Today (Monday 10 September) we announced our summer 2019 season.

• As You Like It - Kimberly Sykes directs a fierce, exhilarating version of Shakespeare’s romantic comedy.
• The Taming of the Shrew - Justin Audibert turns Shakespeare’s energetic comedy of gender and materialism on its head to offer a fresh perspective on its portrayal of hierarchy and power.
• Measure for Measure - Artistic Director Gregory Doran directs a play with astonishing contemporary resonance.

All three Shakespeare productions will play in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, then tour in repertoire for the first time to six regional theatres in 2019. Meanwhile, in the Swan Theatre will be: 

• Kunene and the King - moving and funny new play by South African actor, activist and playwright John Kani, marking 25 years since the first post-Apartheid democratic elections. Fellow South Africans Janice Honeyman directs and Antony Sher performs opposite John Kani. A co-production with The Fugard Theatre in association with Eric Abraham.

And we mark 250 years since David Garrick’s famous Shakespeare Jubilee in 1769, which launched Stratford-upon-Avon as the epicentre of the Shakespeare Industry, by staging two plays in which Garrick enjoyed two of his most successful roles:

• The Provoked Wife by John Vanbrugh - A Restoration comedy which genuinely tackles the realities and challenges of married life, directed by Phillip Breen.
• Venice Preserved - Thomas Otway’s Restoration tragedy is a savage political thriller and a love story of breath-taking intensity. Directed by Prasanna Puwanarajah.

Shakespeare Nation

We also launched two new opportunities as part of Shakespeare Nation, our long-term commitment to engage with people across the country – one for adults new to theatre, and the other for young people.

Our new adult participation project will reach out to 3,000 adults in communities around the country who would not normally engage with theatre or Shakespeare. Our Shakespeare Ambassadors programme will develop the leadership capacity of young people across the country, recruited from our national network of partner schools, 300 young ambassadors aged seven to 17 will lead a Shakespeare-inspired project in their local communities.

Our Summer 2019 season begins in February, with priority booking available from September 2018. 

Priority booking