BLAINESWORLD · Blaine Greenfield

2.17.2026 - Mike Yow & Will Ezzell discuss the play they're in: “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)."

February 17, 2026·31 min·2 clips

Will Ezell says playing an estimated 15-20 characters in The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged is his 'best opportunity to honor Robin Williams.'

1. BlainesWorld podcast, hosted by Blaine Greenfield from Fairview, North Carolina, features theater actors Mike Yao and Will Ezell discussing their upcoming production of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged. 2. Will Ezell trained in musical theater at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas, where he met his partner Kirsten, before moving to Los Angeles and then settling in Asheville after a friend recommended it. 3. Mike Yao did not go to theater school but began community theater in Atlanta and has been working professionally or semi-professionally for about 20 years, moving to Asheville with his partner Karen about 11 years ago. 4. Both guests say producing is among what they enjoy most about theater, with Will citing the satisfaction of 'making a vision come true' and Mike describing producing as the fulfillment of a directorial vision through props, sets, and costumes. 5. Mike has filled in at short notice multiple times, including playing Curly in Of Mice and Men with three days of preparation and a single role in A Charlie Brown Christmas with one rehearsal. 6. Mike traces his fight choreography career to medieval reenactment and martial arts before showbiz, explaining that stage combat requires learning to make fighting look theatrical while keeping it safe. 7. Will describes being 'really bad at getting hit in the face' with a candelabra in Fiddler on the Roof, and credits fight captain Mars Minyan with the choreography, noting his instinct was always to move his face toward the candelabra rather than away from it. 8. The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged covers all 37 of Shakespeare's plays and acknowledges all 153-154 sonnets in a 97-minute two-act production; Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet receive the most extended treatment. 9. Will has only performed two full Shakespeare productions previously — both 12th Night — while Mike has done a couple of small parts and was once cast as Duncan in an Atlanta film that was never shot. 10. The third cast member is Aaron Ibarra, previously in Arsenic and Old Lace with Mike; all three play 'versions of themselves' as framing characters who perform the various Shakespearean roles. 11. Will estimates he plays between 15 and 20 different characters in the production, which he describes as his 'best opportunity to honor Robin Williams,' whose rapid character-switching he has admired since childhood. 12. Blaine mentions he is currently listening to the Robin Williams biography on Audible and praises the narrator's occasional Williams impressions. 13. Mike says he similarly gravitated to character roles rather than leads earlier in his career, noting the physicality — 'you get to use your body in different ways' — as a particular pleasure of playing multiple characters. 14. The production began with a read-through about a month before the interview; rehearsals were disrupted by two snow weekends in the slot, and the total planned rehearsals before opening is around 15, targeting approximately 45-46 hours for a non-musical of this complexity. 15. Mike describes a rehearsal moment where even he — standing alongside Will onstage — loses track of which character Will is playing in Hamlet, and Will confirms he forgot entirely which character he was supposed to be 'last night.' 16. Both actors say line memorization has become more challenging with age but that character confusion on stage is rare, with costume changes serving as a useful memory anchor. 17. Will mentions that his personal plans after the show include spending time with his three-year-old son Jude, traveling to Texas to help after his mother's house burned down before Christmas, and co-producing Hedwig and the Angry Inch with Aaron Price in roughly a year. 18. Mike's upcoming schedule includes playing Curtis in Sister Act and Daddy Warbucks in Annie (requiring a shaved head) at Parkway Playhouse, plus fight choreography gigs and directing a one-act festival show there; he has also shot a sci-fi TV pilot in Western North Carolina. 19. The episode is conversational and unscripted, with regular tangents and cross-talk; Blaine acts primarily as a facilitator rather than an interviewer with specific questions. 20. Best suited for fans of community and regional theater in Western North Carolina, or listeners interested in the mechanics of stage performance and multiple-character acting.

As heard by us

A friendly preview of a fast, funny Shakespeare production.

Blaine Greenfield's conversation with Mike Yao and William Ezell keeps its focus on The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged). The production comes across as quick, funny, and built around familiar Shakespeare touchstones, with Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet getting most…

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A fast, friendly conversation about The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged).

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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