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His plays have been performed throughout the centuries in many languages and on every continent. Festivals featuring the works of William Shakespeare take to stages around the world every year—performed by major theater companies and small community theaters alike—all honoring, arguably, the greatest playwright in the English language.
Although the world has changed substantially since Shakespeare’s time, human nature surely hasn’t. Happiness, sadness, love, lust, greed, hate, ambition—all our emotions are at the heart of every Shakespeare play; that, plus his splendid way with words, has kept The Bard’s works universally, timelessly, relevant.
Whether produced under the stars, along the shore or in a park, Shakespeare is performed outdoors every summer. The idea would have seemed utterly de rigueur to Shakespeare, it should be noted; his plays were staged in large, open-air playhouses like The Globe, as well as many outdoor settings, whenever his company was on tour.
Indeed, many theater companies throughout Wisconsin offer summer seasons of Shakespeare’s works, but there are several other options, too. Modern plays, plays by local playwrights and classics by George Bernard Shaw, Tennessee Williams, Agatha Christie and many others appear on Wisconsin stages this summer. What follows is your guide to some of the highlights of 2019’s summer theater season throughout our state.
American Players Theatre
5950 Golf Course Road, Spring Green, Sauk County
americanplayers.org (608-588-2361)
Situated on 110 acres of hilly woods and meadows, APT has two theaters: a 1,089-seat outdoor amphitheater and 201-seat indoor theater. From June through November, they produce several plays in rotating repertory. Here, Shakespeare’s epically tragic Macbeth runs June 21-Oct. 4. Macbeth, being presented at APT for the first time in nearly two decades, is a tale of friendship betrayed and of a great love utterly wasted.
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Door Shakespeare
8093 State Highway 57, Baileys Harbor, Door County
doorshakespeare.com (920-839-1500)
“As a member of the audience, you are up close and personal to the action. As dusk falls over the course of the evening, you may take on the role of a confidante or a voyeur. By the end of the evening, when the stars are out and the actors take their final bow, you will feel as though you have come to know this talented ensemble of players,” Door Shakespeare intriguingly puts. Their summer season features two of Shakespeare’s finest works, the historic drama Henry V (June 19-Aug. 24) and comedy The Merry Wives of Windsor (June 19-Aug. 24) in the garden at Björklunden.
Northern Sky Theater
Peninsula State Park Amphitheater
10169 Shore Rd., Fish Creek, Door County
northernskytheater.com (920-854-6117)
Northern Sky Theater is where, as they describe it, “the smiling and laughing is just infused in the place and the people, no matter what the weather.” They have a three-play summer season, opening with the world premiere of Corrie Beul Kovacs and Stephen Kovacs’ We Like It Where?, running June 12-Aug. 24. Its plot is inspired by a true story about Winneconne—a “mouse that roared” situation erupting when this tiny Wisconsin town was inadvertently left off a new state map.
Peninsula Players Theater
4351 Peninsula Players Rd., Fish Creek, Door County
peninsulaplayers.com (920-868-3287)
Peninsula Players Theatre—which started presenting plays with “two planks and a passion” in 1935—is the country’s oldest resident summer theater company. Their four-play season opens with the world premiere of the comedy A Trick of the Light by Peter Moore, which runs June 18-July 7. A middle-aged, married man’s sudden ability to vanish completely—that is, from everyone’s site except for that of his wife—is at the core of the plot. “Playing fast and loose with time, place and imagination [the play] hilariously explores the ordinariness of the extraordinary and exactly what constitutes a life well lived,” the company explains.
Summerstage of Delafield
W329 N846 County Highway C, Kettle Moraine State Park
summerstageofdelafield.org (262-337-1560)
Nestled in the scenic park’s Lapham Peak Unit, Summerstage’s rustic outdoor theater presents plays, concerts, magic shows and more in a very relaxed setting. This year, Summerstage presents one of Shakespeare’s most beloved (and bewildering) comedies. It’s a funny, celebratory embrace of the craziness that is love titled Twelfth Night, in which delightful little deceptions and mistaken identities fairly abound. The play runs June 13-29.
Third Avenue Playhouse
239 N. 3rd Ave., Sturgeon Bay, Door County
thirdavenueplayhouse.com (920-743-1760)
Third Avenue Playhouse (TAP) is Door County’s newest professional theater company (founded in 2000); its lovely 84-seat Studio Theatre is but seven years old. TAP is also the county’s only year-round theater, offering, as they say, “intimate plays in an intimate setting.” TAP’s two-play summer season opens with Marie Kohler’s The Dig (June 27-July 20). In this compelling drama, a young girl becomes separated from her older brother when he sets off on an archeological dig in Lebanon. But there he suffers from a psychological breakdown that changes him forever. Spanning some three decades from the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘90s, The Dig dramatizes a belated sense of loss—and acceptance.
