Meet the Cast
Stephen Benjamin
Stephen is pleased to join the First Parish Players after some time away from the stage. He has performed in the past as Linus in You're a Good Man Charlie Brown, as Mitch in A Streetcar Named Desire, and has also directed some shows in the past including Spamalot and The Dinosaur Musical. The Complete Works of William Shakespeare has given Stephen the opportunity to show off his many talents including acrobatics, close up magic, sword swallowing, reciting the alphabet in alphabetical order, haunting his neighbors, and of course bird watching. Special shout out to Count Chocula, without him this is all for nothing.
Miriam Grey
Miriam is thrilled to be making her debut in" The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged" with First Parish Players. Miriam has been performing on stage since the age of 12 with groups like The Young Americans, and regional and Summer stock theaters like Surflight, Mac-Haydn and Jupiter to name a few. She has also performed in new York City with various theaters in Musicals, comedies, dramas, Operettas and Shakespeare. Some of her favorite roles include Maria in " The Sound of Music", Lily Garland in " On The 20th Century", The bakers wife in " Into the woods" Lily Vanessi in Kiss Ma Kate", Kate in " The Taming of the Shrew" Beatrice in " Much Ado about nothing" and Madame/Stepmother in Cinderella. Miriam loves Shakespeare because it is so well written and while it can be very dramatic there is also such a delightful comedic side to all of his work. She is really excited to be very silly in this production and she hopes you all enjoy this extremely talented cast! She thanks Desiree for giving her this opportunity. Miriam wishes to devote this production to honor her brother Michael who recently passed away. Many thanks to my husband Andy who is very supportive of my love of the theater and to my sister Marlise who has always been there for me.
Andrew Mortarelli III
Hi there! My name is Andrew Mortarelli and I am honored to be a part of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)! This is a really amazing experience for me because I am currently in the final stages of completing my Bachelors degree in English and Secondary Education, and have been a fan of Shakespeare's works ever since I learned he is credited with inventing the knock-knock joke. You should come see this show if you really like Shakespeare, but especially if you don’t like Shakespeare!
Frank Baxter
Frank Baxter has appeared previously in the First Parish Players Productions of The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail, Swine!, Working, An Enemy of the People, Big Mouth Sounds, Big Fish and most recently in the 2021 production of A Man of No Importance. He is a member of First Parish Church and participates in the choir and the T’UU”rning Leaves book club.
Disclaimer: Show may not be appropriate for people under the age of 13 due to the discussion of violence, racisim and rape that is prevailent in Shakespeare's Works. Although this comedic play sheds light on those topics and makes it clear that those view are outdated and not fit for current society, use discretion when purchasing tickets for those you feel may be impacted by these discussions.