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Shake On The Lake

Shake On The Lake

Members of the Shake on the Lake theatre troupe are pictured. Submitted photo

ELLICOTTVILLE — It’s arguably the most famous story of star-crossed lovers and the Ellicottville Chamber of Commerce is bringing it to town this summer. Co-sponsored by the Cattaraugus County Arts Council, William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” will be featured in the gazebo lawn in Ellicottville on Friday at 8 p.m.

“When people think of Ellicottville, they think of music and bands,” said Chamber Executive Director Brian McFadden. “While that is a part of who we are, we want people to know that we also have an appreciation for, and are an outlet for much more. What better way to do this than to provide a free performance of ‘Romeo and Juliet’ to everyone, put on by professionals that know and understand the art?”

The play will be performed by Shake on the Lake, a Silver Lake-based Shakespearian troupe that has been bringing the Bard’s pieces to Western and Central New York since 2012. The organization’s goals are creating a fun, family-friendly, outdoor production of Shakespeare to high artistic standards. They look to use cost-effective, green production practices and have been known to use refurbished and repurposed items in their productions. Shake on the Lake also helps sponsors find ways to make performances low-cost to offer a higher accessibility to quality performances.

In previous years, the troupe has performed “Twelfth Night,” “The Tempest,” “The Comedy of Errors” and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” They tour the region performing to bring The Bard’s acts to as many as possible, performing in Geneseo, Letchworth State Park, Dansville, Darien Lake St. Park, Orleans County Marine Park, Attica, Arcade, Springville, Groveland Prison & Silver Lake.

Make sure you bring your chairs or a blanket and come out to enjoy an hour and a half of live Shakespeare. Before that, come out and see what’s going on with Ellicottville’s Stroll the Streets from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

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