Mainstage: A Midsummer Night’s Dream

July 6-16, 2023

We are proud to kick off our inaugural season of the Wisconsin Shakespeare Festival with a spectacular production of William Shakespeare’s beloved comedy “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

Featuring a cast of local and professional actors, performers come together to tell this comedic love story filled with celebrations, manipulation, and a trickster fairy named Puck.

Get your tickets               Digital Playbill

Improbable Fiction: A New Works Productions

July 28-29, 2023

Join us and see the world premiere performances of three original works!

Playwrights from around the region, the country, and even the world have been invited to submit new works in one of three categories: Young Voices (for playwrights ages 16-24), Diverse Perspectives (for BIPOC playwrights), and Shakes-pired (for pieces inspired by, derived from, or an homage to Shakespeare, his plan and/or his characters).
This year's winning one-act plays are:
  • Young Voices - "A Disorderly House" by Sam Lee Victor (NJ)
  • Diverse Perspectives - "He's the First" by Phillip Gregory Burke (NY)
  • Shakes-pired - "The Fool of Elisnore" by Michael Waterson (CA)
Each play will be workshopped by a director, dramaturg, stage manager, and actors, and will be performed onstage. Following the performances, join us for a reception and discussion with the artistic teams.

Merely Players - Young Performers Troupe

NEW: See the troupe of Merely Players at the Northern Wisconsin State Fair on Wednesday July 12 from 3:30 - 6 p.m.

Check back soon for more performance dates

Our troupe of young players cordially invite you to join them for a performance! This group will explore avenues of bringing Shakespeare-inspired art to the Chippewa Valley while also gaining valuable experience and professional mentorship. This year's troupe has written two original pieces to be performed around town for young audiences at daycares, libraries, and public spaces.

Join us for our performances at the Northern Wisconsin State Fair on Wednesday, July 12 - we will perform on the WEAU stage at both 3:30 PM and 6:00 PM!

In our premiere season, the Players will be tasked with three primary objectives:
  • Developing and touring an adaptation of Shakespeare for young audiences
  • Producing a “Late Night Shakes” series aimed at young adult audiences
  • Acting as ambassadors to our local community through preshow “opening act” and around-town scene performances
The troupe will be facilitated by an “artist-mentor,” who will work alongside the young performers and guide them in their self-directed summer experience. Check back soon for the performance schedule!

ECCT: Something Rotten

June 8-11, 2023

Welcome to the Renaissance and the outrageous, crowd-pleasing musical farce, Something Rotten. Two brothers set out to write the world’s first musical in this hilarious mash-up of sixteenth-century Shakespeare and twenty-first-century Broadway, brought to you by local community theatre, the Eau Claire Children’s Theatre.