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 The
Shaw Festival was started in 1962 by Niagara-area lawyer and playwright Brian
Doherty. During the summer, Mr. Doherty organized eight weekend performances of Don
Juan in Hell and Candida by Bernard Shaw under the title "Salute to
Shaw". For this event, the Assembly Room in the historic Court House on Queen
Street was converted into a small theatre.The
following year, the Shaw Festival Theatre
Foundation was established as a non-profit organization, with an elected volunteer Board
of Governors whose mandate was to produce the dramatic works of Bernard Shaw and his
contemporaries.
This year productions includes:
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| Other theatre
productions, click here. |
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| Studio
Theatre |
 July 31 to September 12
Serious Money
by Caryl Churchill, directed by Eda Holmes
Serious Money takes a look at the London Stock Market in the 1980s, a place that was like
the new Wild West – a land of corporate raiders and stock traders created by a
financial boom that seemed to have no end. The Shaw Festival is proud to present this
no-holds barred look at corporate greed and financial excess – Caryl Churchill at her
most provocative and penetrating. And all in rhyming verse!
(Strong language) |
| Festival
Theatre |
 April 9 to October 31
An Ideal Husband
by Oscar Wilde, directed by Jackie Maxwell
In An Ideal Husband, by Oscar Wilde, fate catches up to Government Minister Sir Robert
Chiltern when a mysterious woman produces a letter which reveals a past misdeed and a
choice must be made between public scandal and the private shame of his wife. This Oscar
Wilde work is a perfect mix of Wilde wit and intrigue. The Shaw Festival Theatre presents
the social satire written by Oscar Wilde during his time at Goring on Thames. With An
Ideal Husband, Oscar Wilde wanted to ensure he would enjoy public fame, and he was an
advocate of making plays accessible to the public. Patrons of the Shaw Festival theatre in
Niagara will love this adaptation of a comedic classic by Oscar Wilde. |
|
 May
12 to October 9
The Women
by Clare Boothe Luce, directed by Alisa Palmer
Welcome to a secret society – the world of women. In The Women, a 1930s Broadway hit
by Clare Boothe Luce, a Manhattan socialite finds out her husband is cheating on her, and
her girlfriends are no help at all. With manicured claws, these women are fighting to
maintain their status while scheming to leave, steal or win back their own husbands. This
classic play captures a world that only half the population ever really gets to see. A
revealing look into the lives of the ladies-who-lunch that is clever, cut-throat and full
of outrageous humour. |
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 June 10 to October 30
The Doctor’s Dilemma
by Bernard Shaw, directed by Morris Panych
A doctor who has discovered a lifesaving cure must make an impossible decision. Who should
he treat: a kindly colleague who serves the poor, or an extremely talented but
unscrupulous young artist, who also happens to have a beautiful young wife? When
there’s only room for one more, who can he afford to save? The Doctor’s Dilemma
is Bernard Shaw’s comic exploration of the medical establishment and the value of
art. |
| Royal
George Theatre |
 April 1
to October 31
Harvey
by Mary Chase, directed by Joseph Ziegler
Everyone wants to meet Elwood Dowd and his friend Harvey. When they enter a room,
strangers soon become friends and people want to share a drink with them. But Harvey is a
six-foot invisible rabbit and Elwood’s sister wants him gone. The question is –
does the world need another "normal" chap, or more Harveys? A new look at this
Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Mary Chase, made famous by Jimmy Stewart’s portrayal
of the loveable Elwood Dowd in the 1950 film . |
|
 June
18 to October 9
John Bull’s Other Island
by Bernard Shaw, directed by Christopher Newton
The Shaw Festival in Niagara presents John Bull’s Other Island – a comedy by
Bernard Shaw in which friends and business partners Broadbent and Doyle travel to a small
town in Ireland with a business deal in mind. The Englishman, Broadbent, falls in love
with everything about the place, including Nora Reilly, Doyle’s old flame. Doyle, the
hometown boy, only sees a country trapped in its past. Shaw’s unromantic look at the
romance of Ireland, and a play so funny that at a royal command performance, King Edward
VII laughed so hard he broke his chair. |
|
 July 23 to October 10
Age of Arousal
by Linda Griffiths
Wildly inspired by The Odd Women by George Gissing
directed by Jackie Maxwell
It’s 1885 in Age of Arousal, and in London there are half a million more women than
men. Mary, an ex-suffragette, has opened a secretarial school for women to teach
liberation through typing. When three sisters sign up, unexpected passions and secret
desires are unleashed as they each learn what being a New Woman can truly mean. A
contemporary look at the Shaw Festival mandate by an award-winning writer.
(Strong sexual content) |
| Court
House Theatre |
 April 20 to October 2
The Cherry Orchard
by Anton Chekhov, adapted by Tom Murphy,
directed by Jason Byrne
In The Cherry Orchard, Anton Chekhov tells the tale of an aristocratic family whose way of
life seems to be disappearing, and with it, their beloved cherry orchard. On the verge of
financial collapse, will they finally make the decision to sell their land to make way for
holiday cottages? Or will they remain in blissful denial of the unstoppable nature of
progress? This adaptation of The Cherry Orchard by one of Ireland’s leading
contemporary playwrights, maintains all the power of this Russian classic, with an Irish
twist. |
|
 May 16 to October 10
One Touch of Venus
Music by Kurt Weill, Lyrics by Ogden Nash
Book by Ogden Nash and S.J. Perelman,
directed by Eda Holmes
The ancient goddess of love visits Manhattan in this musical fantasy. A modern art
collector brings a statue of Venus to town. Through the magic of a ring, Venus comes to
life, falls for a barber named Hatch and chases him all over New York. But will this wild
woman allow herself to be tamed? A comic caper from the pen of the Marx Brothers’
writer S.J. Perelman and New Yorker poet Ogden Nash, with classic Weill songs like
“Speak Low” and “I’m A Stranger Here Myself.” |
|
 June 26 to October 9
Half an Hour
(Lunchtime)
by J.M. Barrie, directed by Gina Wilkinson
How much can a life change in half an hour? One night, just before a dinner party, Lilian
Garson makes an escape from her confining husband. But when these best-laid plans go
horribly awry – can she quickly slip back into her old life in time for dinner at
eight? A compelling story of a woman who’s only got half an hour to change her life. |
| (Shaw Map) |
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