Henry VIII Stream – Performance Details – May 8-9, 2020

We hope you enjoy Texas Ballet Theater’s live stream of Henry VIII! You can watch the ballet via YouTube from the comfort of your home at 8 pm Central Friday, May 8 and at 2 pm Central Saturday, May 9.

Visit TBT’s YouTube channel by clicking here.

Performance details are listed below, including credits, the cast, and a synopsis of the ballet.

Henry VIII
Originally Performed March 2-4, 2018

Credits:
Choreography by: Carl Coomer
Music by: Gustav Holst
Costume Design by: Aaron Kubacak
Lighting Design by: Tony Tucci
Set Design by: Ian Loveall
Projections and 3D Mapping by: Mike Cocanower and Scott Stanley/Inside Image Design
Underwritten in part by: Terri and Greg Sexton

Cast:
Henry: Andre Silva
King’s Fool: Marlen Alimanov

Catherine of Aragon: Michelle Taylor
Anne Boleyn: Katelyn Clenaghan
Jane Seymour: Carolyn Judson
Anne of Cleves: Samantha Pille
Catherine Howard: Alexandra Farber
Catherine Parr: Amanda Fairweather

Cardinal Wolsey: Tim O’Keefe
Thomas Cromwell: Paul Adams
Henry’s Friends: Jomanuel Velazquez, Brett Young, Riley Moyano
Robert Ask (Rebel Leader): Jiyan Dai

Queen’s Maids: Ruth Langill, Paige Nyman, Nicole Von Enck

Father of Anne Boleyn: Kyle Torres-Hiyoshi
Brother of Anne Boleyn: Dustin Geradine

Executioner: Alexander Kotelenets

Temptresses: Meghan Lynch, Robin Bangert, Katelyn Rhodes, Hannah Wood, Laura Gruener, Cara Shipman

Elizabeth: Pippa Woodward
Mary: Ana Smith
Edward: Luke Gentry

Synopsis:

Henry VIII became king of England following the death of his father. He married six times, beheading two of his wives, and was the main instigator of the English Reformation.

“JUPITER” – Catherine of Aragon
Although Catherine gave birth to Henry’s first child (a daughter, Mary), Henry grew frustrated by the lack of a male heir. He began keeping mistresses at his beckon, one of which was the queen’s maid, Anne Boleyn. Anne and Henry began secretly seeing one another. As Catherine was now too old to conceive another child, Henry set on a mission to obtain a male heir by configuring a way to officially abandon his marriage with Catherine.

“MARS” – Rebellion and the English Reformation
Cardinal Wolsey and Henry petitioned the Pope for a marriage annulment but were refused. The debate, during which Catherine fought mightily to maintain both her own and her daughter’s titles, lasted for six years. Henry decided he didn’t need the Pope’s permission on matters of the Church. He consequently separated from the Pope and the Catholic Church and he declared himself supreme head of the Church of England.

However, in an act of resistance, a great northern uprising known as the Pilgrimage of Grace took hold. It became the single major threat to Henry’s authority as monarch. Wolsey had failed to deliver Henry’s quick annulment from Catherine, so Henry and his new adviser Thomas Cromwell presided over the trial that successfully declared his first marriage annulled.

“URANUS” – Anne Boleyn
At long last, Henry would be married to Anne Boleyn, and although the Boleyn family grew in power inside the court, Queen Anne’s fate would be tragic. Anne suffered greatly from her failure to produce a living male heir. After she miscarried twice, she finally gave birth to a daughter, Elizabeth.

Turning against Anne and their unfruitful marriage, Henry contrived an elaborate story that Anne had committed adultery, had incestuous relations, and was plotting to murder him. Henry put her on trial. Anne, regal and calm, denied all charges against her. Four days later, Henry’s marriage to Anne was annulled and declared invalid. Anne Boleyn was then taken to the Tower, where she was beheaded for her alleged crimes.

“VENUS” – Jane Seymour
Within 11 days of Anne Boleyn’s execution, Jane Seymour and Henry VIII formally wed. Following a difficult pregnancy, Jane Seymour produced the king’s long-hoped-for son, Edward. Just nine days after giving birth, however, Jane died from a pregnancy-related infection. Because Jane was the only of Henry’s spouses to bear him a son, he considered her to be his only “true” wife. He and his court mourned for an extended period of time after her passing.

“NEPTUNE” – Anne of Cleves
Three years after the death of Jane Seymour, Henry was ready to marry again. Adviser Cromwell inquired in foreign courts about the appearances of available women, and Anne of Cleves was suggested. The artist Hans Holbein created a portrait of  Anne so beautiful that upon viewing it Henry selected her to be his wife. However, after the couple met, Henry disapproved of Anne in the flesh and divorced her.

“MERCURY” – Catherine Howard
Within weeks of his divorce to Anne of Cleves, Henry married the very young Catherine Howard. Henry, 49, and Catherine, 19, started out a happy pair. Although the aging Henry’s new wife gave him a zest for life, happiness would not last long for the couple. Catherine began seeking the attention of men her own age – a tremendously dangerous endeavor for the Queen of England. She was deemed guilty of adultery and executed.

“SATURN” – Catherine Parr and Death
Catherine Parr was Henry’s last and sixth wife, caring for him on his deathbed. Haunted by visions of the past and struggling in pain, Henry died and relinquished power to his son Edward, who succeeded him as king at age 10.