"What the 'Daily Show' might be like if it were hosted by the Marx Brothers."
- Robert Nesti, The Boston Herald
"It is as if Penn and Teller had met Tom Lehrer and combined their respective talents. A wonderful sense of comedy is combined with a sharply written satirical text. Do not miss them."
- Richard Edmonds, The Birmingham Post, Great Britain
"Very funny, energetic, and unpredictable."
- San Francisco Bay Guardian
"I crawled from my seat, sides aching from laughing at just under two hours of zany, crazy, but oh-so-clever madness. Sell your house, sell your granny, but do whatever you can to get a ticket - it's one holy roller of a night."
- Evesham Journal, Great Britain
"It's All Things Reduced!" RSC Partners Reed and Austin take you behind the scenes of one of the world's best-loved touring comedy troupes. Catch the latest news, reviews and interviews with the RSC Weekly Podcast. It's the RSC without the smells!
Our Podcasts have been ranked in iTunes Top Ten in the US and the UK, and nominated for two 2007 People's Choice Podcast of the Year Awards in the Best Produced and Cultural / Arts categories.
So what are you waiting for? It's free, it's easy, and you don't need an iPod! Subscribe today!
The RSC's hit stage show now on CD in 37 tracks - everything from "In the Beginning Blues" to "That's Armageddon!". Hear Austin Tichenor, Reed Martin, and Matthew Croke's celebration of the Great Book as they do what they do best, teaching you nothing while explaining everything."
"The RSC technique is to lull you into condescension over some bit of obvious undergraduate foolery and then whipsaw you the other way with a flash of original intelligence or surreal fancy." - Christopher Rawson, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
It’s the RSC’s only musical, and now you can hear all the songs from the stage show - all of the music and none of the dances."
It's Apocalypse Postponed as the Bad Boys of Abridgment dissect 1000 years of world history in order to prevent the dawn of Judgment Day. In their first musical, the RSC turns their twisted sensibilities to the most famous and infamous characters, discoveries and events of the millennium. The last 1000 years will never be the same!
Rollicking and irreverent, this treatment of the Noble Bard is reminiscent of the Marx Brothers. Complete with music and sound effects, the actors reenact the complete works of William Q Shakespeare. There are highlight bits from the stage shows, but mostly new material written and performed by Adam Long, Austin Tichenor, and Reed Martin.
A very fun and loose performance by the RSC members as they banter and perform around just one microphone, reminiscent of the old time radio comedy shows. Each volume contains 2 parts of the 6-part series.
Finally! A holiday album by the RSC. One solid hour of non-stop holiday hilarity. Get Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, all in one. Featuring the novelty song "Mrs. Santa Claus", Reed's wholesome Holiday poem, Dickens' Christmas Carol reduced to five minutes, and much much more. This recording was originally produced for Public radio International and parts of it have been heard on Dr. Demento.
The record-breaking hit - all 37 plays in 97 minutes - filmed in front of a live audience!
Life is short. The complete works of Shakespeare are long. To the rescue: The Reduced Shakespeare Company, the three-man comedy troupe known for fast, funny, physical condensations of real serious stuff.
They wrap up the Bard's outsized oeuvre in 90 roller-coaster, rib-tickling minutes. After warming up with a nothing-is-sacred send-up of Romeo and Juliet, they’re off, dispensing with the comedies in one fell swoop (because the tragedies are funnier). You see Othello as a rap song, Titus Andronicus as a cooking show, and the show’s unforgettable finale - Hamlet - told with the help of audience members and lascivious sock puppets.
Watch an excerpt from the COMPLETE WORKS OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE (abridged) DVD.
See them perform the 1920's, 30's and 40's as an old-time radio show, sponsored by Lucky Stroke Cigarettes, "You’re a Lucky Guy to have a Lucky Stroke."
An Indian folk story on how the world began: "In the beginning, all was water. Now living above the water, there was a Coyote, a Duck, and another Duck... and they walk into a bar."
And learn about deep US conspiracies...
"Did you know there is a group of dyslexic Devil-worshipers in the Ozarks that have sold their soul to Santa?"
Watch an excerpt from the THE COMPLETE HISTORY OF AMERICA (abridged) DVD. (Rated PG-13: Pretty Good - if you're 13)
November 1, 2007, North Hollywood, CA - We just finished filming the second Workshop Taping of "The Week Reduced", a late night comedy show currently being considered by TBS. Stay tuned for more details!
"The Week Reduced", created by Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor, will be a weekly half-hour satire of TV news programs, sort of a combination of "Weekend Update" and "The McLaughlin Group", that makes no distinctions between serious and light news. Nicole Richie's weight-loss will be treated with the same seriousness and gravity as the War in Iraq. Probably more.
As seen on TV!
Wogan – BBC
Today Show – NBC
Pebble Mill – BBC
CBS Sunday Morning
This Morning – BBC
Parallel Nine - BBC
What's Up Doc - BBC
Notes & Queries – BBC
Edinburgh Nights - BBC
Zig & Zag – RTE Ireland
Show Biz This Week - CNN
Good Morning America - ABC
Wide Angle – Anglia, Britain
Late, Late Show – RTE Ireland
Up The Junction – Thames, Britain
Good Greif, Moncreif – RTE Ireland
Reduced Shakespeare – PBS Special
Packet of Three – Channel Four, Britain
Celebrity Wheel of Fortune – New Zealand
Ring Reduced TV Special – Channel Four, Britain
Watch the Reduced Shakespeare Company give clues on "Jeopardy!"
Love Shakespeare? You'll like this book. Hate Shakespeare? You'll love this book.
From the RSC comes a single volume boasting everything you always wanted to know about William Shakespeare's life and work, but couldn't be bothered to ask. In one slim volume, Reduced Shakespeare delivers the plays, the life, and the legend in twelve easy pieces.
What's the theme of Hamlet? Poop or get off the pot. What's essential preparation for an evening of outdoor Shakespeare? Bring lots of coffee and use the bathroom before the show.
Sprinkled with lists, definitions, quizzes, essential vocabulary, and the Reduced Shakespeare Company's trademark irreverence and wit, this reduced handbook will delight enthusiasts, skeptics, and fledgling fans alike.
THE GREATEST STORY EVER SOLD A Considered and Whimsical Illumination of the Really Good Parts of Holy Writ
By Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor
Reduced Shakespeare Company, Sonoma, CA
To learn more about booking, obtaining performance rights, or purchasing merchandise, please visit us at: www.reducedshakespeare.com
Reduced Shakespeare Company Sonoma, CA US www.reducedshakespeare.com MySpace profile design by Khushi Bhatia
Reduced Shakespeare Company was on National Public Radio's "Weekend Edition" today, July 13. Here's a link:http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92499316
The Reduced Shakespeare Company is a three-man comedy troupe known for taking long, serious subjects and reducing them into short, sharp comedies. They have created six stage shows, two television specials, and numerous radio pieces. In addition to ongoing tours of the U.S. and Great Britain, they have performed at the White House, Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center and London's West End. The boys have been seen on all the major American and British television networks and are heard frequently on both National Public Radio and the BBC... More »
Reduced Shakespeare Company Productions
COMPLETELY HOLLYWOOD (abridged)
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the theater... America's "bad boys of abridgement" take on America's largest export (well, except for weapons) and go about savaging show biz.
"One of the greatest, sustained pieces of physical comedy I have ever seen. There are brilliant pieces of comic invention. Go see. Buy tickets now." - BBC
ALL THE GREAT BOOKS (abridged)
Confused by Confucius? Thoroughly thrown by Thoreau? Wish Swift was swifter? Tennyson tinier? Then buckle up and hop aboard as the three cultural guerrillas of the RSC zip through everything you didn't get around to reading in school.
"Verbally dexterous and physically agile. The show darts from satire to silliness to sophisticated irreverence." - Ed Siegel, The Boston Globe
THE COMPLETE HISTORY OF AMERICA (abridged)
600 Years of History in 6000 seconds! The RSC tackles such controversial questions as: Who really discovered America? Why did Abe Lincoln free the slaves? How many Democrats does it take to screw in a lightbulb? History is normally written by the winners... now it's the RSC's turn.
"This troupe knows how to skewer the not-so-admirable moments in our history and, not only make us laugh, but make us think. It's the funniest two hours I've spent in a long time." - Shirley Mathews, Connecticut Post
THE BIBLE: THE COMPLETE WORD OF GOD (abridged)
Yes, it's an affectionate, irreverent roller coaster ride from fig leaves to Final Judgment as the boys tackle the great theological questions: Did Adam and Eve have navels? Did Moses really look like Charlton Heston? And why isn't the word "phonetic" spelled the way it sounds? Can bolts of lightning be far behind?
"The RSC put the 'fun' back in fundamentalism."
- J. Wynn Rousuck, Baltimore Sun
WESTERN CIVILIZATION: THE COMPLETE MUSICAL (abridged)
1000 Years in 100 Minutes! From Beowulf to Baywatch! They shook up Shakespeare. They annihilated American History. They abridged the Bible. And now, the Reduced Shakespeare Company massacres the Millennium with a brand new reduction - a musical/comedy version of the last 1000 years!
THE COMPLETE WORKS OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE (abridged)
All 37 Plays in 97 Minutes! An irreverent, fast-paced romp through the Bard's plays, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) was London's longest-running comedy - 10 years at the Criterion Theatre. Praised by the Los Angeles Times as "wildly funny" and by the Montreal Gazette as "the funniest show you are likely to see in your entire lifetime."
Did you know that...
In the "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon" game, Adam Long, Reed Martin, and Austin Tichenor each have a Bacon Factor of 1 because we performed voices in BALTO, who was played by... Kevin Bacon.
The RSC holds the world record for the fastest ever performance of HAMLET. There was an East German troupe who did it faster, but their Ophelia tested positive for steroids and was disqualified.
Sir Ian McKellan came to our show in London's West End – and we have proof. See for yourself!
Austin acted opposite Camryn Manheim and Michael Badalucco on THE PRACTICE, then Richard Schiff on THE WEST WING. Each one of them won Emmies for that season. Coincidence? You decide.
Reed is a former Ringling Bros' Circus Clown and Assistant Ringmaster and played 84 cities in two years (over a thousand performances), including Madison Square Garden and the New Orleans Superdome.
Joan Rivers came backstage to congratulate us on a great show. She was on her way to QVC to sell jewelry.
Get more Reduced trivia »
Hi guys! I just wanted to say that it was a pleasure meeting you all during your trip to San Jose Repertory Theatre. It's one of those moments in life where I can actually say, "Sweet, I'm glad I went to work!".
At any rate, I look forward to auditioning at some point (hopefully sooner later than when I'm deader)--until then, take care and keep in touch!
Hey guys, that was a lot of fun lastnight! And I don't mean that in a post-hang over I woke up in my own bed this morning kind of way! But really, it was fun, shame Mr. Martin couldn't make it out.
In any event, was there a podcast in particular you wanted me to listen to Mr. Tichenor? (I suppose the answer "All of them" could fill that...)
I'm not sure I'll be seeing you guys too often next week as I will only be working two Will Calls on Wed and Thurs, stop on by!
Thanks for the add. I hope you get to read my book as, like yourselves, it's actually got people and especially kids into the Bard in just 15 abridged classics.
The Pulitzer Prize and Tony-winning play by David Mamet shows parts of two days in the lives of four desperate Chicago real estate agents who are prepared to engage in any number of unethical and/or illegal acts (from lies and flattery to bribery, threats and intimidation to burglary) in order to sell undesirable real estate to unwilling prospective buyers.
