Bard on the Beach begins its 36th year

“Bard on the Beach” — Western Canada’s largest professional Shakespeare festival — has returned to Vanier Park for a 36th year.

This time, the event returns with four productions.

The Two Gentlemen of Verona and Much Ado About Nothing will delight audiences on the BMO Mainstage, while The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised] [again] and The Dark Lady are in the Douglas Campbell Theatre.

Christopher Gaze, the festival’s longtime artistic director, says there is nothing like the experience of seeing the productions performed outdoors.

“We don’t have to go into a darkened theater, which is wonderful, too. But this is the uniqueness of Bard. It’s that special experience of staying with the night and recognizing that we live in one of the most beautiful places in the world.”

Gaze says The Two Gentleman of Verona has been re-imagined with a 1980s twist.

“For people that do recall the ’80s, there’s a great leaning back to it now, and so we use a lot of that music,” he said

The festival has done Much Ado About Nothing many times, Gaze says, but this year’s is in the period.

“So it’s very, very beautiful,” he said.

“It’s nice to do a production that actually settles in the in the era.”

The festival runs until Sept. 20. Head to bardonthebeach.org for tickets and showtimes.