17.00 |

General Admission (online) €15.00 |

Students and Seniors €12.00 |

Group Rates (12+) €10.00 |

EURYDICE is made possible, in part, through the generous support of the Marty Wilson Jr. Arts and Music Foundation Inc. of Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States of America. Click the image to learn more.

On the day of her wedding, Eurydice falls victim to a tragic accident. Ripped from her beloved Orpheus, the greatest musician alive, she is sent hurtling into a dreamlike underworld where she reunites with her dead father. Orpheus journeys to retrieve his bride, but Eurydice begins to discover that the price of living again can sometimes exceed the cost of staying dead.

In her celebrated adaptation, Sarah Ruhl reimagines the legend, not through the husband's infamous pilgrimage to retrieve his wife, but through the eyes of its heroine. Full of dark humor, lyrical beauty, and unexpected twists, Ruhl’s contemporary take on Greek myth transforms the tale into a visceral meditation on a love worth grieving for.

"Ruhl is the most distinctive voice to emerge on the American theater scene since the 1990s... in "Eurydice," a riff upon the potent Greek myth of Orpheus, she’s in peak form.

-- San Diego Union Tribune

"In her weird and wonderful new play, “Eurydice,” the gifted young writer Sarah Ruhl has adapted this mournful legend with a fresh eye... Ms. Ruhl’s theatrical vision is an idiosyncratic one, an adventurer who is not afraid to blend the quotidian and the fantastic, deep feeling and airy whimsy. "

-- New York Times

"[T]he belated discovery of Sarah Ruhl on New York stages continues apace with Eurydice,' the distinctive young playwright's reimagining of the Greek myth about love that transcends death. [...] Ruhl's wild flights of the imagination, some deeply affecting passages and beautiful imagery provide transporting pleasures."

-- Variety

FEATURING

Lidia Fili Aicardi

James Blundell

Nicoletta Brunelli

Alessandra Gage

Paul Guerin

Duné Medros

Dayane Mounsib

PURCHASE TICKETS

Prod History

PRODUCTION HISTORY

Over the course of more than 25 years, ETR has staged hundreds of pieces in a wide variety of genres and styles. Some highlights include:

a trio of blockbuster hits, the all-female "Macbeth" (2022), "Richard III" (2018), and "Hamlet" (2016), all directed by Douglas Dean; "The Great Gatsby" (2012) co-directed by Ford, Saragnese, and Zimmelman; the standing-room only production of Harold Pinter's "The Birthday Party" (2009) directed by Gaby Ford; British deaf comedian Steve Day's Italian premiere, with simultaneous Italian sign translation as a fundraiser for the Robert Wirth foundation (2005, 2007); the world premiere of "The Moths" (2008); the award winning "Ophelia" (2006), devised and directed by Dustin Wills; a sold out and extended presentation of Donald Margolies' "Dinner With Friends" (2004) directed by Harriet Power; the world premiere of "Freudian Slips and Other Underwear" (2003) by Alexia Murray and Nick Nicolosi, directed by Dyanne White, which was remounted in Italian at Teatro Colosseo and for the third year running at Teatro dei Servi; David Ives’ "Universal Language" (2000), our first bilingual production, for the prestigious Cremona Theatre Festival which honored then-emerging director Aureliano Tristan Amadei; and a collaboration with Imogen Kusch whose "Marathon" (1999) by Eduardo Erba won her the Edinburgh Fringe Festival’s "Scotsman’s Award" (1999).

Notable awards and recognitions include: the Outstanding Cultural Contribution Award from the American International Club in Rome (2005); the 50/50 Applause Award from The International Centre for Women in 2013, 2014, and 2016 for our continued commitment to producing the work of female playwrights; the Federation of Women's Associations Overseas selection of founder Gaby Ford for the Outstanding Women Abroad Award honoring her visionary work in creating and leading ETR (2007); and the International Women's Leadership Association honoring Ford and the English Theatre of Rome for Women of Outstanding Leadership (2015).

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Piercing

ARCILIUTO

Since 2004, ETR has had its home base at Teatro Arciliuto, located inside Palazzo Chiovenda, an ancient sixteenth-century residence in Piazza di Montevecchio. Built in the early 16th century by merging pre-existing structures based on a project by Baldassarre Peruzzi, a disciple of Raphael, the building rests on the ancient structures of a 2nd century Roman villa, the remains of which are still visible in the performance space.

Today, the building serves as an evocative, subterranean music and theatre venue. The intimacy of its 70-seat, three-quarter thrust configuration brings actors and audiences together in thrilling and complex ways. To learn more about Arciliuto, click on the image.