The show must go on!

Due to flooding at Island Park, the Geneva Shakespeare in the Park event will be moved to RiverPark at Peyton Street and River Lane in Geneva. The Midsummer Theater Troupe will perform “As You Like It” in a more intimate venue. Seating is limited, and admission is free.
Located across the river and just north of Island Park, RiverPark features terraced amphitheater seating with multiple levels. Visitors are encouraged to bring chairs and blankets.

The venue, while considerably smaller than Island Park, is the perfect setting for Shakespeare, said Kristen Duerdoth, executive director of the theater troupe. With the Fox River as a backdrop and native prairie grass and flowers, "It's idyllic and intimate," the perfect setting for one of The Bard’s classic pastoral comedies.

The park is the best possible location under the circumstances, said event chair Gail Gaboda. "We wanted to keep the event downtown and we will accommodate as many people as possible."

While the venue gives the audience less room to spread out, it allows troupe actors more creative license in staging the performance, adding an interactive component. “Actors will use every inch of the stage,” Duerdoth said. “They will wander up into the audience.”

The play features Rosalind, one of Shakespeare's most inspiring characters. The daughter of a banished duke, Rosalind falls in love with Orlando, the disinherited son of one of the duke's friends. When she is banished from the court by her uncle, Duke Frederick, Rosalind takes on the appearance of a boy called Ganymede. She travels with her cousin Celia and the jester Touchstone to the Forest of Arden, where her father and his friends live in exile.

The troupe will perform this romantic comedy with their trademark flair and puns.
Preshow art and craft activities for kids will be offered by the Geneva Public Library District at 5 p.m.

Seating begins at 5 p.m. A ballet performance at 6 p.m. kicks off the show. “As You Like It” runs 90 minutes without intermission and is suitable for all ages.

For more information, visit www.genevarts.org or the Shakespeare in the Park Facebook page.

The Midsummer Theatre Troupe also will perform "As You Like It" July 16 at Cantigny Park in Wheaton, July 18 and 25 at Two Brothers Roundhouse in Aurora and July 22 at Water Street Mall in Aurora. For more information on other locations, visit the Troupe's Facebook page.