New York City’s annual symbol of summertime – Free Shakespeare in the Park – will return from its Covid hiatus in July, the Public Theater has announced.
“We have spent the last year getting ready,” the theater posted on its website to announce the upcoming production of Merry Wives, described by the Public as Jocelyn Bioh’s “fresh and joyous adaptation” Merry Wives of Windsor. The production will be directed by the Public’s Associate Artistic Director and Resident Director Saheem Ali.
The production will begin July 6 at the Public’s Delacorte Theater in Central Park, and continue through August 29. All performances are free.
Shakespeare in the Park, like other New York cultural gatherings and institutions, was closed last summer due to the Covid-19 pandemic. (The photo above is from Shakespeare in the Park’s Twelfth Night, 2018.)
The theater company said the reopening was planned In partnership with city officials, health and safety experts, and theatrical unions. Information on performance schedules, safety protocols, and free ticket distribution details will be announced over the next several weeks.
Merry Wives is set in South Harlem amidst a vibrant and eclectic community of West African immigrants, and is described by the Public as “a celebration of Black joy, laughter, and vitality. A New York story about the tricks of the heart, performed in the heart of the City.”