August Play Days at Shakespeare & Company
LENOX, Mass. - Summer is in full swing, and Shakespeare & Company is celebrating with exciting new discounts and a full roster of free and affordably priced programming. With three stages bursting with plays—not to mention all the nooks and crannies, like the Bernstein Theatre lobby and new rehearsal studios, into which concerts and other special events are crammed each week—there is always something going on at Shakespeare & Company. And with an aggressive series of discounts, in concert with free programming like the family-friendly Bankside Festival (including shows like Toad of Toad Hall, Wordplay, and more) and the free Spherical Sounds concert series, the fun, excitement, and intellectual discovery is available to all.Discounts*
$15 Groundlings Tickets: The newest discount at Shakespeare & Company! Every seat in the front row of Founders’ Theatre—home of Twelfth Night, Othello and Hamlet—is priced at $15 each. This is good for every single performance of S&Co.’s mainstage Shakespeare titles, all nights and weekends included.
40% Berkshire Resident Discount: Quite possibly the best deal in the Berkshires! The signature discount at S&Co. is open to full-time, year-round residents of Berkshire County, who may buy tickets to any production in our season for an astounding 40% off. This is good for A and B sections of Founders’ Theatre or the Bernstein Theatre. The only times this discount is unavailable are Friday and Saturday nights.
Theatre 4 Less Ticket Stub Discount (from Berkshire 4-Theatre Collaborative: Present your ticket stub from Shakespeare & Company, Barrington Stage Company, Berkshire Theatre Festival or Williamstown Theatre Festival for $10 off a show at another participating theatre, within two weeks of the original performance.
Shakespeare Season Seat: S&Co. is presenting more Shakespeare this year than it has in over a decade, and this is an excellent option for everyone who wants to get in on all the fun! A ticket is included to each of the four Shakespeare titles now playing (Twelfth Night, Othello, Hamlet and Measure For Measure) for only $110. This is the equivalent of a free ticket to one of the shows.
50% Youth Day-Of-Show: Patrons aged 25 or younger may take advantage of the discount, good any day for any show.
Family and Kids’ Matinees: An adult with a full-priced ticket to a matinee may bring up to three children for free. (Does not apply for Sunday matinees of upcoming productions The Hound of the Baskervilles or Cindy Bella.) What better way to introduce children to the merry mischief of Twelfth Night?
Teacher and Military Discount: Full-time public or private school teachers and active-duty military personnel receive a 40% discount off all tickets. Identification is required. .
Seniors/Students Discount: Patrons over the age of 64 and students under the age of 19 are eligible for a $5 discount per ticket.
*Note: discounts generally cannot be combined, and some restrictions apply to some discounts. Full details are always available from the Box Office, which can be reached at (413) 637-3353 or www.shakespeare.org.
Free programming
Toad of Toad Hall: A.A. Milne’s Toad of Toad Hall is a distillation of one of the stories found within the beloved classic Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame. It is directed by internationally acclaimed director Irina Brook, features music by S&Co.’s Resident Music Director Bill Barclay, and is brought vividly to life by a tireless troupe of some of the Company’s finest young actors, many of whom have honed and seasoned their craft in the Education Program’s New England Tour of Shakespeare or past Bankside productions. Plays in two parts at the outdoor, tented Rose Footprint Theatre. Through September 6.
Wordplay: This fast-paced farce follows in the tradition of Rose Footprint favorites Wild and Whirling Words and Shakespeare And The Language That Shaped A World, which intersperse scenes from Shakespeare’s work with historical information and bits of trivia. Wordplay is a new adventure, however, as it frames some of Shakespeare’s best-loved scenes with a hysterical connecting story—the antics of The Bard’s theatre company as it tries to mount a play called…Wordplay. Plays August 13 through September 6.
Preludes: These hilarious, 15-minute performances happen outside Founders’ Theatre at 6:45pm before evening performances, and wittily refer to that evening’s mainstage Shakespeare production in the lively spirit of great street theatre. Plays through September 6.
Spherical Sounds: This series of cabaret-style musical entertainment is curated by Resident Music Director Bill Barclay, and takes over the Bernstein Theatre Lobby every Thursday at 10:15pm in July and August. Drinks and light fare are available for sale, but the friendly mood of cozy festivity is free!
August 13th The Shakespeare Songs by Roger Quilter, featuring baritone Alex Lawrence from the Tanglewood Music Center.
Lyric baritone Alex Lawrence, a Tanglewood Music Center Fellow and Finalist in this year’s Metropolitan Opera Competition sings both sets of the classic Roger Quilter settings (opus 6 and 23), which the 20th century English art song composer penned while deeply inspired by Shakespeare’s most famous lyrics. Including “Hey Ho, the Wind and the Rain,” a chilling “Come Away Death” and a jubilant “O Mistress Mine,” all from Twelfth Night with the luscious “Take, O Take Those Lips Away” from Measure for Measure, and more. Bill Barclay accompanies on piano.
August 20 Open Mic Cabaret!
Come one, come all, for a musical celebration of the many musical gifts within the Shakespeare & Company community. Sing-along, rounds, originals and familiar covers will represent a cross-section of our large extended family. All alumni of the Fall Festival of Shakespeare are encouraged to come, and spread the word!
Special Events
Shakespeare & Young Company: S&YCo., founded in 1991, is a two-month training program for young actors where participants gain extensive exposure to the acting techniques practiced at S&Co.: voice, text, movement, stage combat, clown and structure of the verse. After spending the summer working with Company teachers, directors and actors, S&YCo. shares its work on stage with public performances. Many past participants have continued to train with the Company, performing in Mainstage productions and participating in the Summer Training Institute and the Fall Festival of Shakespeare. August 19 and 21 at 5pm at the Rose Footprint Theatre. Tickets $12 for adults, $8 for students.
Susan Quinn presents Furious Improvisations: A not-to-be missed multimedia presentation by Susan Quinn, an expert on the history of government support for the arts in times of economic turmoil. Her important new book Furious Improvisations tells the not-quite-forgotten story of the New Deal-era Works Project Administration’s Federal Theatre Project, and its role in supporting groundbreaking theatre in the midst of the Great Depression. Surprising and thought-provoking! August 23 at 2pm in the Production and Performing Arts Center (Studio 1). Tickets: $15, or $10 for patrons 25 and under.
AUREA: Under a Latin Moon: This very special presentation by the touring ensemble AUREA includes music of Ginastera, Villa Lobos, Piazzolla, harmonica improvisations by Chris Turner, and poetry of Neruda, Lorca, Jimenez and Andrade. Performers: Nigel Gore, Diego Arciniegas, Chris Turner, readers; Charles Sherba, Katherine Winterstein, violin, Consuelo Sherba, viola, Ted Mook, cello, Gigi Mitchell-Velasco, mezzo-soprano, Chris Turner, harmonica. This program will feature readings in Spanish and English, as well as the rarely performed Villa Lobos songs for violin and mezzo-soprano in Portuguese. Sunday, September 6th at 8:30pm in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre. Tickets: $15, or $10 for patrons 25 and under.
Celebrating Bill Gibson: Sure to be a moving, heartfelt celebration, this special events is dedicated to a retrospective of our good friend and inspired playwright William Gibson, whose Golda’s Balcony returns to Shakespeare & Company on September 9 at 2pm and September 13 at 5pm.
Golda’s Balcony had its world premiere at S&CO. in 2002 and features award-winning actress Annette Miller. September 13 at 5pm in the Production and Performing Arts Center (Studio 1). Tickets: $15, or $10 for patrons 25 and under.
Tuesday Talks: New this year, these lively and intimate conversations with the artists behind this season’s lineup at S&Co. Each is $6.
The Dreamer Examines His Pillow with director Tod Randolph, August 11 at 5pm in the Production and Performing Arts Center (Studio 3)
Twelfth Night with director Jonathan Croy, August 18 at 5pm in Josie’s Place, the Founders’ Theatre lobby
White People with director Anna Brownstead, August 25 at 5pm in the Production and Performing Arts Center (Studio 3)
Behind the Scenes Tours: New this year! Pull back the curtain see what happens backstage, in our costume shop, and in the pre-production stage of an S&Co. show. This 90-minute tour is good for all ages. On Wednesdays and Saturdays at 10am, through September 5.
