I have had a dream, past the wit of man to say what dream it was A Midsummer Night's Dream

- St John's College Gardens

The beautiful gardens of St John's College form the perfect setting for Shakespeare's delightful fairy-tale world of love, jealousy and youthful exuberance. This captivating production brings to life all the magic and humour of Shakespeare's best-loved play. Why not invite your children to come along dressed as fairies to add to what promises to be a spectacular evening!

... as hilarious as anything you would see at the RSC —The Times

Finished for 2011

A Midsummer Night's Dream has now finished for 2011 - please join us for the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival in 2012!

Eternity was in our lips and eyes,<br />Bliss in our brows bent Antony and Cleopatra

- Robinson College Gardens

Shakespeare's tale of the obsessive and passionate relationship between two rulers of the ancient world is staged in the formal splendour of the Robinson College amphitheatre. Mark Antony rules the Roman Empire with Caesar and Lepidus, yet sacrifices all to be with Cleopatra, the Queen of the Nile. When the threat of civil war in Rome drives them apart their lives are plunged into political and personal chaos leading to a breath-taking climax. Don’t miss this vibrant and electrifying production!

... an enthralling and passionate performance... an excellent production —The Stage

Finished for 2011

Antony and Cleopatra has now finished for 2011 - please join us for the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival in 2012!

I am a feather for each wind that blows The Winter's Tale

- Downing College Gardens

Leontes, King of Sicilia, is driven mad with irrational jealousy, convinced that his wife, Hermione, is having an affair with his childhood friend, Polixenes, and that the child she is bearing is not his own. Polixenes escapes to Bohemia, whilst Leontes orders that the child, a daughter, must be abandoned on a desert shore. Leontes assumes the child has perished - but sixteen years pass before the truth is uncovered. The beautiful setting of Downing College gardens provides the backdrop for Shakespeare’s masterful study of suspicion and obsession. Watch out for some comic twists and turns, too... and a bear!

polished performances all round... lively and inspired... a production well worth seeing —The Times

Finished for 2011

The Winter's Tale has now finished for 2011 - please join us for the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival in 2012!

There's not a man I meet but doth salute me<br />As if I were their well-acquainted friend The Comedy of Errors

- Girton College Gardens

Shakespeare's brilliant farce of mistaken identity and slap-stick frivolity is set in the superb setting of Woodlands Court at Girton College. Antipholus (of Ephesus), with his servant Dromio, think their twin brothers (also called Antipholus and Dromio) have been drowned at sea many years earlier. But Antipholus (of Syracuse), with his servant Dromio, come ashore, with neither knowing the other exists. The locals constantly confuse the pairs (even including Antipholus' wife!) and the comedy of errors ensues. Don't miss this fast-paced and sparkling production.

A greatly skilled and athletic young team, playing fast, open, attacking theatre —Cambridge Evening News

Finished for 2011

The Comedy of Errors has now finished for 2011 - please join us for the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival in 2012!

If it prove so, then loving goes by haps;<br />Some Cupid kills with arrows, some with traps Much Ado About Nothing

- King's College Gardens

This sharp and witty battle of the sexes, set in the stunning gardens of King's College, tells of the effervescent Beatrice – determined never to marry – and the confirmed bachelor, Benedick, and the efforts of their friends to bring them together in the most unlikely of unions. Will there be a happy ending, or will the dastardly Don John ruin all their plans? Don't miss this scintillating production.

breathtaking energy and talent... the CSF keep the comedy spinning like a top —The Times

Finished for 2011

Much Ado About Nothing has now finished for 2011 - please join us for the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival in 2012!

Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,<br />That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,<br />And then is heard no more Macbeth

- Trinity College Gardens

In the breathtakingly magnificent setting of Trinity College gardens, as dusk turns towards night, the forces that orchestrate Macbeth's final descent into the abyss are once again set in motion. This moon-bathed and dynamic production brings together the themes of madness, the thirst for power, and the darkness of the supernatural before reaching an explosive conclusion. Not to be missed!

no knee-bending to trendy revisionism... but rather a tour de force of Elizabethan drama —The Times

Finished for 2011

Macbeth has now finished for 2011 - please join us for the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival in 2012!

That I should love a bright particular star,<br />And think to wed it, he is so above me All's Well That Ends Well

- Robinson College Gardens

The atmospheric amphitheatre of Robinson College is the perfect setting for Shakespeare's courtly drama of love, disguise and intrigue. Bertram, the ward of the French King is betrothed to Helena, a doctor's daughter. Bertram, however, has other plans and runs away to the Italian wars, thinking he can escape his responsibilities. But Helena is determined to get her man – one way or another! Don't miss this superb production!

this was brilliant... a brilliant performance from a cast that cannot be faulted —Cambridge Evening News

Finished for 2011

All's Well That Ends Well has now finished for 2011 - please join us for the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival in 2012!

What's in a name? That which we call a rose<br />By any other name would smell as sweet Romeo and Juliet

- Girton College Gardens

The tragic courtship of Shakespeare's star-crossed lovers is played out once more in the exquisite setting of Woodlands Court at Girton College. Romeo and Juliet are caught between two worlds, as their families feud to the death. This spectacular and fast-paced production brings together the romance, passion and violence of the hot streets of Verona. Don't leave Cambridge without seeing this dazzling production!

...the fight scenes were spectacular... a sparkling production that brings out the humour as well as the tragedy of Shakespeare's play... quite brilliant —Cambridge Evening News

Finished for 2011

Romeo and Juliet has now finished for 2011 - please join us for the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival in 2012!