The Bristol Shakespeare Festival was founded in 2004 to celebrate the wealth of open air performance which takes place in the city each summer.
From an initial programme of just four productions, the festival has grown into the largest professional open air Shakespeare festival in the UK.
Every summer between seven and ten full professional productions take place in the parks and open spaces of the city.
Annual audiences of around 10,000 people bring rugs and picnics to Bristol's beautiful parks and enjoy performances from the UK's leading touring Shakespeare companies.
Click here for an interactive map of our venues.
Festival Team:
Director: Miles Gregory
miles [at] bristolshakespeare.org.uk
Assistant Director: Louise Hill
louise [at] bristolshakespeare.org.uk
Producer: Ben Cooper
ben [at] bristolshakespeare.org.uk
Previous Festival Programmes
2007
Romeo and Juliet
(Queen Square, The Lord Chamberlain's Men)
The Wizard of Oz
(Ashton Court, Heartbreak Productions)
Twelfth Night
(Ashton Court, Heartbreak Productions)
Romeo and Juliet
(Queen Square, Shakespeare's Globe Theatre)
The Merchant of Venice
(Ashton Court, Heartbreak Productions)
Cry Blue Murder!
(Queen Square, Heartbreak Productions)
Much Ado About Nothing
(Bristol Zoo Gardens, Illyria)
Robin Hood
(Bristol Zoo Gardens, Illyria)
2006
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
(Queen Square, The Lord Chamberlain's Men)
Romeo and Juliet
(Queen Square, Heartbreak Productions)
The Importance of Being Earnest
(Queen Square, Heartbreak Productions)
Macbeth
(Bristol Zoo Gardens, Illyria)
Twelfth Night
(Ashton Court, Heartbreak Productions)
The Wind in the Willows
(Bristol Zoo Gardens, Illyria)
2005
This Island's Mine (The Tempest)
(Various parks, Citric Acid Productions)
Hamlet
(Ashton Court, Heartbreak Productions)
Much Ado About Nothing
(Ashton Court, Heartbreak Productions)
Pride and Prejudice
(Bristol Zoo, Illyria)
A Midsummer Night's Dream
(Queen Square, British Touring Shakespeare)
Charley's Aunt
(Queen Square, British Touring Shakespeare)
Macbeth
(Ashton Court, The Lord Chamberlain's Men)
The Comedy of Errors
(Bristol Zoo, Illyria)
2004
Much Ado About Nothing
(Queen Square, British Touring Shakespeare)
Macbeth
(Ashton Court, Heartbreak Productions)
The Comedy of Errors
(Ashton Court, Heartbreak Productions)
The Taming of the Shrew
(Brandon Hill, Spotlights)
Ashton Court
Queen Square
Bristol Zoo Gardens
The Cabot Tower, Brandon Hill
The Bristol Shakespeare Festival is a not-for-profit voluntary organisation.
