Grant Mudge named Shakespeare Festival guest scholar

Grant Mudge, a nationally acclaimed actor, director and educator, will discuss the themes present in one of Shakespeare's lesser-known tales, “All’s Well That Ends Well,” at Grand Valley while serving as this year’s Shakespeare Festival Resident Festival Scholar.

“My Sighs Stream: Comedy and Empowerment in ‘All’s Well That Ends Well’” will take place Friday, October 2, at 4 p.m. in the Pere Marquette Room located in the Kirkhof Center on the Allendale Campus. A reception will precede his presentation at 3 p.m.

Mudge currently serves as the Ryan Producing Artistic Director of the Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival (NDSF) and teaches in the Film, Television and Theater Department at Notre Dame University. Now in his 19th year as an artistic director and his third for the NDSF, Mudge in known for his role in creating a pilot touring program for schools in northern Indiana. NDSF: ON TOUR brings Shakespearean performances and accompanying workshops to middle and secondary schools in the aforementioned region. He previously served as the founding artistic director for the Richmond Shakespeare Festival at Agecroft Hall in Virginia, which also has toured 23 states and performed for more than 200,000 people. 

Mudge’s directing and acting credits include more than 50 productions. As an actor, his performances include the title roles in “Henry V” and “Macbeth,” as well as roles in various productions of “Twelfth Night,” “Much Ado About Nothing,” “The Tempest,” A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” “As You Like It” and “The Taming of the Shrew.”

Along with his public presentation, Mudge will meet with students and visit classes while visiting the university.

For more information, visit www.gvsu.edu/shakes.