Shakespeare Festival

In the fall of 1993 Ron Gural, Buzz Podewell, Paul Schierhorn, and Jeanne Button (all members of the Tulane University Theatre & Dance faculty) decide to fill a void in the New Orleans summer theatre scene with the creation of the Tulane Summer Shakespeare Festival. The festival quickly proved to be a success story that continues a decade and a half after its creation.

Over the past seasons, nearly all of the Great Bard’s 37 plays have been performed onstage during the Shakespeare Festival at Tulane in one form or another. Each season typically consists of two full mainstage productions, an intern production and staged readings of some of the works of Shakespeare. Staged readings are often creative interpretations of Shakespeare’s works with a modern twist. Shakespearean productions are also taken to schools in the greater New Orleans area to give the next generation an exposure to theatrical classics that have survived for more than 400 years.

All summer performances are staged in Lupin Theatre on the Tulane University campus, located in Uptown New Orleans, on St. Charles Avenue opposite Audubon Park. Typically, twelve performances are given of each mainstage production and two staged readings are held in McWilliams Hall.

Mainstage performances are held on Thursday and Friday nights and Sunday matinees. There is an admission charge and fulltime students are eligible for discounts. For more information call the box office at 504-865-5105 ext. 2 or contact them by e-mail at box@tulane.edu. The web address is www.neworleansshakespeare.com.