The cardinal sin of theater is breaking the fourth wall, the transparent barrier that separates the audience from the world presented on stage. But to some people, that wall was a nuisance anyway.

In particular, the guys from the Reduced Shakespeare Company lavish in tearing apart that wall, and while they’re at it, they also have the gall to tear apart the Bard himself. That’s right — “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)” features every single one of the Bard’s plays and all 154 of his sonnets, and these three men do it in just two hours.

In an interview with The Badger Herald, Reduced Shakespeare Company actor and writer Austin Tichenor went into detail about the novelty of the show and why people who love and loathe Shakespeare alike will have a great time.

“It’s an unprecedented theatrical achievement… performed live on stage for a captive Madison audience,” Tichenor said.

To some, the initial allure to “The Complete Works” lies largely in the glee of watching these men dismantle the works of a man who many consider the greatest playwright of all time. But to Tichenor, Shakespeare is more than that ? he’s universal territory.

“No matter where you’re from, what language you speak or what culture you live in, you have studied Shakespeare in high school, and you’ve studied it badly,” Tichenor said. “It’s been taught to you badly and you’ve seen bad productions of it. So we’ve had that experience just as much as the audience, and if anything, the show is a not only a celebration of Shakespeare, but a satire of how Shakespeare is often presented.”

The beginnings of what would become the Reduced Shakespeare Company sprouted in 1981 when Daniel Singer began performing 20-minute renditions of “Hamlet” at renaissance fairs. He brought in some friends, including Jess Borgeson and Adam Long (who continues to perform and write with the company today), and they soon expanded the show to include “Romeo and Juliet.” In 1987, the trio performed the first incarnation of “The Complete Works,” which ran at an hour long. From there, the company exploded.

Tours commenced, founding members moved on ? Tichenor took over from Borgeson and hasn’t looked back since ? and the rest is history. Literally. Since the success of “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare: Abridged”, Tichenor, Long and current member Reed Martin have come up with more great subjects to shred down. Take, for example, “The Complete History of America (Abridged),” “The Bible: The Complete Word of God (Abridged)” and their most recent endeavor, “The Complete World of Sports (Abridged).”

“[It’s] every sport from every continent ever played in the history of man on the Reduced Shakespeare Company stage,” Tichenor said. “And that’ll take about two hours.”

Though the writing largely has remained unchanged through years of performances, the audience hasn’t. “The Complete Works,” along with the slew of other productions, prides itself on audience participation.

“Performing these shows would get really boring if we didn’t love the material. The nice thing that changes, of course, is the audience every night,” Tichenor said. “We’ve structured the shows in a way so we can sort of react on a nightly basis to whatever the audience is giving us. If somebody comes in late, or if somebody leaves early, or somebody is rustling their candy or somebody is coughing or laughing in a ridiculous fashion, you know, we can and must respond to that.”

For the Reduced Shakespeare Company it’s important to keep its ever-important relationship with audiences intact, even beyond the show. And it accomplishes that mission through podcasts.

“It’s 15 to 20 minutes of backstage hang time with the Reduced Shakespeare Company where we are, whether we’re in a car or on a plane, whether we’re onstage, sometimes I’ve actually podcasted live on stage, usually in the wings,” Tichenor said. “We always love breaking that fourth wall.”

Aside from the Shakespeare, when it comes down to why you should see the show, Tichenor says it’s all about appearances.

“If they come see the show, they will appear to be more cultured and learned. They won’t actually be, but they will look that way. And that patina of culture and education is important as they will be entertained along the way.”

The Reduced Shakespeare Company will be performing at the Overture Center through Dec. 20. Check www.overturecenter.com for more information.