Bard on the Beach returns for 35th season from June 11 to September 21 in Vanier Park

Diana Donnelly’s take on Twelfth Night opens the season, which also features Hamlet, The Comedy of Errors, and Measure for Measure

SPONSORED POST BY Bard on the Beach

Aidan Correia (left) and Camille Legg in Twelfth Night. Photo by Emily Cooper

The 2024 Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival returns to Sen̓áḵw/Vanier Park in Vancouver from June 11 to September 21. There’s something for everyone at the festival’s 35th season, which features a blend of comedy, romance, tragedy, and farce.

On the BMO Mainstage, the season takes off with a new production of Twelfth Night. Director Diana Donnelly celebrates a topsy-turvy carnival world packed with romance and laughs, adventure and self-discovery, set to original music by beloved Vancouver singer- songwriter Veda Hille. It plays in repertory with a contemporary setting of Hamlet, Shakespeare’s classic tale of vengeance, love, and loss. The play is adapted and directed by Stephen Drover, who invites audiences to consider the blurry lines around loyalty, self, and all the things that are in heaven and earth. Mainstage productions run from June 8 to September 21.

Nadeem Phillip Umar Khitab in Hamlet. Photo by Emily Cooper

Karthik Kadam in Measure for Measure. Photo by Emily Cooper

The Howard Family Stage will host two productions from July 2 to September 21. Directed and adapted by Rebecca Northan (Goblin:Macbeth), The Comedy of Errors takes its laughs seriously—deadly seriously. Wear your best bedsheet as a toga to this hilarious slapstick saga of mistaken identity and marital strife. It plays in repertory with Jivesh Parasram’s footloose adaptation of Measure for Measure, set in a contemporary Vienna where the party never stops—until now. Shakespeare’s tale of coercion and hypocrisy reaches absurdist new heights as premarital… dancing is outlawed.

There are also a number of special events on offer at this year’s festival. Among them is the crowd-pleasing Bard Fireworks Nights, where patrons enjoy a performance of Twelfth Night or The Comedy of Errors followed by a dessert buffet and spectacular views of the Celebration of Light. Fireworks evenings are July 20, 24, and 27.

Wine enthusiasts can enjoy Wine Wednesdays before one of three performances throughout the season, on June 26, July 10, and August 14. Plus, Bard Pride Day returns for its second year, with early site access for celebratory Pride activities on August 4.

Tickets for the 34th season go on sale April 10. A full schedule of shows and special events can be found at Bard on the Beach.

Post sponsored by Bard on the Beach.

Synthia Yusuf (centre) and Tal Schulman in The Comedy of Errors. Photo by Emily Cooper