It may not be your midsummer night’s dream to spend an evening with William Shakespeare, but two local theater companies are taking the playwright’s classics outside for performances that just might change your mind. “It’s such a pretty setting to start in the daylight,” says Tyson Douglas Rand, artistic director of the Cleveland Shakespeare Festival, which performs at Notre Dame College. “By the time we get to the end of the play, the sun has gone down; we can get all the nice atmosphere and effect of stage lighting.” Terry Burgler, an artistic director of the Ohio Shakespeare Festival, seconds that: “There is something about [performing outside] that makes it seem more natural, more accessible.” We asked both men to share some of their favorites.
Terry Burgler Ohio Shakespeare Festival
Tyson Douglas Rand Cleveland Shakespeare Festival
2000
Founded
2000
About 40
Members
30 to 35
“He has a wonderful sense of comedy. He has a wonderful sense of drama and a wonderful sense of tragedy, but also his gift with language is extraordinary.”
Shakespeare's Relevance Today
“He chose subjects that were very basic and very universal. The emotional content of his plays is valid today.”
Falstaff. “Because he is larger than life. He is outrageously indulgent and constantly trying to get away with things, and no matter how badly he is caught, he finds a way to squirm out of things.”
Favorite Shakespeare Character
Benedick from Much Ado About Nothing. “He has such a nice character arc from being such a pushover to being madly in love because someone told him that someone liked him.”
“The readiness is all,” from Hamlet
Favorite Shakespeare Quote
“Lord, what fools these mortals be,” from A Midsummer Night’s Dream
King Lear (July 29-Aug. 15) and The Taming of the Shrew (July 8-24) both at Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens
Upcoming Performances
The Merry Wives of Windsor (June 25 and 26) and Titus Andronicus (June 18 and 19) both at Notre Dame College
