The History of Lakeside Shakespeare

The Lakeside Shakespeare Theatre was founded to share the thriving creative and artistic force of the Chicago Theatre community with the Benzie County community, and to establish a mutually beneficial relationship in art, theatre and theatre education. In 2003, Elizabeth Laidlaw created an organization to bring free, outdoor performances of Shakespeare to the Benzie community under the name of Lakeside Shakespeare Theatre. The inaugural production was A Midsummer Night’s Dream, performed three times over a single weekend.

LST chose to expand its 2004 season to include two productions, performed in repertory, over a two-week period: Romeo and Juliet and Two Gentleman of Verona. For LST’s third season in 2005, LST performed Twelfth Night and Julius Caesar. In addition to the performances, the education wing of LST was inaugurated, and three children’s theatre workshops were offered that summer, all geared toward the local community.

In 2005, Laidlaw spend eight weeks in Benzie County directing the Frankfort-Elberta High School students in a production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The production was the first Shakespeare play the Drama Club had ever produced. Laidlaw and the LST ensemble maintain mentoring relationships with many of the students who took part in this production, many of whom return as interns each summer and who are pursuing careers in the arts as they move into college.

Season Four, in 2006, continued with well-attended performances of The Merry Wives of Windsor and Henry IV, and LST began formalizing the intern program as well as continuing their education efforts. Interns had the opportunity to perform their own Shakespeare Showcase on the LST stage, under the direction of LST Company members. LST hosted one theatre workshop on their stage, and one through the Frankfort-Elberta Park District. During a partnership workshop, LST was able to enlist and train 15 young children to make a surprise appearance in Merry Wives of Windsor, much to the delight of their parents and audiences.

LST returned to Benzie County for Season Six in 2008, performing All’s Well That Ends Well and The Taming of the Shrew. The company continued its workshop and intern programs, as well as a new outreach venture: the Company held an afternoon performance of selected scenes from the 2008 season at Michigan Shores, a retirement community in downtown Frankfort.

For Season Seven in 2009, LST held performances of Love’s Labours Lost and Henry V, and began to expand its production values and our education opportunities. Henry V boasted a complex soundtrack and intricate fight choreography, making for an exciting show, while the glamorous costumes of Love’s Labours Lost helped transport the audience to another world. LST also expanded to providing a three-day workshop for students ages 5 through 13 that culminated in a performance of a play the students wrote during the workshop. In addition a one-day workshop was held for the youngest members of the community, ages 3-6.

LST’s arms have begun to reach further and further across Northern Michigan, with regular patrons commuting from Manistee, Charlevoix, Traverse City and beyond to see our productions.

The Lakeside Shakespeare Theatre has dedicated itself to creating a program of education and performances of Shakespeare to enrich the Benzie County community, and to become a viable and exciting source of employment and creative fulfillment for Chicago-based theatre artists. Additionally, LST seeks to further develop the “cross-pollination” and artistic exchange between these two communities, and continue to develop its audience base. In the years to come, LST aspires to achieve regional recognition as a professional summer repertory theatre and education center.