As You Like It
Koha, Relaxed Performance(s)
The forest is calling! This summer, a new company of players, The Midsummer Botanicals, invite audiences to step beneath the trees and into the wild, wondrous world of As You Like It - a sun-soaked celebration of laughter and community blooming in one of Wellington’s gorgeous parks for the first week of the Wellington Fringe Festival.
In 1983, A Midsummer Night’s Dream lit up the Victoria University Quad and sparked a beloved tradition of outdoor Shakespeare in Wellington - a festival of artistry, friendship, and open-air delight that ran for over forty years. After its sudden end in 2023, a vital chapter of our city’s cultural story seemed to close. But this February, the Botanicals are bringing it gloriously back to life.
Helmed by director Eli Hancock (he/they) and produced by Shakespeare’s North Productions, As You Like It promises a riotous return to form; where the music is live, the language sparkles, and the forest is very much alive.
“As You Like It is Shakespeare at his most joyous,” says Hancock. “It’s about finding yourself in unexpected places - through love, disguise, friendship, and the wilderness. After years of loss and uncertainty in the arts, this feels like a healing; a reminder of why we make theatre in the first place.”
Set in a vibrant reimagining of Shakespeare’s Forest of Arden, this production draws on courtyard and marketplace traditions of performance, transforming Wellington’s Aro Valley Park into a living, breathing garden of music, colour, and character. Audiences are invited to arrive early, explore the space, and meet the motley cast of lovers and fools before the story even begins. Expect song, sun, silliness, and the scent of summer roses.
-
Outdoor / Whānau Friendly
-
$5.00 -
14-20 February 2026 -
90 minutes -
Aro Street Park -
Aro Street Park -
No Restrictions -
Audience Interaction
