Bree Murphy (left) as Mistress Quickly and Marco Antonio Vega as Bardolph in the Utah Shakespeare Festival’s 2016 production of Henry V. Photo by Karl Hugh. Copyright Utah Shakespeare Festival 2016.
Whether they are produced under the stars, in the moonlight, by the sea, or in local parks, Shakespeare plays are performed outdoors throughout the United States every summer.
Some aspects of modern theater would probably have surprised William Shakespeare, from electrical lighting to women acting onstage. The idea of performing his plays outdoors, however, would have seemed entirely routine. The plays that Shakespeare wrote were staged in large, open-air playhouses like the Globe—and in other outdoor settings when his company was on tour. (Of course, his plays commanded audiences indoors, too, from the Blackfriars Theatre to the royal court.)
Explore how different US theaters and festivals are staging Shakespeare in the open air this summer with the gallery of images below.
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- A scene from the Utah Shakespeare Festival’s 2016 production of Henry V. Photo by Karl Hugh. Copyright Utah Shakespeare Festival 2016.
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- (L to R) Phil Wong as the Clown and Phil Lowery as the Old Shepherd in San Francisco Shakespeare Festival’s Free Shakespeare in the Park production of The Winter’s Tale. Photo: Jay Yamada
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- Marti Gobel and the Ensemble. A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Directed by Joseph Hanreddy. Door Shakespeare. Photo by Torey Byrne.
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- Seattle Shakespeare Company, Wooden O, Free Shakespeare in the Parks, Hamlet. 2016
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- (from left) Jonny Orsini appears as Ferdinand, King of Navarre, Kristen Connolly as the Princess of France, Kieran Campion as Berowne, and Pascale Armand as Rosaline in William Shakespeare’s Love’s Labor’s Lost, directed by Kathleen Marshall, running August 14 – September 18, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
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- Chicago Shakespeare in the Parks, free 75-minute family-friendly production of Twelfth Night to neighborhood parks throughout the city. Part of Shakespeare 400 Chicago, July 14–August 14, 2016. (Pictured: Loyola Park.) Photo by Julie Stanton.
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- Oregon Shakespeare Festival. 2016. The Winter’s Tale by William Shakespeare. Directed by Desdemona Chiang. Scenic Design: Richard L. Hay. Costume Design: Helen Q. Huang. Lighting Designer: Yi Zhao. Composer and Sound Designer: Andre J. Pluess. Choreographer: Valerie Rachelle. Dramaturg: Gina Pisasale. Voice and Text Director: David Carey. Fight Director: U. Jonathan Toppo. Phil Killian Directing Fellow: Lavina Jadhawani. Photo: Jenny Graham.
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- Eric Schabla, Bobby Bowman, Kelsey Brennan, Christopher Sheard, Ninos Baba and James Ridge, The Comedy of Errors, 2016. American Players Theatre. Photo by Liz Lauren.
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- From left to right: Ensemble (Grace Trapnell), Maria (Jes Bedwinek), Princess of France (Jennifer Ellis*), Rosaline (Obehi Janice*), Katharine (Margaret Clark) and Ensemble (Marisa Gold). Love’s Labour’s Lost. Commonwealth Shakespeare Company. Photo by Andrew Brilliant/Brilliant Pictures.
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- Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, directed by Lee Sunday Evans at Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, 6/2/16. Costume Designer: Asta Hostetter. Lighting Designer: Eric Southern. Scenic Designer: John McDermott. Photograph © T Charles Erickson tcepix@comcast.net http://tcharleserickson.photoshelter.com/
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- Carolyn Holding (Cressida) and Christopher Joel Onken (Troilus) in Troilus and Cressida, 2016, Colorado Shakespeare Festival. Photo by Jennifer M. Koskinen
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- The Merchant of Venice at New Center Park, Shakespeare in Detroit, 2016.
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- Romeo and Juliet in CSC’s Shakespeare in the Park production of “Romeo and Juliet” touring to parks this summer. By Mikki Schaffner Photography.
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- Nashville Shakespeare Festival
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- (L) Demetria Thomas as Beatrice, (center) Susie Parr as Hero and David Huynh as Claudio and (R) Patrick Poole as Benedick in Houston Shakespeare Festival’s Much Ado About Nothing. Photo courtesy of the University of Houston.
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- As Hamlet, Deborah Staples (left) has a challenging conversation with Eva Balistrieri, who plays Ophelia, at the Illinois Shakespeare Festival. Credit: Pete Guither. (c) 2016 Illinois State University
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- Shakespeare Dallas, Crowd at the park
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- Shakespeare at Notre Dame Young Company, Pericles
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- Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum, A Midsummer Night’s Dream
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- Horatio (Christiana Clark), Osric (Benjamin Bonenfant) and Gertrude (Robin Goodrin Nordli) watch as Hamlet (Danforth Comins) and Laertes (Tramell Tillman) engage in a fencing match. Photo by Dale Robinette, Oregon Shakespeare Festival.
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- Idaho Shakespeare Festival Amphitheater. (c) Idaho Shakespeare Festival.
The images shown above include American Players Theatre; Chicago Shakespeare in the Parks from the Chicago Shakespeare Theater; Shakespeare in the Park from Cincinnati Shakespeare Company; Colorado Shakespeare Festival; Commonwealth Shakespeare Company; Door Shakespeare from Door County, Wisconsin; Houston Shakespeare Festival; Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival; Idaho Shakespeare Festival; Illinois Shakespeare; The Nashville Shakespeare Festival; The Old Globe; Shakespeare Under the Stars from the Oregon Shakespeare Festival; Free Shakespeare in the Park from the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival; Seattle Shakespeare Company; Shakespeare Dallas; Shakespeare in Detroit; Shakespeare at Notre Dame; the Utah Shakespeare Festival; and Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum.
The Folger Shakespeare Library partners with these theaters and others as part of our commitment to building greater connections between the public and Shakespeare and the humanities.
Do you enjoy Shakespeare differently when you see his plays outdoors? Do some plays seem better in an outdoor (or an indoor) setting than others do? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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Comments
Santa Cruz Shakespeare – doing Midsummer Night’s Dream, Hamlet, and Virginia Woolf”s Orlando in Delaveaga Park in Santa Cruz, CA
Nancy Schwalen — August 3, 2016
Saw an amazing production of “Edward III” put on by the Hudson Shakespeare Company of New Jersey. Its a dubious Shakespeare title they did in a Viking setting. It wad really engrossing and well paced, more theater companies should do it. Next month they are doing both parts of Henry IV with a female Prince Hal and Hotspur http://www.newjerseystage.com/articles/getarticle.php?titlelink=hudson-shakespeare-company-presents-henry-iv-throughout-august
Steve Baei — August 3, 2016
This summer I attended an outdoor production of The Tempest at Shakespeare & Co in White Bear Lake, Minnesota. This company is sponsored by Century Community College. The stage has expanded over the years , from your basic single platform and sound walls to today’s more complicated series of platforms, stairs, turrets, balcony with railings. It’s a beautiful permanent stage area that is utilized just as Shakespeare’ s Globe is, with location changes denoted through the dialog up alone. The trees and shrubs surrounding the audience become part of the set, as does any available space within the audience, who sit on blanket or chairs all over the grounds. This production was a gender inclusive production with women playing several key roles, including Prospero (Prospera). The inclusiveness was quite successful, especially with the character of Trinculo (Trincula). She was utterly delightful as a young wanton wench , always into her cups (all 3 of them).
Susan Edgren — August 5, 2016
Shakespeare Festival St. Louis has been producing free outdoor Shakespeare since 2001! Just produced a fabulous Midsummer: www.sfstl.com
Michael Perkins — August 5, 2016
We saw Door Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” It was just fantastic–an intimate stage nestled in the middle of the woods. The perfect setting for high jinks by Puck and the crew.
Jenn Miller — August 5, 2016
Danville, Virginia Shakespeare in the Park performed an adapted version of the Tempest.
Emily — August 5, 2016
Experience Theatre Project produced its very first production this summer. Its inaugural production: A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Photos from the production, along with excerpts from Puck’s Diary, at our website!
Alisa Stewart — August 6, 2016