An Evening With Shakespeare

Category: Quick Stops

“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” William Shakespeare wrote in Sonnet 18, and it’s likely the summer’s day he spoke of was similar to the one on which we attended the Illinois Shakespeare Festival at the Ewing Cultural Center in Bloomington-Normal.

We arrived just after 6 p.m., in time to spread out a blanket on the lawn behind the Ewing House and enjoy a picnic. A number of other small groups were scattered about the grounds with snacks and bottles of wine, relishing the weather, the scenery, and the madrigal singers wandering about in period costumes serenading guests with renditions of all manner of traditional English songs.

After dinner, we relaxed on the lawn until the amphitheater doors opened for the play. Then something wicked our way came—in the form of Richard III.

For the next couple of hours, we were drawn into the dramatic story of the jealous brother of King Edward IV, who plotted to kill the king and everyone else who stood in the way of his chance at the crown. Before the evening was over, Richard had assassinated a number of characters much more endearing than himself, including his brother Clarence and a slew of “enemies” that Richard cunningly made out to be his friends until they met their unfortunate end.

The Central Illinois weather was so perfect that evening it was easy to forget we were even outside for the show, aside from the bugs floating in the lights illuminating the stage and the occasional car horn interrupting the dialogue. There isn’t a bad seat in the intimate theater, where you’re so close you can see the actors’ every expression (and even, admittedly, their spit flying through the air—it takes a lot of force to shout out those lyrical lines outdoors for hours on end).

Striking costumes, witty dialogue, dramatic scenes in which Richard’s true nature shows, and eerie glimpses of the characters Richard has killed make for an entertaining evening. And the final, dramatic battle scene in which Richard must atone for his sins? It’s the perfect ending to an intense, albeit enjoyable, evening under the stars.

There’s still time to experience Shakespeare for yourself. Purchase tickets to one of the last shows of the season, before this year’s curtain draws to a close on some of the Bard’s best works.

July 28: Richard III, 7:30 p.m.
July 29: Tempest, 10 a.m. and Scapin, 7:30 p.m. 
July 30: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 7:30 
July 31: Scapin, 8 p.m.
August 1: Tempest, 10 a.m. and Richard III, 8 p.m.
August 2: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 7:30 p.m.
August 4: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 7:30 p.m.
August 5: Tempest, 10 a.m. and Richard III, 7:30 p.m.
August 6: Scapin, 7:30 p.m.
August 7: Richard III, 8 p.m.
August 8: Tempest, 10 a.m. and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 8 p.m.
August 9: Scapin, 7:30 p.m.

Get There
Illinois Shakespeare Festival at the Ewing Cultural Center   
48 Sunset Road
Bloomington, IL 61701-2017
309.438.8974

Photos courtesy of the Illinois Shakespeare Festival

Tags: Quick Stops | Bloomington-Normal | Illinois Shakespeare Festival | Ewing Cultural Center | Theater |

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