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Shakespeare and Lightning Bugs for FREE

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Summer has always been a time to get fresh with the insects and the foliage of New York’s wide array of parks.  Do not be misled by the implications of the word park '“ in NYC we’re talking everything from weedy cracked asphalt corners to Agrarian works of art.  While you’re gallivanting outside, take a load off and enjoy one of the city’s iconic traditions '“ summer Shakespeare.

If you’ve missed the Public’s production of  Twelfth Night and are still itching for some Elizabethan bawdy action, here’s a few other FREE productions to enjoy.

1.    Pulse Theatre Ensemble’s minimal, physical, and hilarious Midsummer Night’s Dream – Various venues and times all over Harlem with a stint on Governor’s Island – Through August 30 – Performance schedule and info on the website

2.    Drilling Company’s 16th FREE Season of Shakespeare in the Parking Lot with a production of Measure for Measure – In an LES, yes, parking lot – Through Aug 15, Thurs '“ Sat 8pm
The Municipal Parking Lot (at Ludlow and Broome) [Lower East Side]

3.    New York Neo-Classical is presenting their radical summer exploration of the War of the Roses in Henry VI – 8/20, 8/21, 8/22 @7pm.

4.    Finally, if live theater gives you the creeps but you still desire Shakespearean poetry outdoors, head over to the Brooklyn Botanical Garden to frolic in their 'œShakespeare Garden' filled only with plants and herbs found in the Bard’s plays, with matching plaques and quotes.
1000 Washington Ave. at Sullivan Pl. [Prospect Heights, Brooklyn]

Pour some vino into a water bottle, bag up that beer, and join the bugs in a simple celebration of summer before it passes by!

(PlayShakespeare has all of Shakespeare’s plays up for FREE.)

images via FilmPlus.org and NYCgovparks.org

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Danielle Levanas - Bargain Soul Huntress

Danielle Levanas - Bargain Soul Huntress

Danielle was raised by a pack of coyotes in the Los Angeles hills. Since arriving in NY in 2001, she has had any number of strange jobs, including back-up singing for JELVIS (the Jewish Elvis), starting the non-profit LYDIA, and writing political cabarets. A huge advocate for travel as a way of life, you can find her at the Brooklyn Public Library when her bank account is empty, fantasizing about where to head off to next.