Shakespeare in the Park

About the Festival

Inspiring Social Change

Southern Shakespeare Company’s FREE Shakespeare in the Park Festival has been a downtown Tallahassee tradition at Cascades Park since 2015.

Each Mother’s Day weekend, the mainstage festival performances play Thursday-Sunday at 7:30 PM and SSC’s junior acting troupe presents an abridged spring play at 5:30 PM on Saturday-Sunday. Food trucks and vendors, merchandise and education booths, and the beautiful al fresco atmosphere make this a great introduction to theatre and a wonderful event to return to each year!

May 9-12, 2024, we are proud to present Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale, a comedy that charts one royal family’s journey of redemption. On May 11-12, The Bardlings will present an abridged version of The Tempest, Shakespeare’s comedy about the foibles and forgiveness of courtiers set adrift on a remote, magical island.

Want to make the most of your festival experience? Check out our FAQ.

Looking for information about our recent and past festival mainstage performances and guest stars? Keep scrolling…!

2024 Guest Artists

Shanara Gabrielle (Director) is a theatre artist working in a wide variety of mediums with a focus on gutsy and inventive theatre for all audiences. Driven by tales of imagination and stories of justice, Shanara fosters new work and reimagines classics with artists of courage and depth. Shanara has worked professionally at theaters across the country, including: Arena Stage, Signature Theatre, Shakespeare Theatre Company, The Guthrie, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Great Lakes Theatre, Northern Stage, Idaho Shakespeare, Imagination Stage, Coterie Theater, Chesapeake Shakespeare, the cell nyc, Goethe Institut, Metropolitan Playhouse, St. Louis Rep, Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival, Stages, Theatre for the New City, Shakespeare Festival St. Louis, Hollywood Playhouse, The Black Rep, Upstream Theater, and many more. Shanara has worked as an Artistic Producer at The Kennedy Center, Arena Stage and Shakespeare Theatre Company, Working In DC and is a proud member of SDC, AEA, and SAG-AFTRA and she loves to connect, so find her at shanaragabrielle.com or IG: @shanaragabrielle
{

The quality of the mainstage SSC festival performances each year matches that of the many Shakespeare productions we’ve watched in much larger cities throughout England and the U.S. Tallahassee doesn’t know how lucky it is!

Dr. Sarah Lebhar Hall
Festival attendee
{

My 19 year old granddaughter was smitten. Days after [the festival] she enthusiastically shared her experience of the evening with a group of youths who claimed “there’s nothing to do in Tallahassee”…Thanks for the encounter!

2021 audience member
festival attendee
{

Thank you THANK YOU for bringing [the festival] back!!! My love of Shakespeare started because of that first [Southern Shakespeare] showing of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Thank you for bringing back one of my loveliest childhood memories.

Brittany Callens
festival attendee
{

The set, the costumes, the actors and their excellent performance throughout the play all contributed to a feast for the eyes and ears. And for those who are hearing impaired, watching the signers convey the message and emotion was a treat!

Penny Davis
festival attendee
{

I’ve seen a LOT of Shakespeare, both community and professional, and this show was hands down one of the best I have ever seen. Don’t miss out!

Rose Bennett
festival attendee

RECENT PRODUCTIONS

The Adderley Amphitheater stage in Cascades Park has been Tallahassee’s home for Shakespeare in the Park since 2015.

Learn more about our production history: click on a show title to view the production’s digital playbill or click on gallery photos to view them in a larger size.

ANTONY & CLEOPATRA

Guest starring two-time Emmy nominee Kelsey Scott and Alec Ruiz, 2023
Photographer: Bob Howard

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING

Guest starring Kevin McDonald of The Kids in the Hall, 2022
Photographer: Bob Howard

TWELFTH NIGHT

Guest starring Hal Sparks of Queer as Folk, 2021
Photographer: Bob Howard

Past Productions

Originally formed in 1995, the Southern Shakespeare Festival was reinvigorated after a fifteen-year hiatus in its new home, Cascades Park. In 2020, there was no production in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Festival Sponsors

Additional Sponsors

Beth & Curt Blair

Minstrels

Terri Carrion

Michael & Judy
Wilson Sheridan

Kelly & Michael Beck

Williams Wayne & Terry

Muses

Chip Chalmers

Laura Glenn & Stephanie Schwartz

Gloria Priest

Jeff Mandel

Janet Hinkle

Laura W. Johnson

Calla MacNamara

Poet

Anonymous

Julie & Scott Carswell

Jessica Lowe-Minor

Mission       Patrons       Board       Staff      Press

Shakespeare in the Park      FAQs      Volunteer       Plan Your Visit
The Bardlings       Classroom Visits       Resources
Auditions       Volunteers       Professionals
Become a Member       Sponsorship       Program Ads      Store