Shakespeare Festival St. Louis produces performances of Shakespeare and works inspired by Shakespeare in an effort to better the community, facilitate a diverse conversation, and encourage collaboration across disciplines. Known primarily for its mainstage summer production in Forest Park, the Festival has devoted a large portion of its programming to co-creating with the citizens of St. Louis through its citywide Shakespeare marathon, SHAKE 38, and its yearlong neighborhood residency, Shakespeare in the Streets. Since its founding in 2001, the Festival has performed for over one million patrons and students through programming initiatives In the Schools, In the Streets, and In the Park.
Drawing on scenes from some of Shakespeare’s most famous plays including A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Romeo & Juliet, and Hamlet, Bruce Longworth, associate artistic director of Shakespeare Festival St. Louis and a professor in Webster University’s Conservatory of Theatre Arts, conceived an original work that tells the modern-day story of a married couple on the brink of divorce. Titled Love’s Labor, this 40-minute play unfolds gallery by gallery within the Pulitzer’s three exhibitions on view, which reframe the objects and environments of everyday life.
