The Globe Goes Noble

There’s a new man in town, and he brings with him a glowing artistic reputation. A former artistic director of The Royal Shakespeare Company and a heralded director at Canada’s Stratford Festival and the Metropolitan Opera, Adrian Noble is now in charge of The Old Globe’s Shakespeare Festival, which has very recently opened with his take on the bard’s deeply moving and unsettling tragedy, King Lear, followed by The Taming of the Shrew and The Madness of King George III, the latter of which was directed also by Noble. The plays will be performed in repertory through late September. Noble has staged productions throughout the world, building a strong reputation as an inventive and fearless artist. He’s a great addition to the Globe, befitting its 75th celebratory year. (619/234-5623, www.theoldglobe.org)   DARLENE G. DAVIES