This season is all about returning favorites — A Christmas Carol, The Phantom of the Opear and Shakespeare!?! While Romeo and Juliet isn’t on the season lineup, it returns — for free — as part of DCPA Education’s Shakespeare in the Parking Lot program.

What started as a performance and workshop series for middle and high school students has expanded to community centers, parks and libraries. Plus, in addition to the well-known balcony scene between two star-crossed lovers, the repertoire now includes abridged productions of t20 Shakespearean classics – Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Throughout April and May, the Shakespeare in the Parking Lot acting troupe loads up a pickup truck and heads out to schools, libraries, and community centers. More than 14,000 students and community members enjoy the free performances each year. Additionally, the troupe facilitates in-class workshops that use elements of the plays to connect the students to situations they face each day — peer pressure, privacy, parental responsibility, friendship and loyalty.

Please visit our website for free performances taking place throughout our community. This program is made possible through the generous support of the Morgridge Family Foundation and is part of Shakespeare in American Communities, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.