Shakespeare By the Sea

A friend and I saw «A Midsummer Night’s Dream» a few weeks ago during one of the evening shows. I’m new to the city and was eager to see it, my friend lied here for 8 years and couldn’t believe she had never attended a show. It was absolutely amazing. The characters were so committed and captivating, I didn’t stop laughing the entire time I was there. We had pre-​booked the «sweet seats» which come with front row, chair rental, and a bottle of water. It was worth every penny! I have been recommending it to everyone and can’t wait to go back.

I’m sorry it took me living here 5 years and the urging of someone else to finally see a perfomance by this company. We saw the last performance of the season of Much Ado About Nothing.
Shakespeare’s plays are timeless. The themes are as relevant today as when they were first written. The language may be Ye Olde English but, well acted, there should be no confusion. This talented cast of actors make the words come alive.
We thouroughly enjoyed the performance. Loved the outdoor setting. The «Pay-​what-​You-​Can» admission makes it affordable for everyone, I would hope that people do pay what they can so that this group can continue to put on such entertaining shows.
I won’t leave it so long til I make it to another perfomance. Might just have to take in the current performance of Jekyll & Hyde at the indoor theatre.

Continuing my summer of crossing items off my Halifax to-​do list, I booked a couple tickets for my girlfriend and I to see Hamlet at Shakespeare by the Sea.
A great date night event, I took advantage of their new ‘Sweet Seats’ option to reserve seats and get a bottle of water. This definitely beat lugging a camp chair or two on the bus to Point Pleasant, or worse, walking with them the whole way. Booking just a few days in advance gave us some of the best seats in the (outdoor) house, in the front row centre.
Beyond Simpsons parodies, I haven’t had any contact with Hamlet since high school, so it was a nice refresher for a classic, one which was performed marvelously by the whole cast, but especially by Rhys Bevan-​John who played the titular role with great range and skill. I can’t help but be impressed with a live theatre actor’s ability to memorize huge amounts of lines, and all the more so when they’re in a less than familiar form of English, as Shakespeare’s is.
The Cambridge Battery makes for a great stage and set, and although it was a bit windy, it was a beautiful night to watch the show.
If you haven’t gone to SbtS yet, do like me and give it a try, you won’t regret it!

Do yourself a favor and check out a show at Shakespeare By the Sea — you wouldn’t regret it. Always on the hunt for new activities in Halifax, I was definitely on-​board when a friend suggested we check out Alice In Wonderland — What. A. Show!
I’ll start with the actors — very talented, high energy, engaging and clearly passionate about what they do. I wanted to crawl in bed myself after looking at the schedule and realizing that these guys put on about eight shows in one week. The amount of energy they bring to the show is extraordinary! There wasn’t a dull moment in Alice in Wonderland.
The outdoor venue is the coolest part about the experience. Situated within Point Pleasant Park, you couldn’t ask for a cooler stage! The actors are great at projecting their voice and using the whole space. As someone who frequents the Park often, it’s great to see the space getting used for more than just dog walking.
Apparently there were over 350 people at the show the other evening… you definitely couldn’t tell! I guess that’s the great thing about an outdoor venue, you don’t feel crammed in with your neighbor.
My suggestion, grab a friend, grab an ice cream, and take a walk to catch a show. A few tips… 1 — arrive early. We got there 30 minutes before and got great seats — definitely worth a bit of a wait. 2 — don’t park in the waterfront parking lot and walk up the stage. Apparently they close the gates at night and you’re left waiting in the parking lot until someone comes to let you out. Not that that happened to us…

Shakespeare By The Sea is a Halifax classic and one of the many things I love about this city in the summer. What better way to make use of a gorgeous outdoor setting littered with historical forts than to turn them into al fresco stages six days a week?
Yep — that’s right: these hardworking actors put on three shows per season that all run at the same time. One night, they’re a playing card from Alice in Wonderland, the next afternoon they’re a Merry Wife of Windsor, and that evening they’re casualties in Titus Andronicus. So all summer you get to pick from their daily show selection based on exactly what you’re in the mood for. Funny (‘ha ha’), Shakespearean funny (‘a ha!’), or Shakespearean brutality (‘yiiiiiikes’).
But that’s just one small portion of the many beauties that it SBTS. The outdoor auditorium, so to speak, is outfitted with chairs available to rent for the evening ($ 2) in case you don’t feel like lugging you’re own through the park, or you can plop down in the blanket seating area in the front. Whatever you do, bring blankets and sweaters. No matter how warm it is during the day, that ocean breeze cools you down quickly after sunset.
There are port-​a-​potties on site which is to say you should go before you get to the park, there are small concessions sold on site like chips and candy but plenty of people bring there own (no love to the people eating the worst smelling ‘barbecue garlic plague of the earth’ flavoured something or other next to me last night), but other than that, this is all about the performance, baby!
Entrance is cash-​only with a suggested donation of $ 15. Now, a word on this: don’t be a jerk. $ 15 is pretty much what you’d pay to go see a movie at Empire. This is not a movie. This is live theatre and these people work their asses off. If you can afford the $ 15, pay them the $ 15. Or more. They deserve it.

Go.
No seriously, just go.
If its outdoors bring a chair or rent one for $ 2. Or bring a blanket and plop down in front. Bring a cooler with a picnic and man if you didn’t just make for a perfect evening in the park…
If you can see the musical rendition of Alice In Wonderland. The mad hater rap is the high light of the show but considering I loved every freaking second of the entire production the mad hat tea party was icing on an already hilariously made cake!
There are many ways to spend a summer evening but this might just top them all!

Dracula was amazing as well as the other shows in the past. Look forward to more shows in the new year! Great acting by all and the director and production crew obviously are top notch!

How do you review a performance troupe? Each year, there’s a different line-​up with different productions and different direction.
Well, you look for consistency. And SBTS is consistently great! Also consistent: their love for theatre and for Mr. William Shakespeare and all that he can teach us.
I’ve seen numerous of their productions and the cast make the Bard incredibly approachable. They use a variety of tricks and turns to bring the material into relevance for the audience. Whether it’s a knowing wink when they make a current reference or a humorous pause when they wedge in a sponsor’s name, they show that they are on the audience’s side, trying to make the material interesting to them.
The cast and crew also make great use of their surroundings. I’ve even seen them make use of the changing light as the sun sets as a plot point.
My most recent visit was in their new Park Place Theatre, a wholly indoor venue that will allow them to stage productions earlier and later in the season. The space can also be used to stage productions if the weather is poor (and, let’s face it, this is Nova Scotia, there will be lots of poor weather through the summer).
This space also allows them to expand their repertoire. I saw their production of «The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged)» and my chest actually hurt from laughing so hard. Looking forward to being in that space again in October when they do Dracula. Just in time for the build-​up to Halloween!
All in all, a bright spot of Halifax’s performing arts scene.

Prithee, do come and enjoyeth this wondrous display of acting so fair and joyous you most surely shall not be disappointed-​eth.
So while I may not be so hot at speaking the language of the bard, I can appreciate his work for what it is, and the way it is portrayed by the people at Shakespeare by the Sea (who do an excellent job of bringing his plays to life).
They usually offer two of his plays each year (and often a non-​Shakespearean performance for children… one year it was a wild west version of Cinderella), during the months of July and August. The performances take place at Point Pleasant Park (the location within the park can change from year to year).
There is a suggested donation of $ 15, which if you consider the time and effort that the members of this theatre company put into all aspects of their productions, isn’t a lot to pay.
Forsooth, goeth and haveth some fun-​eth. Uh oh, I don’t thinketh I can stop talking this way. Eth.

Shakespeare by the Sea offers theatrics that mixes Old Style sensibility with fresh flare. Its a company that has entertained Halifax for years now, and has since built a pretty solid reputation for its high caliber performances and well fused antics.
Summertime is more than sunshine, as folks can purchase tickets and enjoy a nice outdoor viewing at the Prince of Wales Tower in Point Pleasant Park.
Its a lovely way to spend an afternoon, and why not instill some literary framework into your tan-​time. The idea has been around since 1994, and tickets are decently priced at $ 15 a head. Why not try something different on your next warm day? Shakespeare by the Sea is a fair option.

‘Shakespeare by the Sea’ is a little theater company operating out of Point Pleasant Park. The board of directors and extensive list of actors and volunteers work to present «accessible, informative, spicy, edgy, thought-​provoking productions of the works of William Shakespeare and compatible family classics that sheds new light on an old story.» (Elizabeth Murphy, Founder and Artistic Director)
The plays take place at the Cambridge Battery in Point Pleasant Park and are well worth a look next summer!
Since ‘Shakespeare by the Sea’ was initially founded in 1994, they have produced and performed works such as Twelfth Night, Taming of the Shrew, King Lear, Othello and Cinderelly.