The Oak Park Festival Theatre is producing not ONE but TWO performances this summer. And the best part? They’re offering bundle ticket packages for both shows!
BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
DIRECTED BY PETER G ANDERSEN
July 1st – August 15th, 2026
‘The play’s the thing…’
Called home by his father’s sudden death and his mother’s swift remarriage, Prince Hamlet finds the court of Denmark transformed…and deeply unsettled. When a ghost appears with a terrible accusation, Hamlet is pulled into a relentless search for truth, testing the limits of loyalty, love, and revenge.
A story of grief, doubt, and moral reckoning unfolds beneath the open sky of Austin Gardens, where the world of the play meets the rhythms of the park.
Producing Artistic Director Peter Andersen directs Drew Bos as Hamlet, following their collaboration on Romeo and Juliet in 2023.
BY OSCAR WILDE
DIRECTED BY KATHRYN WALSH
June 30th – August 14th, 2026
‘The truth is rarely pure and never simple…’
Jack Worthing leads a double life—one in the country, one in the city—while his friend Algernon Moncrieff has troubles of his own. When both men assume the name “Ernest” to win the affections of two very particular women, a web of mistaken identities, secret engagements, and delightful deceptions begins to unravel.
Set against the charm of Austin Gardens, Oscar Wilde’s sparkling comedy comes to life outdoors!
Directed by Kathryn Walsh in her Oak Park Festival Theatre debut, the production features August Forman as Algernon (following his performance as Romeo in Romeo and Juliet, 2024), Aurora Pennepacker as Cecily (Seagulls, 2023), Sonia Goldberg as Gwendolyn (A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 2023), and Chad Bay as Jack (A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 2023).