Shakespeare in the Parking Lot

The Next Stage Ensemble, the summer touring program of the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, will perform an hour-long version of the Shakespeare comedy As You Like It in the parking lot behind the Berkeley Heights Public Library tomorrow, Friday, July 23 at 7 p.m. Abigail Isaac, an alumna of The Shakespeare Theatre’s professional training program, directs this comedy, which is recommended for ages 8 and up. Please bring your own chair. In case of rain, call (908) 464-9333 for alternate location.

In As You Like It, Rosalind is banished by her cruel uncle. She disguises herself as a boy and flee to the Forest of Arden. In this fairy-tale setting, surrounded by courtiers and fools, shepherds and outlaws, the plucky Rosalind becomes a catalyst for change, bringing about laughter, love, and reconciliation.

The Next Stage Ensemble performing in 2005

As You Like It is the play in which these famous lines appear:

All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players:
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages.

Immediately followed by the lesser-known but equally choice verses which my infantile sense of humor finds hilarious:

At first the infant,
Mewling and puking in the nurse's arms
And then the whining school-boy, with his satchel
And shining morning face, creeping like snail
Unwillingly to school.

Rosalind is one of Shakespeare's strongest female characters. You can read more about her at Shmoop.com.