Illinois Shakespeare Festival


The Illinois Shakespeare Festival is held in Bloomington, Illinois, United States at Ewing Theatre and in Normal, Illinois, United States at the Center for Performing Arts Theatre at Illinois State University. The Festival began in 1978 and will celebrate its 42nd season in the summer of 2019. The Festival usually presents three pieces by "The Bard" as a revolving rep, though occasionally the third piece is from a playwright.
The Festival is produced by the School of Theatre and Dance and the College of Fine Arts at Illinois State University. Performances take place at Ewing Cultural Center on Ewing Theatre, a re-creation Globe Stage complete with open air amphitheater. The Festival markets itself as "theatre under the stars!" Before each nightly performance, the Festival presents a free pre-show entertainment, including live jazz, an abbreviated version of the play to come, or other fun performances. The Ewing Grounds serve as picnicking spots for the audience. The Festival runs from the later part of June through the middle of August. In 2008, The Festival began a fourth show aimed towards younger audiences which is usually performed on Wednesday and Saturday mornings at 10am.

Production History

Unless otherwise noted, the plays are written by William Shakespeare.

1978
  • As You Like It
  • Macbeth
  • Twelfth Night
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
  • Cymbeline
  • King Lear
  • A Midsummer Night's Dream
1986
  • As You Like It
  • Hamlet
  • The Tempest
1987
  • Measure for Measure
  • Romeo and Juliet
  • Twelfth Night
1988
1989
1990
1991
  • Antony and Cleopatra
  • Othello
  • The Taming of the Shrew
1992
  • Macbeth
  • As You Like It
  • The Winter's Tale
1993
  • Richard II
  • Pericles
  • A Midsummer Night's Dream
1994
  • Romeo and Juliet
  • The Two Gentlemen of Verona
  • Henry IV, Part 1
1995
  • Cymbeline
  • Henry IV, Part 2
  • The Comedy of Errors
1996
1997
1998
  • Much Ado About Nothing
  • Measure for Measure
  • The Falcon's Pitch, an adaptation by Jeffrey Sweet of Shakespeare's Henry VI plays
1999
  • The Merry Wives of Windsor
  • Richard III
  • Wild Oats by John O'Keefe
2000
  • The Taming of the Shrew
  • King John
  • The Three Musketeers adapted by Eberle Thomas and Barbara Redmond
2001
  • Love's Labour's Lost
  • Coriolanus
  • Othello
2002
  • Merchant of Venice
  • A Midsummer Night's Dream
  • Romeo and Juliet
2003
2004
2005
  • Macbeth
  • Twelfth Night
  • Henry VIII
2006
  • Julius Caesar
  • Pericles
  • The Comedy of Errors
2007
  • Much Ado About Nothing
  • Henry V
  • Love's Labour's Lost
2008
2009
2010
  • The Tempest
  • The Three Musketeers adapted by Robert Kauzlaric
  • The Merry Wives of Windsor
  • As You Like It
2011
2012
  • As You Like It
  • Othello
  • The Rivals by Richard Brinsley Sheridan
  • The Comedy of Errors
2013
  • The Comedy of Errors
  • Macbeth
  • Failure: A Love Story by Philip Dawkins
  • The Magical Mind of Billy Shakespeare by Kevin Rich
2014
  • Much Ado About Nothing
  • Antony and Cleopatra
  • Elizabeth Rex by Timothy Findley
2015
  • Love's Labours Lost
  • Q Gents — an adaptation of The Two Gentlemen of Verona by The Q Brothers
  • Richard II
  • Love's Labor's Won by Scott Kaiser
2016
  • Hamlet
  • Twelfth Night
  • Peter and the Starcatcher
2017
  • A Midsummer Night's Dream
  • Shakespeare’s Amazing Cymbeline -- adapted by Chris Coleman
  • I Heart Juliet - an adaptation of Romeo and Juliet by The Q Brothers
2018
  • The Merry Wives of Windsor
  • Henry V
  • Shakespeare in Love - adapted for the stage by Lee Hall and based on the screenplay by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard
2019
  • As You Like It - adapted by Robert Quinlan and Jordan Coughtry
  • Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen - adapted by Deanna Jent
  • Caesar - adapted from Julius Caesar by Quetta Carpenter

Such publications as the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times'' have given the Festival positive reviews.