illinois shakespeare festival

What a wonderful experience! The garden and castle at Ewing Manor are beautiful and the productions are superb!

Record snow depths and ice in February 2013 made me long for warm weather, sunlight, and outdoor activities. A Google search pointed me toward the Illinois Shakespeare Festival. The plays appeared to be interesting, the area offered other entertainment, and it was drivable from Indianapolis. Score!This was one of the best long weekend trips I've ever had, and the festival was the highlight. The three plays were connected: "As You Like It" ended as "Elizabeth Rex" opened, with the same players coming onstage in the same costumes. William Shakespeare was writing "Antony and Cleopatra" during "Elizabeth Rex," so he was influenced by the behavior of Queen Elizabeth and the stage players while he wrote A&C. A unique backstage tour offered more highlights about the costumes, staging, and weapons that illustrated even more connections among the three plays. Actors projected appropriately, as no microphones or electronic devices were used to enhance the sound. Yet this added to my enjoyment of the overall experience.Two of the plays were presented in the open air theater, while the afternoon play was in air conditioned comfort on the campus. These venues added to my enjoyment of the entertainment, but the high quality of the acting made the festival offerings unique. Most of the players were equity or in the process of achieving equity, and many serve as theater professors."Bad Tattoo" was a laugh-a-minute improv before one of the plays. This one-time only "play" used structures and themes used by The Bard, including an opening monologue, mixed-up identities, and love/revenge, to create an energetic and highly entertaining slice of theater.Live jazz serenaded everyone before the evening events, and it was a good time for picnicking on the lawn or in the gardens. A limited selection of food and drink were available for purchase, but bring-your-own was the most common choice for pre-show noshing.No young children were present during the festival. I'm uncertain if the festival has a policy, but this event was something younger children would probably not enjoy. School age children would enjoy the festival if they have an interest in literature or theater.

Ewing Manor was once a private home. At some point it became part of Illinois State University, which built an outdoor round theater where each summer the Illinois Shakespeare Festival is held. This summer there are two plays by Shakespeare: "Antony and Cleopatra" and "Much Ado About Nothing". The third option is "Elizabeth Rex" by Timothy Findlay. Weather permitting the shows are performed in the outdoor round theater, somewhat similar to how they were performed in Shakespeare's time. The theater is very small and does have seating - because it is so small there are really no bad seats. Before the show, there is the occasional music performance in the courtyard of the manor. There is a small gift shop which has an extremely limited selection of drinks. An extensive lawn and gardens behind the manor provide a beautiful setting to have a picnic - and it is permitted to bring along alcoholic beverages. Some portion of the cast of each show is professional. I have been to several of the plays over the years and the acting is always superb. It is a great place to experience live Shakespeare at a reasonable cost. Even my teenage son enjoys the experience - perhaps because shorts and flip-flops are acceptable attire.No photos or glass bottles are permitted inside the theater.