Mostly Musical Theatre

10 Reasons you need to get to the Michigan Shakespeare Festival this summer August 9, 2014

With only a couple weekends left, it has come to my attention that some of you have yet to get out to the Michigan Shakespeare Festival this summer…so what are you waiting for? Here are the top 10 reasons you should get out there now, before its over for another season….

1. Shawn Pfautsch in Hamlet

2. Shawn Pfautsch in Hamlet

3. Shawn Pfautsch in Hamlet

4. The superb sparring partners in The Importance of Being Earnest — Joe Lehman and David Blixt are both hilarious, as are Lydia Hiller and Rachel Hull who exude their own merry camaraderie

5. Cymbeline — the rarely produced dramedy is like finding a twenty dollar bill in your pants pocket — you’ve probably never seen it before, and you might not see it again anytime soon…so see it now because it is a magical colorful production.

6. The strong direction of Janice Blixt and Robert Kauzlaric. These folks know what they are doing, and you’ll appreciate the very well edited and clearly focused productions.

7. Its inside!! I can’t believe people still think the Michigan Shakespeare Festival is outside — its not. And its been indoors at Jackson College (nee Jackson Community College) for the past decade…in sumptuous air conditioned bug-free splendor…and next summer it adds three weeks in Canton! So if you are thinking that an evening at the MSF means sitting in a bug-filled Ella Sharp park, then you have waited far too long to go see a show there.

8. MSF is LOA/LORT professional theater — and the quality is superb…and they have Wednesday matinees!!!

9. To count the number of cucumber sandwiches, muffins, and breads that David Blixt consumes over the course of Earnest…and to watch Joe Lehman laugh at him because he doesn’t have to.

10. Because it rivals the Stratford Festival in quality and variety and every season gets stronger and stronger — and its right here in your backyard. I’ve been attending shows at MSF for almost twenty years, and they get better and better each season — they’ve long surpassed my minimal expectations and quite frequently surpass my most stringent expectations.

Presented in Repertoire, you still have the chance to catch:

Saturday Aug 9  – 2:00 Hamlet — 7:30  The Importance of Being Earnest

Sunday Aug 10 –  2:00 Hamlet

Wednesday Aug 13 – 2:00 Hamlet

Thursday Aug 14 – 7:30 Cymbeline

Friday Aug 15 – 7:30 The Importance of Being Earnest (closing)

Saturday Aug 16 – 2:00 Cymbeline (closing) and 7:30 Hamlet

Sunday Aug 17 – 2:00 Hamlet (closing)

Get tickets at http://www.michiganshakespearefestival.com