Shakespeare in the Park festivals
Shakespeare in the Park is a term for outdoor festivals featuring productions of William Shakespeare's plays. The term originated with the New York Shakespeare Festival in New York City's Central Park, originally created by Joseph Papp. This concept has been adapted by many theatre companies, and over time, this name has expanded to encompass outdoor theatre productions of the playwright's works performed all over the world.
Shakespeare in the Park started as an idea to make theatre available to people of all walks of life, so that it would be as readily available as library books.[1] The performances are more often than not free admission to the general public, usually presented outdoors as a summer event. These types of performances can be seen by audiences around the world, with most festivals adapting the name for their productions, such as Vancouver's Bard on the Beach. Many festivals incorporate workshops, food, and other additions to the performances making this type of theatre experience an interactive community event.
United States[edit]
Albuquerque[edit]
The New Mexico Shakespeare Festival is a professional festival presented by the Vortex Theatre and the City of Albuquerque. It is one of only 14 free Shakespeare festivals in the nation. The festival is performed at the Veterans Memorial Park each summer by a professional company.[2]
Asheville[edit]
The Montford Park Players, a community theater company, has been staging free Shakespeare productions in Asheville, North Carolina since 1973. The productions were first staged at a municipal park on Montford Avenue and, in 1993, moved to its current location, the Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre.[3]
Boston[edit]
Commonwealth Shakespeare Company presents professional productions of Shakespeare in Boston Common. The first production was in 1996 at Copley Square; a year later the program was moved to the Common, first at the Parkman Bandstand and more recently at the Parade Ground.[4]
Buffalo[edit]
Shakespeare in Delaware Park describes itself as the United States' 2nd oldest Shakespeare festival (following New York Shakespeare Festival). It is held in Buffalo, New York's Delaware Park.[5]
Dallas[edit]
Inspired by the New York Shakespeare Festival, Robert "Bob" Glenn started The Shakespeare Festival of Dallas in 1971 as a free summer Shakespeare Festival. Renamed Shakespeare Dallas in 2005, the company produces three free Shakespeare productions each summer at the Samuel-Grand Amphitheatre in Lakewood.[6]
Denver[edit]
The Foothills Theatre Company has been staging Shakespeare productions every summer since 2014 in Clement Park, located in Littleton, a suburb SW of Denver.
Johnstown[edit]
Band of Brothers Shakespeare company has been producing Shakespeare plays every year in Stackhouse Park since 1992, under the direction of Laura Gordon with a rotating cast of community members of all ages.
Jersey City[edit]
The Hudson Shakespeare Company, founded by L. Robert Johnson in 1992, features a summer season where the company stages productions for each month of the summer. Besides Shakespeare standards such as Hamlet and A Midsummer Night's Dream, they often produce one to two lesser done productions a season such as The Two Noble Kinsmen, Cardenio and Henry VIII. Based in Jersey City, NJ, they also tour as part of their summer season to other New Jersey locations such as Fort Lee, Hackensack, Kenilworth, Hoboken, West Milford and also to Stratford, CT. [7]
Kansas City[edit]
The Heart of America Shakespeare Festival was founded by Tony winning Broadway producer Marilyn Strauss in 1993 at the urging of Joe Papp[8] with a production of The Tempest in Southmoreland Park. In 1998, they began to produce two productions per year, with a total of 23 production at the start of the 2011 season.[9]
Louisville[edit]
Kentucky Shakespeare Festival is a non-profit, professional theatre company in Louisville, Kentucky that produces and performs the works of William Shakespeare. The main productions offered are the annual summer series of plays presented free to the public at Central Park. This series, commonly called "Shakespeare in Central Park", sprung from an initial production in the park by The Carriage House Players in the summer of 1960. They also perform shows in other venues, as well as conduct educational programs related to acting and other theater-related skills.
Miami[edit]
The Florida Shakespeare Theater is the only Shakespeare company on the planet that produces Shakespeare in the Park in mid winter. Every January, since 2005, the Florida Shakespeare Theater presents free Shakespeare in the Park productions in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties. Noted for their educational programming and public outreach, the FST fulfills their mission of providing open and equal access to classical theater.
Nashville[edit]
The Nashville Shakespeare Festival presents free Summer Shakespeare productions in Nashville, Tennessee and Franklin, Tennessee every year in August and September. Winter Shakespeare takes place in January and February and often focuses on Shakespeare's works that are studied in schools across Tennessee. Founded in 1988, NSF has focused on making Shakespeare accessible to all communities through free and reduced-price tickets and rich educational offerings.
Australia[edit]
Australian Shakespeare Company (Melbourne)[edit]
The Australian Shakespeare Company was founded in 1987 by Glenn Elston, the man responsible for pioneering outdoor theatre performances of William Shakespeare's plays in Australia. The company has performed for more than a million people across all the different regions of Australia. They make it a mission to draw audiences of all age groups to their shows.[30]
Shakespeare in the Park Festival at Toowoomba[edit]
The Shakespeare in the Park Festival at Toowoomba is another location for al fresco Shakespeare performances in Australia. Originally presented in Toowoomba's Queen's Park (2004–2011), this festival recently moved (2012) to the University of Southern Queensland's Toowoomba campus. Presentations on the open-air mainstage since the festival's inception in 2004 include The Tempest, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Comedy of Errors, Taming of the Shrew, Hamlet, Twelfth Night and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Cast includes Creative Arts students from the University of Southern Queensland and also includes a variety of other events to complement the mainstage offering each year.[31][32]
Shakespeare WA (Perth)[edit]
Western Australia also holds a large Shakespeare in the Park festival in Perth at King's Park Botanical Gardens. The plays for this festival are set to be performed by the same company (Shakespeare WA) through 2014. This festival is usually held from mid January to mid February, and is the largest single theatre event in Western Australia.[33]
New Zealand[edit]
Wellington
Summer Shakespeare has been an annual outdoor theatre event in the capital city, Wellington, since 1983. The large-scale, large-cast productions have taken place in a variety of settings including the Dell in the Wellington Botanic Gardens, Civic Square, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, onsite at Victoria University and at Gladstone Vineyard in the Wairarapa. Productions have ranged from some of the most popular to some of the most obscure plays in the Shakespeare canon.
Auckland
Shakespeare in the Park has been performed in the outdoor amphitheatre at The PumpHouse Theatre, Lake Pupuke since 1996.[36] incorporating traditional costumes and settings.
Canada[edit]
The Dream in High Park (Toronto)[edit]
The Dream in High Park is the oldest annual outdoor theatre event in Canada, currently entering its 33rd season in 2016. Since its inception in 1983, an estimated 1.3 million people have enjoyed the tradition of theatre under the stars. The Canadian Stage Company, who performs the Dream, is nationally and internationally acclaimed, and is Canada's leading not-for-profit contemporary theatre company. It was founded in 1987 with the merger of CentreStage and Toronto Free Theatre, and is dedicated to programming international contemporary theatre, and to developing and producing landmark Canadian works.[37]
Shakespeare In The Ruff (Toronto)[edit]
Shakespeare In The Ruff was born from the ashes from the previous company Shakespeare In The Rough which performed in Toronto's East End neighbourhood of Riverdale between 1994 and 2006. The new company launched in 2012 focuses on creating unique contemporary adaptations of Shakespeare's work and providing opportunities for emerging artists. As part of the company's community work, they run a youth apprenticeship program called the Young Ruffians which pairs up high school students with a member of the professional company for the duration of rehearsals and performances.[38]
Shakespeare by the Sea Festival (St. John's)[edit]
Shakespeare by the Sea Festival Inc., a community-based organization, produces and promotes artistic works with a focus on William Shakespeare. It unites seasoned and developing talent and aspires to excel in all aspects. The festival is the longest-running outdoor summer theatre event in the St. John's area. Since 1993, the Shakespeare by the Sea Festival has been performing the works of the famous Bard all around the St. John's area – from the cliff-top meadows of Logy Bay to the historic World War II bunkers at Cape Spear – from the cobblestoned courtyard of the Murray Premises to the lush landscapes of Bowring Park. Since that time, the Festival has grown into a much-anticipated annual event.[39]
Repercussion Theatre (Montreal)[edit]
Repercussion Theatre has been touring parks throughout Montreal for over 30 years, bringing the classics to people where they live, for free (with donations graciously accepted). They are experienced in providing Shakespeare in the Park across the city, entertaining people who may otherwise not be exposed to live theatre. Repercussion Theatre was founded in 1988, when they played four shows in front of 800 people in Westmount and Beaconsfield, Qc. Now, they perform to over 10,000 people each summer across the island of Montreal and beyond – with a commitment to cultural diversity, gender equity, and infusing Shakespeare's plays with a decidedly Montreal flair. They are the only company in Montreal to consistently produce a Shakespeare production each year. The company's first artistic director was Cas Anvar (followed by Kevin Orr and then Paul Hopkins) and the current artistic director is Amanda Kellock.[40]
A Company of Fools (Ottawa)[edit]
In 1990, Margo MacDonald and Heather Jopling, rooted in the belief that Shakespeare should be seen and not read, recruited almost a dozen young performers and took to the streets. They derived inspiration from the rogue Elizabethan players that once entertained audiences outdoors at the Globe theatre, named themselves A Company of Fools, and began performing for crowds on the streets of Ottawa. In 1998 the Fools began performing in Ottawa City Parks with college shows, and in 2002 the Fools launched the Torchlight Shakespeare series. Besides mounting an average of two productions a year, the Fools hold three annual events (Twelfth Night Celebration, Valentine's Day Sonnet Delivery, and the Ottawa Theatre Challenge) and are active in the Ottawa community.[41]
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