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Tickets for Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival will go on sale April 8, kicking off the 24th season of Vancouver’s signature summer theatre festival. The red and white tents in Vanier Park will be home to four varied and entertaining productions from June 12 to September 14.
 
Two productions will headline the BMO Mainstage. First up is the playful romantic comedy Twelfth Night, directed by Dennis Garnhum (Artistic Director, Theatre Calgary). Playing in repertory with Twelfth Night will be the iconic Shakespearean tragedy, Hamlet, directed by Kim Collier (co-founder, Electric Theatre Company). 

[Measure for Measure]

In the intimate 240-seat Douglas Campbell Studio Stage tent, Vancouver’s John Murphy will direct an early jazz-era version of the dark comedy, Measure for Measure, while Rachel Ditor, a Vancouver director and dramaturg, will helm Canadian playwright Timothy Findley’s award-winning Elizabeth Rex, playing in repertory with Measure for Measure.

[Twelfth Night]
 
Bard’s 2013 productions will showcase three of Shakespeare’s most revered and popular plays, complemented by a Canadian play set in Shakespeare’s era. Twelfth Night brings romance and intrigue, as everyone at Europe’s What You Will Hotel and Spa seems to be falling in love with the wrong person.

In the great tragedy Hamlet, a troubled young man tries to make sense of a modern-day world where power still corrupts absolutely.

In Measure For Measure, set in early-1900’s New Orleans, live jazz will play a starring role.

[Elizabeth Rex]

Elizabeth Rex takes place in Elizabethan England, as the great Queen meets up with Shakespeare’s acting company the night before her traitorous lover is due to be executed.

According to Bard Artistic Director Christopher Gaze, “Vancouver audiences have told us they want to see us produce some non-Shakespearean works that complement his world and his themes; Elizabeth Rex fits that description perfectly.”
 
Run dates and special events:
– Twelfth Night: June 12 to September 14 (BMO Mainstage)/Opening Night June 26
– Hamlet: June 13 to September 12 (BMO Mainstage)/Opening Night June 29
– Measure For Measure: July 3 to September 13 (Studio Stage)/Opening Night July 11
– Elizabeth Rex: July 5 to September 11 (Studio Stage)/Opening Night July 14
– Bard Explored: Lecture Series: July 15, 29, August 12, 19
– Bard Explored: Shakespeare’s Rebel: Book launch and sword fight/July 22
– Bard-B-Q & Fireworks: Play plus sit-down salmon barbecue & fireworks viewing/July 27, 31, August 3
– Celebrating Red & White: Wine tasting following matinee performances and before evening shows/August 17
– Viva Verdi! (Opera & Arias): UBC Opera Ensemble & members of Vancouver Opera Orchestra, hosted by Christopher Gaze/August 26, September 2
 
Bard on the Beach is Western Canada’s largest professional Shakespeare company, headed by Artistic Director Christopher Gaze. Each season, four productions are staged on the waterfront against a stunning backdrop of mountains, sea, and sky.
 
Ticket prices include all fees and taxes and are $43 (evenings), $25 to $30 (previews, matinees, and long weekend evenings) and $25 for youth 6-25 years (all performances).

Early bird pricing offers a $40 regular adult ticket until May 31. Prices for special events, groups, and multi-play ticket package discounts can be found on the Bard website. Visit the Bard on the Beach website for performance schedule and information.

All photos by David Cooper.