Tina Packer, one of the country's leading experts in William Shakespeare, will present "Women of Will" and perform scenes from some of Shakespeare's plays with co-star Nigel Gore on Friday, March 18, at 7:30 p.m. in the Edwards Theatre. General admission tickets are $20-$25 with reserved seating.

"Women of Will" argues that to know Shakespeare, one must know his female characters. Packer, founder of the Shakespeare & Company Performance Center in Massachusetts, believes that the poet's imagination develops and deepens throughout his career. His creative knowledge and a sense of a larger spiritual good come together in his late plays, making clear that when women and men are equal in status and sexual passion, they can and do change the world.

Packer analyzes the women in "Two Gentlemen of Verona" and "The Comedy of Errors" (two of Shakespeare's earliest plays) and compares them to women in "Romeo and Juliet," noting a large shift in depth of character, motivation and understanding of life. As Shakespeare ceases to present women as predictable caricatures and starts writing them from the inside, embodying their voices, his women become as dimensional, spirited, active and sexual as any of his male characters.

The Edwards Theatre is in Room 117 of the Thomas W. and Robin W. Edwards College of Humanities and Fine Arts.

Senior citizens, OLLI members, alumni and teens may purchase tickets for $16 for rows A-k or $20 for rows L-S and balcony seating. CCU/HGTC faculty and staff may purchase tickets for $16, and children and CCU/HGTC students for $5. To purchase tickets and reserve a seat, contact the Wheelwright Box Office at 843-349-ARTS (2787) or visit between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tickets may also be purchased at ticketreturn.com.