What's onstage at Shakespeare theaters in August

It’s summer Shakespeare season and that means Shakespeare festivals across the country are staging lots of performances under the stars—and some in air-conditioned comfort, too! Check out what’s playing at our theater partners across the United States this month. What do you hope to see?

Closing this weekend

The world-famous Circus Abyssinia, the first Ethiopian circus made by and for Ethiopian artists, ends its run at Chicago Shakespeare Theater; Hudson Valley Shakespeare’s production of A Comedy of Errors (ends on August 2) with Thornton Wilder’s The Matchmaker; Sunday in the Park with George (closes August 2) at Idaho Shakespeare Festival; Hamlet (closes July 31), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (closes August 1), and The Importance of Being Earnest, along with the Theatre for Young Audiences production, Who’s There?!?, (closes August 2) at the Illinois Shakespeare Festival; and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised] [again]  plays at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey; and Twelfth Night by the students of London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) at the Utah Shakespeare Festival (closes August 2).

At the Folger

It’s the final weeks of our exhibition, How To Be a Power Player: Tudor Edition, on view through August 10. On August 15, Cocktails and Conversation returns with Nakeisha Daniel and JaMeeka Holloway, Folger Institute long-term public humanities fellows, for “Cultural Cadences,” an engaging and layered exploration of heightened language through the historical, linguistic, and performative intersections of Shakespearean English and the Gullah Geechee tradition. Our ongoing exhibitions and tours continue and the Quill & Crumb café is serving refreshing drinks for cooling off.

Alabama Shakespeare Festival

Follow the yellow brick road in a delightful stage adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s beloved tale, The Wizard of Oz, featuring the iconic musical score from the MGM film. The timeless tale, in which young Dorothy Gale travels from Kansas over the rainbow to the magical Land of Oz, is a thrill for audiences ages 5+. Through August 17.

American Players Theatre

American Players Theatre eight-play repertory in the woods of rural southwest Wisconsin continues, with A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Noel Coward’s Fallen Angels; William Inge’s Picnic; Art by Yasmina Reza; and the world premiere of The Death of Chuck Brown by Gavin Dillon Lawrence. Joining the repertory in August: Nilo Cruz’s Anna in the Tropics (begins August 1), Nina Raine’s Tribes (begins August 2), and Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale (begins August 8). Performances run through October 5.

Atlanta Shakespeare Company

Discovered in a treasure-filled parking lot in Leicester, England (next to a pile of bones that didn’t look that important), an ancient manuscript proves to be the long-lost first play written by none other than 17 year-old William Shakespeare from Stratford. William Shakespeare’s Long Lost First Play (abridged) is the literary holy grail: an actual manuscript in Shakespeare’s own hand showing all his most famous characters and familiar speeches in a brand-new story. But because it’s one hundred hours long and contains multiple unwieldy storylines, it was decided, as a public service, to abridge it down to a brief and palatable 90-minute performance for this lost masterpiece. Performs August 2 through 17. A crossover between Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice and The Tragedy of Othello, The Venetians—winner of ASC’s 2023 Muse of Fire Playwriting Contest—uses two classical outsiders to ask questions about immigration, assimilation, national identity, and what acceptance truly means. Performs August 23 through September 7.

Baltimore Shakespeare Factory

Baltimore Shakespeare Factory recreates, as closely as is possible within a modern context, the staging conditions, spirit, and atmosphere created by Shakespeare’s theater company during the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods. Experience Hamlet as it might have been done in Shakespeare’s time. “And now how abhorred in my imagination it is!” Performances August 1–17.

Chesapeake Shakespeare Company

CSC’s Shakespeare Wagon is touring Baltimore and Maryland neighborhoods with It’s the Comedy of Errors, Hon! Founding Artistic Director Ian Gallanar’s Baltimore-inspired twist features local landmarks and hilarious personalities, making this a wildly hilarious evening of theater that could only come from Charm City. The free outdoor performances are part of CSC’s Shakespeare Beyond initiative to bring the arts to everyone in Maryland. Through August 10.

Chicago Shakespeare Theater

Billie Jean, the world premiere of an electrifying new play about Billie Jean King by Lauren Gunderson, follows her path to becoming a sports icon. From her record-breaking victories to her relentless fight for equal pay and equal rights, Billie Jean explores the cost of public battles and private struggles—bringing us closer than ever before to a woman whose battle for identity and equality inspired and continues to inspire generations. On stage July 18 through August 10. Shakes in the City returns with a free, fun-for-all-ages Midsummer Night’s Dream. Performing in parks across Chicago through August 17.

Cincinnati Shakespeare Company

It’s Opening Night at the Cornley Drama Society’s newest production, The Murder at Haversham Manor, and the stakes have never been higher. But none of the on-stage drama is in the script! The Play That Goes Wrong is back and the age-old adage is true: “the show must go wrong!” oops sorry, we mean “the show must go on!” Through August 10. Bring the whole family and enjoy Shakespeare’s beloved comedy, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, for free with Shakespeare in the Park on tour this summer in Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky. Through August 31.

Classic Theatre of Maryland

In Moliere’s outrageous comedy, The Imaginary Invalid, Argan, a wealthy man and hypochondriac, wishes to marry off his daughter Angélique to a doctor. His daughter refuses to obey, she is given four days to agree or become a nun, and the entire household comedically attempts to change her father’s mind. Performing Tuesdays in the outdoor courtyard at Reynolds Tavern in Annapolis. Through August 26.

Colorado Shakespeare Festival

While the Mary Rippon Outdoor Theatre is being renovated, this summer’s productions perform indoors in the Roe Green Theatre on the CU Boulder campus. Magic, romance and intrigue swirl on the exiled Prospera’s island when she summons a storm to take vengeance on her betrayers in The Tempest. As her ethereal servant Ariel thwarts the vengeful schemes of the enslaved ‘monster’ Caliban, her usurper’s son falls in love with her daughter, the innocent Miranda. Richard II, the first chapter of Shakespeare’s four-part “game of thrones,” examines issues critical to contemporary politics, from the embrace of autocracy, the power of wealth, and whether a nation divided can stand. Performances through August 10.

Commonwealth Shakespeare Company

Free Shakespeare is back on Boston Common with this summer’s production of As You Like It. After her father’s kingdom is seized by his power-hungry brother, Rosalind and her cousin Celia flee in disguise, seeking refuge in the Forest of Arden where they find new freedom and wisdom about love, family, community, and acceptance. Shakespeare’s lush romantic comedy celebrates the joys and follies of human nature and the beauty of creating one’s own sanctuary, even in the face of great tyranny. Performances through August 10.

Door Shakespeare

Door Shakespeare’s 30th anniversary season features two tales of transformation, redemption, and the long, winding river toward truth and belonging. In Twelfth Night, mistaken identity and misplaced affection give way to laughter, love, and revelation. In Gale Childs Daly’s adaptation of Great Expectations, Dickens’s characters navigate heartbreak and hope in a harsh and wondrous world. Though penned centuries apart, these stories share a belief in transformation, in second chances, and in the mysterious ways life can surprise us. Performances through August 16.

Gamut Theatre Group

With a loving nod to 80s movies, the Popcorn Hat Players take on Hans Christian Anderson’s beloved tale, The Ugly Duckling. It’s Duckie’s first day at a new school, and he doesn’t know where he fits in. With the help of some of his new classmates, Duckie learns that the best way to make new friends is by being kind and being yourself! Through August 16. The TMI Improv Comedy Troupe monthly show this summer—“Fun in the Sun”—is a unique experience, with the audience playing a major role building the scenes! August 1.

Houston Shakespeare Festival

In Henry V, a young king boldly claims the French throne and rises to take his place in history. From the trenches of the battlefield to the royal courts of France, King Henry faces impossible odds on his ambitious quest to become a true leader. Performs July 31, August 2, 4, 6, & 8. The search for true love takes Rosalind and Orlando on separate journeys into the enchanting Forest of Arden in As You Like It. In the woods, each seeks refuge and adventure only to discover a wonderous world of wit, friendship, transformation, and imagination. Performs August 1,5, 7, & 9.

Hudson Valley Shakespeare

From the author of Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 comes a hauntingly original new musical about the search for human connection in the digital age. Featuring rich harmonies and intricate vocal arrangements, Octet finds compelling human drama in our middle-of-the-night anxieties about the impact of technology on the nature of our relationships. The HVS production is the first to follow the original Off-Broadway version, which won the 2020 Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding New Musical. On stage August 11 through September 7.

Idaho Shakespeare Festival

Jeffrey Hatcher’s new version of the celebrated murder mystery that inspired Hitchcock’s masterpiece! Tony is convinced that his wife Margot has been cheating on him. Now it seems that the affair is over, but in his jealousy Tony spins a web of suspicion and deception that will tighten around them and ensnare them both in danger, recrimination, and murder. The New York Times called Dial M for Murder “a cat-and-mouse waiting game, with enough twists and sudden hitches to keep the chills and thrills running.” Performances August 8–30.

Nashville Shakespeare Festival

When the ever-scheming Sir John Falstaff tries to cure his money troubles by seducing the wives of two wealthy merchants, he doesn’t count on Mistress Page and Mistress Ford comparing notes—and plotting their hilarious revenge in The Merry Wives of Windsor. Packed with disguises, surprises, and plenty of antics, this Shakespearean comedy celebrates marriage, playful revenge, and the everlasting friendship between two brilliant women who refuse to be fooled. Performs August 21 through September 21.

The Old Globe

Noises Off continues performances through August 10. Outdoors at the Summer Shakespeare Festival, merriment and mayhem come to life in Shakespeare’s uproarious comedy, The Comedy of Errors, last produced at The Old Globe in 2015. Immediately after arriving in a new town, a young man and his sidekick are mistaken for their own long-lost twins, and everyone’s lives are turned upside down as mistaken identities, confused lovers, and all kinds of shenanigans ensue. Globe Resident Artist James Vásquez returns after directing 2023’s knockout comic hit The Merry Wives of Windsor. On stage through August 24. In psychological thriller Deceived, based on the classic play Gaslight, Bella Manningham’s new husband seems the doting partner, but when she sees the gaslights dim and he claims they have not, she begins to suspect the strange occurrences aren’t just in her head. Johnna Wright and Patty Jamieson’s exhilarating new adaptation of the beloved mystery, directed by Globe Resident Artist Delicia Turner Sonnenberg, blows the dust off a classic, and is “a very satisfying piece of theatrical reinvention” (Toronto Star). Performances August 9 through September 7.

Oregon Shakespeare Festival

OSF’s 90th season welcomes a new production to the rep: Karen Zacarías’s Shane, a culturally authentic adaptation of the 1947 Western novel that still manages to challenge commonly held ideas (and ideals) about the American West, beginning July 31. It joins productions of Into the Woods, one of OSF’s most successful productions, through October 11; The Merry Wives of Windsor, Shakespeare’s domestic comedy, is an evening of food, dancing, and dirty laundry, through October 12; Octavio Solis’s Quixote Nuevo, a highly theatrical work infusing Tejano culture and vibrant music into a modern comic adaptation of the Spanish novel Don Quixote, through October 24; a song-filled, 1960s-infused production of the Shakespearean comedy As You Like It and Oscar Wilde’s witty comedy, The Importance of Being Earnest, is transplanted to the Malay Peninsula, both through October 25; Shakespeare’s famed political thriller, Julius Caesar, features a bold all-female and nonbinary cast illuminating ancient themes of power, loyalty, and betrayal, through October 26.

San Francisco Shakespeare Festival

In The Two Gentlemen of Verona, two young men journey from a small Midwestern town to California, where dreams are made and shattered in equal measure. The two friends who venture westward confront their inner conflicts as they are seduced by the possibilities of love, success and reinvention. Grounded in the spirit of exploration, this adaptation captures the quintessential drive for self invention, while acknowledging the costs that often accompany it. The 43rd season of Free Shakespeare in the Park performs through September 21.

Seattle Shakespeare Company

Wooden O 2025, free summer performances from Seattle Shakespeare and ACT Contemporary Theatre, is performing As You Like It. The production is touring parks throughout the Puget Sound, including Luther Burbank Park, Mercer Island; Columbia City Park, Seattle; and Volunteer Park, Seattle; and many others. Performances through August 17.

Shakespeare Notre Dame

In celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival (NDSF), the professional theater in residence at the University of Notre Dame, the theater is presenting the first Professional Company production of King Lear. As an aging king seeks to divide his kingdom amongst his three daughters, the forces of jealousy, blindness, and madness threaten his reign—and the future of not just his country, but his family. Performances August 19–31.

Southwest Shakespeare Company

A special engagement, limited-run remount of Southwest Shakespeare’s hit production of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice is performing at Scottsdale’s Theatre Artists Studio for one weekend only! How far would you go to uphold your values and seek justice? Witness the complex interplay between Shylock, Antonio, and Portia as they navigate a world of contractual obligations and moral dilemmas. The lines between justice and revenge blur as this production challenges audiences to reflect on their own beliefs and the lengths they would go to defend them. Performances August 8–10.

SPARC Theater

This summer’s production blends laughter, wit, and the charm of Sir John Falstaff and The Merry Wives of Windsor. Shakespeare’s rollicking comedy follows the misadventures of the infamous Sir John Falstaff as he attempts to woo two wealthy women at the same time—only to be outwitted at every turn. Packed with clever schemes, hilarious disguises, and plenty of comeuppance. Performing indoors at Danville’s Village Theatre August 8 through 24.

St. Louis Shakespeare Festival

Have you ever wondered what happens when the Zoo closes and the keepers go home for the night? What if the animals put on their very own Shakespearean performance?! This family-friendly stage adaptation produced exclusively for the Saint Louis Zoo, in partnership with the St. Louis Shakespeare Festival, features dazzling animal puppetry by world-renowned Michael Curry Design (Broadway’s The Lion King and Frozen along with Olympic and Super Bowl ceremonies). Adapted from the award-winning graphic novel The Stratford Zoo Midnight Revue Presents Romeo and Juliet by Ian Lendler, Romeo & Zooliet tells the story of animals mounting their own production of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, with the Montagues herbivores and the Capulets carnivores. Can Romeo, a prairie dog, and Juliet, a grizzly bear, cross the biological divide and become best friends? Performances at the Saint Louis Zoo through August 17. Plus A Midsummer Night’s Dream on tour to public parks in Missouri and Illinois August 19 through September 14.

Utah Shakespeare Festival

The Utah Shakespeare Festival’s 64th season productions include: Shakespeare’s dark and tragic Macbeth, the historical romance Antony and Cleopatra, and the pastoral comedy As You Like It in the outdoor Engelstad Shakespeare Theatre, and in the indoor Randall L. Jones Theatre, Steel Magnolias by Robert Harling, the Tony Award-winning musical comedy A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder by Steven Lutvak and Robert L. Freedman, and the Victorian satire The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde. In the intimate Anes Studio Theatre, patrons can enjoy the World War II love story Ken Ludwig’s Dear Jack, Dear Louise, and two new plays––Tony Manzo’s Affairs of State and Lauren M. Gunderson’s Muse of Fire––for the annual Words Cubed staged reading new play program during August. Outdoor performances close September 4–6 with indoor performances continuing through October 3–4.

Theatricum

The 2025 Summer Repertory Season, described as A Season of Resilience following the Palisades Fire, includes: Much Ado About Nothing (through September 13) and the return of Theatricum’s signature production, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (through September 15), along with Strife (through October 4), in which Nobel Prize-winning writer and activist John Galsworthy shows every point of view in 1890s Pennsylvania as the corporation and workers consider untenable options, and The Seagull: Malibu, Retold by Ellen Geer from The Seagull by Anton Chekhov (through October 5), an evocative retelling of Anton Chekhov’s The Seagull transported to 1970s Malibu, California. Opening this month: Wine in the Wilderness by Alice Childress (August 9 through October 12), in which an artist is painting a triptych, seeking to capture the essence of Black womanhood in a painting, when he meets a vibrant young woman who challenges his ideals and exposes the complexities of identity, class, and the sexism embedded in his perceptions.

Alabama Shakespeare Festival, American Players Theatre, Atlanta Shakespeare Company, Baltimore Shakespeare Factory, Chesapeake Shakespeare Company, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, Classic Theatre of Maryland, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Commonwealth Theatre Company, Door Shakespeare, Folger Theatre, Gamut Theatre Group, Houston Shakespeare Festival, Hudson Valley Shakespeare, Idaho Shakespeare Festival, Illinois Shakespeare Festival, Nashville Shakespeare Festival, The Old Globe, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, Seattle Shakespeare Company, Shakespeare Notre Dame, Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, Southwest Shakespeare Company, SPARC Theater, St. Louis Shakespeare Festival, Utah Shakespeare Festival, and Theatricum are members of the Folger’s Theater Partnership Program.