Santa Cruz Shakespeare Brings Three Plays To Its Summer Festival

The Book of Will

By Lauren Gunderson

Join Santa Cruz Shakespeare in its beautiful outdoor theater under the trees in

The Audrey Stanley Grove at DeLaveaga Park in Santa Cruz for its 2023 Summer Festival and the production of Lauren Gunderson’s The Book of Will.

A play that tells the funny and moving story of the two actors who worked to preserve Shakespeare’s legacy with the creation of the First Folio (the first published collection of Shakespeare’s plays), it is a love letter to William Shakespeare and his plays. 2023 will mark the 400th anniversary of the printing of the First Folio.

Mike Ryan, SCS’s outgoing artistic director, and Charles Pasternak, incoming artistic director, will play the roles of Heminges and Condell, the men who collected Shakespeare’s texts.

Directed by Laura Gordon, performances of The Book of Will by Lauren Gunderson, will take place July 8 through August 27. Tickets on sale May 1, 2023.

Don’t miss this memorable and delightful experience in one of Santa Cruz’s most majestic settings!

Other productions in Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s 2023 Summer Festival include Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, and King Lear. Learn more at santacruzshakespeare.org.

Saturday, July 8 - 2:00 p.m.

Tuesday, July 11 - 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, July 13 - 8:00 p.m.

Saturday, July 15 - 8:00 p.m.

Friday, July 21 - 8:00 p.m.

Saturday, July 22 - 2:00 p.m.

Sunday, August 6 - 1:00 p.m.

Friday, August 11 - 8:00 p.m.

Saturday, August 12 - 8:00 p.m.

Sunday, August 20 - 1:00 p.m.

Wednesday, August 23 - 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, August 27 - 1:00 p.m.

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The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare

Join Santa Cruz Shakespeare in its beautiful outdoor theater under the trees in The Audrey Stanley Grove at DeLaveaga Park in Santa Cruz for its 2023 Summer Festival and its 10th anniversary of thrilling and imaginative theater.

In one of Shakespeare’s most raucous comedies, The Taming of the Shrew, characters struggle against the roles they have been prescribed by gender, class, or age. While the results of these struggles provide some of the most hilarious moments in the canon, they also leave us with unsettling questions about the human cost of maintaining the status quo.

Thorny, funny and deeply human, Kate and Petruchio are two of Shakespeare’s most fascinating characters. Out of place because of their honesty in a world of deception, can these two broken people find happiness where they least expect it?

Join us as we explore Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew with humor and grace, and discover the deeply complex characters at the story’s heart as they journey to find love.

Other productions in Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s 2023 Summer Festival include Shakespeare’s King Lear, and The Book of Will by Lauren Gunderson. Learn more at santacruzshakespeare.org.

Tickets on Sale May 1, 2023. Don’t miss this memorable and delightful experience in one of Santa Cruz’s most majestic settings!

Sunday, July 9 - 1:00 p.m.

Wednesday, July 12 - 7:30 p.m.

Friday, July 14 - 8:00 p.m.

Saturday, July 15 - 2:00 p.m.

Saturday, July 22 - 8:00 p.m.

Sunday, July 23 - 1:00 p.m.

Saturday, July 29 - 8:00 p.m.

Sunday, July 30 - 1:00 p.m.

Friday, August 4 - 8:00 p.m.

Saturday, August 5 - 2:00 p.m.

Wednesday, August 9 - 7:30 pm

Saturday, August 12 - 8:00 p.m.

Sunday, August 13 - 1:00 p.m.

Thursday, August 17 - 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, August 20 - 7:00 p.m.

Friday, August 25 - 8:00 p.m.

Saturday, August 26 - 2:00 p.m.

King Lear by William Shakespeare

Join Santa Cruz Shakespeare in its beautiful outdoor theater under the trees in The Audrey Stanley Grove at DeLaveaga Park in Santa Cruz for its 2023 Summer Festival and its 10th anniversary of thrilling and imaginative theater.

This year’s production of King Lear will explore how the craving for power can shatter both kingdoms and families. King Lear paints a chilling picture of the plight of humanity in an indifferent universe and charts a monarch’s disturbing descent into madness. Featuring some of the most powerful and harrowing verse that Shakespeare wrote at the height of his powers, this powerful tale will star former Shakespeare Santa Cruz artistic director and Royal Shakespeare Company actor Paul Whitworth in a not-tobe-missed tour de force performance.

Performances of Shakespeare’s King Lear, directed by Paul Mullins, will take place from July through August. Other productions in Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s 2023 Summer Festival include Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, and The Book of Will by Lauren Gunderson. Learn more at santacruzshakespeare.org.

“Summer Festival” page 12