About the Festival
Vision Statement
Flagstaff Shakespeare Festival envisions a world where theatre serves to elevate empathy —sparking joy, curiosity, and connection across generations.
Land Acknowledgment
With Respect and Humanity, We first acknowledge the words of the stewards of the lands in which we reside or occupy, who are the Indigenous Peoples of the Southwest. In honoring and respecting life, we acknowledge the presence and first footsteps of the Hopi, Havasupai, Hualapai, Yavapai, Zuni, Piute, the Ute, White Mountain Apache, Chiricahua, Mescalero, Navajo, Tohono’O’Odham, Gila River, and Mojave Nations. By acknowledging these Five Fingered Beings, we also acknowledge the injustices and profess to continually work to be at better service to Indigenous Peoples. We recognize our presence in a Sacred Space held sacred and holy by these 13 Nations. In the arms of this Mountain, we declare ourselves as instruments of healing and reconciliation as we work towards justice and equity for all Peoples of all walks of life, as the Stewards of the land had first demonstrated.
(Crafted in collaboration with FlagShakes by Makauis, 19 year old Dine male)
Mission Statement
The mission of the Flagstaff Shakespeare Festival, affectionately known as FlagShakes, is to faithfully portray classics of the Renaissance and produce other actor-driven plays that speak to today’s audiences. Each Shakespeare and Renaissance performance incorporates authentic Elizabethan staging practices, making these timeless works accessible and providing a unique learning opportunity. Through our professional theatre productions and dynamic educational outreach, FlagShakes is committed to elevating empathy, inspiring curiosity, encouraging dialogue, and enriching the cultural life of Arizonans.
Dedicated to excellence in the performing arts, Flagstaff Shakespeare Festival offers exciting artistic opportunities and meaningful experiences for residents of Flagstaff, the wider Arizona community, and visitors from around the world. By bridging tradition with innovation, FlagShakes strengthens the region’s reputation as a vibrant hub for theatre, arts, and culture.
Original Staging Practices
FlagShakes is dedicated to Shakespeare’s Original Staging Practices. These practices allow us to produce Shakespeare’s plays in the most authentic and accessible way. These practices include:
Universal Lighting
Shakespeare had one outdoor theatre, The Globe, and one indoor theatre, The Blackfriars. The Globe was open in the center, and its lighting was from the sun. The Blackfriars was lit by candelabras that ran the length of the theatre. So, in both spaces, the actors and the audience shared light. Shakespeare and his contemporaries used this lighting in their plays. When audiences share lighting with each other and the actors, they are more able to share an experience, an emotional journey, a laugh.
Live Music
All of Shakespeare’s theaters had a gallery where talented musicians played contemporary music before, after, and during the plays. Musical instruments can also be used to create many of the sound effects needed in Renaissance plays. We love to follow their lead by giving our artists space where they can showcase all their talents, so we include live music in every show.
Minimal Sets and Special Effects
Shakespeare didn’t have access to million-dollar sound systems or pyrotechnics. If he had, he would have used them. Since he didn’t, he wrote his plays to be most powerful when performed using minimal sets and maximum acting. Leaving out modern conventions like huge sets and high-dollar special effects allows us to put our money into paying our artists and to keep the running time for each play close to Shakespeare’s promise in the Romeo and Juliet prologue, “the two hours’ traffic of our stage.”
Direct Audience Address
You’ll never see an actor in a FlagShakes play on stage talking to themselves. Shakespeare wrote soliloquies and asides so that audiences could participate as active members of his plays. Universal Lighting makes direct audience address possible.
Cross-Gender Casting
In Elizabethan England, actors were cast according to who was best for the role, regardless of gender: it’s just that all the actors were male. At FlagShakes, we follow the same principle and always cast the best actor for the role, regardless of gender, but luckily our pool isn’t just limited to men. Since roughly half of the population is female, we aim to ensure that roughly half of our cast members are female as well.
Focus on the Language
Did you know the vast majority of Shakespeare’s audience was illiterate? It’s true. He was a playwright of the masses, and the reason all that fancy language and confusing syntax didn’t keep them away was that his actors knew how to work with the poetry instead of against it. At FlagShakes, every show has a text coach who works with actors to make sure the meaning of every line is clear. This way, the audience can relax, enjoy the show, and pick up some sweet new vocab.
Who We Are
Flagstaff Shakespeare Festival (FlagShakes) was founded by a passionate group of actors, scholars, and educators who wanted to bring Shakespeare in Flagstaff to life the way it was originally intended—on stage. Our productions are intimate, dynamic, and accessible, with a commitment to the richness of Shakespeare’s language and the joy of live performance.
At our core, we are dedicated to education. Shakespeare wrote his plays for performance, not the page, and we believe students deserve to experience that magic first-hand. Through live shows, actor-led workshops, technical training, and extracurricular classes on Shakespeare and Renaissance literature, we bring Shakespeare in Arizona to classrooms, community centers, and theatres across Northern Arizona.
Where We’re Going
Geographically, we’re staying right here—Flagstaff is home. But our vision is big. FlagShakes is growing into a cultural cornerstone of the Flagstaff theatre scene and a nationally recognized hub for Shakespeare in the American Southwest.
We believe in growth that benefits the whole community:
- Building long-term, sustainable careers for artists and administrators.
- Enhancing the quality of life in Northern Arizona through accessible performing arts in Flagstaff.
- Creating venues like Beaver Street Theatre in downtown Flagstaff that will serve as regional and national destinations for travelers who love live theatre as much as we do.
What to Expect
Every summer, FlagShakes produces a repertory of Renaissance plays, performed with clarity and heart. We choose our season based on the needs of our community, offering a balance of shows that are family-friendly, romantic, adventurous, and always relevant. Outdoor performances capture the beauty of Northern Arizona, while intimate indoor productions give audiences a front-row seat to Shakespeare’s words.
Our actors work tirelessly on the text so audiences don’t have to. Whether you’re attending your first Shakespeare play or your fiftieth, you’ll be able to follow the story from beginning to end—while still savoring the richness of Shakespeare’s language.
With Shakespeare in Flagstaff at the heart of our mission, and the strength of the performing arts in Flagstaff as our anchor, FlagShakes is proud to keep theatre thriving for generations to come.