Joseph Curdy, a 2001 English and theater graduate of BYU-Hawaii, is cast in the Royal Shakespeare Company's (RSC) current production of Hamlet.
He is playing the part of a soldier in the production starring renowned actor Toby Stephens.
"I feel very lucky to have been given this part," Curdy said. "I am reminded of the great legends that trod the boards at the Royal Shakespeare Theater. I am confident that years from now someone will mention the 'Toby Stephens' Hamlet' with pride, and I will be able to say that I was a part of it."
This is not Curdy's first experience in the Shakespearean classic. He starred in a production of Hamlet at BYU-Hawaii in 1997 and directed and starred in the 'Olelo Television production of the same which aired from 2001 to 2003 throughout the Hawaiian Islands.
Curdy graduated from BYU-Hawaii in December 2001 with a bachelor's in English and an associate in theater. He is currently a postgraduate student studying Shakespeare texts and studies at the University of Birmingham's Shakespeare Institute in Stratford-upon-Avon, England.
Based in Mason Croft, an eighteenth-century house with beautiful gardens and grounds in the center of Stratford-upon-Avon, the Shakespeare Institute provides a close-knit academic community while offering the academic resources needed for specialist postgraduate work on the drama of the English Renaissance.
As a student of the Shakespeare Institute, Curdy recently played the part of Hamlet once again.
"Toby Stephens remarked that he was sorry to have missed it and would welcome any advice I had for him!" Curdy said. "He most certainly doesn't need my help. Rather, it's a wonderful learning experience for me to participate with the RSC in this current production."
Curdy is keen to pursue his career as an actor. He has been acting in films, television, radio and on stage for nearly 15 years and hopes, being able to put his experience with the RSC on his curriculum vitae, that this will open more doors for him.
You can contact Curdy at josephcurdy@hotmail.com.