Branagh & Co. to Bring Bard to Taper : Stage: Renaissance Theatre Company of London will offer “King Lear,” “Midsummer Night’s Dream” as part of new joint venture.

Heralding a new alliance, the Mark Taper Forum has joined forces with Kenneth Branagh’s Renaissance Theatre Company of London to present Shakespeare’s “King Lear” and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” in repertory at the Taper from Jan. 21 through March 4.

The announcement was made jointly at a press conference Tuesday by Taper artistic director Gordon Davidson and British actor-director Branagh, who will stage both plays. Asked if the Renaissance rep would be a replacement for the discontinued Taper Rep, Davidson said, “It can’t be. But I feel it’s a new beginning.”

Branagh and Davidson suggested that this could be the beginning of a longer association between the theaters that, down the line, might even include a mixed company of British and American actors. The joint venture appears also to have prompted some refocusing at the Taper.

The new association “has other reverberations,” Davidson said, but cautioned against raising too many expectations too soon. “In the long-range planning, we’re beginning to re-include the idea of a resident company. We have things we can teach each other,” he said, “but I don’t want to be pretentious about it.”

The twin bill replaces the previously announced “Artist Descending a Staircase” by Tom Stoppard as the third event in the Taper’s 1989-90 season. (“Staircase” had to be replaced when the rights to the play were withdrawn because of a decision to present the show on Broadway this fall.) Cancellations in the theaters’ schedules made the booking possible on short notice.

Branagh, 28, whose acclaimed film remake of “Henry V” opens today at the Westside Pavilion and in New York (see review on F1), emphasized his 2-year-old company’s commitment to the actor as a central creative force. He also underscored his belief in making the classics “vital, urgent and immediate” with “great, big, exciting, passionate acting that you can hear,” reiterating a fundamental belief in pursuing “the balance between the traditional and the contemporary.”

The “Lear” and “Midsummer” that he will bring to the Taper (and which begin rehearsals in London on Monday) “won’t be more than (period) dress productions,” he said, “but they won’t be entirely Elizabethan either. We’re trying to find a timeless quality . . . (in) creating the world of the play. We go for as much detail as we can, but it’s the universality that interests me. No museum pieces,” he added. “I want organic involvement from everyone (while respecting) the poetry.”

Because Branagh said he admires the “emotional fearlessness” of American actors and wants “to share our work with the local theater community as much as possible,” Davidson announced that the Taper will hold a series of workshops during the company’s stay in Los Angeles.

Since its creation in 1987, the RTC has made a name for itself with a vigorous series of new and classical productions. It has attracted the patronage of Prince Charles and counts such actors in its ranks as Derek Jacobi, Judi Dench, Geraldine McEwan and Richard Briers (who will play the title role in “Lear” and Bottom in “Midsummer”).

At the moment, the “Lear” and “Midsummer” are being offered to Taper subscribers only. They will have to choose between one or the other, said Robert Schlosser, director of audience development for the Taper, but will be entitled to purchase tickets to the second production at a 15% discount. Tickets for nonsubscribers are expected to go on sale by mid-December.