A mashup of two very different cultural icons separated by hundreds of years – William Shakespeare and the Beatles – kicks off the Grand Theatre’s season.
Money can’t buy love, but it can get tickets to a musical adaptation of As You Like It, where colourful flower power meets the Shakespeare comedy. On the theatre’s Spriet Stage until Nov. 2, it combines Shakespeare’s play with tunes from the Fab Four, performed with a live band.
A musical ensemble performs in As You Like It on the Grand Theatre’s Spriet stage on Oct. 15, 2024. (Beatriz Baleeiro/ The London Free Press)
“This show really thrives with an audience, so we’re excited to be in front of a crowd again,” said director and co-adaptor Daryl Cloran.
With 25 songs that match the story, the characters move without a pause in the play’s plot, he said. “It’s not a jukebox musical where we stop just to listen to our favourite songs,” Cloran said.
Actor Daniela Fernandez, who plays Rosalind, grew up in a Spanish-speaking home and knows the feeling of being intimidated by Shakespeare.
“I studied it so hard that I was able to understand it better, and it’s not actually as daunting as I thought,” said Fernandez, who’s making her debut at the Grand as a professional actor.
Jeff Irving plays Orlando and Daniela Fernandez is Rosalind in the Grand Theatre’s production of As You Like It. Photo taken on Oct. 15, 2024. (Beatriz Baleeiro/ The London Free Press)
The audience will be surprised with how “understandable” the story will be, said actor Jeff Irving, who plays Orlando and is also performing at the Grand for the first time.
“I can’t think of a more natural fit than Shakespeare and The Beatles,” Grand Theatre artistic director Rachel Peake said. “Both are innovative artists, whose works have stood the test of time and continue to resonate across generations.”
IF YOU GO
Play: As You Like It at the Grand Theatre
When: Until Nov. 2
Tickets: Single tickets range from $24-$96 and are available at Grand’s website, grandtheatre.com, by phone at 519-672-8800, or at the Box Office, 471 Richmond Street.
