NEW York theatre director Ben Prusiner is to direct York Shakespeare Project's autumn production of King Lear.

"The YSP committee are excited and delighted to announce this appointment," says YSP chairman Maurice Crichton.

Prusiner will hold auditions on July 26 to 28 at 7pm to 10pm nightly at Southlands Methodist Church, Bishopthorpe Road, York.

Performances will run for two weeks at Upstage Centre Theatre, 41 Monkgate, from the week beginning November 27, and anyone interested in auditioning is asked to contact info@yorkshakespeareproject.org for a slot.

Prusiner's cast is open to all comers, even to the possibility of Lear being played by a woman. "As usual, we want as many people to audition as possible," says YSP chairman Maurice Crichton. "Meanwhile, if you would like to be involved in the production team, contact Ben by email at ben.prusiner@gmail.com.

York Press:

Maurice Crichton, York Shakespeare Project's chairman.

Prusiner is a graduate in English Literature from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and from the MA programme in Applied Theatre from the City University of New York.

"He has extensive experience directing Elizabethan and Jacobean plays off-Broadway and regionally across the United States and he's also the artistic director of Re:Verse Theatre, whose productions of classical plays explore modern-day social issues in a unique immersive environment," says Maurice.

Maggie Smales, who directed YSP's 2015 production of Henry V, and York Theatre Royal associate producer Liam Evans-Ford took supporting roles in the director selection process.