HAMLET, A DOLL'S HOUSE, and More Set For Oregon Shakespeare Festival 2027 Season
The Ashland company's lineup also includes SHREK THE MUSICAL, and a new FRIDA KAHLO work.
The Oregon Shakespeare Festival has announced its 2027 season, a lineup of nine productions exploring identity, self-discovery, and the moments that shape who we become. From Hamlet to Shrek, Frida Kahlo to Nora Helmer, the 2027 season brings together unforgettable characters wrestling with who they are, who they've been told to be, and what happens when those two things begin to pull apart. Spanning Shakespearean tragedy, outrageous comedy, intimate storytelling, and contemporary drama, these plays follow people searching for freedom and purpose while trying to break away from the expectations and cycles that have shaped them.
“Each season, we ask what stories feel most urgent to share, and for 2027, we found ourselves drawn to plays about becoming who we are,” said Artistic Director Tim Bond. “Theatre holds up a mirror to the stories we inherit, the wounds we carry, and our capacity to change. Across this season people are trying to find their place in the world while wrestling with the fears and expectations standing in the way. What moves me most is their willingness to keep searching anyway.”
In the Angus Bowmer Theatre, the season opens with William Shakespeare's Hamlet, directed by Associate Artistic Director Rosa Joshi. A quintessential story of vengeance, madness, and mortality, this gripping production follows a young prince grappling with an impossible moral dilemma after encountering his father's ghost. Following this iconic tale is Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House, in a new version by Amy Herzog directed by Juliette Carrillo. In this urgent and razor-sharp adaptation, a seemingly perfect marriage unravels as Nora Helmer embarks on a powerful journey of self-discovery. Also opening in the spring, Rob Melrose directs the world premiere of A Loco-Motive For Murder by Mark Bedard and John Tufts, a wildly unhinged, Marx Brothers–inspired send-up of classic murder mysteries packed with outrageous humor, puns, and theatrical chaos. Opening in the summer in the Angus Bowmer Theatre, Artistic Director Tim Bond directs Purpose, a Pulitzer Prize– and Tony Award–winning drama that follows a powerful Civil Rights dynasty as long-buried secrets and tensions rise to the surface.
In the Thomas Theatre, the season begins with What the Constitution Means to Me, directed by Associate Artistic Director Kaytlin McIntyre. This deeply personal, funny, and thought-provoking play by Heidi Schreck blends humor and history to explore how the U.S. Constitution shapes—and sometimes endangers—our lives. Next is The Winter's Tale, directed by Shana Cooper. Shakespeare's late romance moves from jealousy and tragedy to forgiveness and wonder in a sweeping story of redemption and magic. Also appearing in the Thomas Theatre, Joanie Schultz directs Frida … A Self Portrait, a visually rich, music-filled solo performance by Vanessa Severo that intertwines the life of Frida Kahlo with Severo's own story in a powerful exploration of resilience, identity, and artistic expression.
In the outdoor Allen Elizabethan Theatre, OSF will present Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors, directed by Marcela Lorca. This fast-paced, family-friendly romp of mistaken identities delivers nonstop hilarity as two sets of twins collide in a whirlwind of confusion. Also opening the summer season is Shrek The Musical, directed by Bill Fennelly. Based on the beloved film, this joyful, irreverent adventure celebrates self-acceptance and the hero in all of us.
“One of the things I love about theatre is that it can sneak up on you,” said Bond. “We'll get you in the door with laughter and spectacle, and somewhere along the way a moment catches you off guard. Suddenly, something in the story speaks to your own life in a way that feels deeply familiar. I think this upcoming season is full of those beautiful moments.”
Hamlet
March 12 – October 31, 2027
Angus Bowmer Theatre
“The time is out of joint…”
The king of Denmark is dead, and his son, Prince Hamlet, is deep in grief. But when the king's ghost appears, demanding Hamlet avenge his murder with another murder, the young prince dives into a dangerous tangle of deception and conspiracies as he grapples with an impossible moral dilemma that threatens to destroy him and those he loves. A quintessential story of vengeance, madness, and mortality featuring some of Shakespeare's most rivetingly transcendent language, and directed by OSF Associate Artistic Director Rosa Joshi, Hamlet is perfect for Shakespeare fans, newcomers, and students.
A Doll's House
March 13 – October 30, 2027
Angus Bowmer Theatre
“Now I have to go find out if society is right or if I am.”
Nora Helmer is a woman with a secret. Mother to three young children and wife to career-minded Torvald, Nora lives in seemingly domestic bliss—which is shattered when a man who secretly lent her money reappears and threatens to expose her. The threat leads Torvald's “little bird” into a darker web of lies, but one that ultimately leads to a journey of self-discovery that remains fiercely and hauntingly relevant for women today. A razor-sharp and urgent version of Henrik Ibsen's classic from award-winning playwright Amy Herzog, directed by Juliette Carrillo (Mojada: A Medea in Los Angeles).
A Doll's House (Herzog) is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com
A Loco-Motive For Murder
March 14 – July 11, 2027
Angus Bowmer Theatre
Dial M for Marx Brothers
When newspaper tycoon Edmund Blaublüt turns up dead on a swanky European train, the stage is set for murder … and hilarity! That's right, the team that brought you Animal Crackers, The Cocoanuts, and It's Christmas, Carol! are back again with this seriously unhinged send-up of classic murder mysteries, train movies, trains, mysteries, and… Well, don't worry—with a cast of characters like Baroness Von Reichendamen and detective Hugo M. Onyatail (and a sneaky guy with the world's most crowded trenchcoat), the jokes will be flying and no pun will be left ungroaned at in this medicinal dose of silliness, barely contained by director Rob Melrose (Born with Teeth).
Purpose
July 29 – October 30, 2027
Angus Bowmer Theatre
A political dynasty divided
The Jaspers are a family of legend—an acclaimed Civil Rights dynasty whose name has commanded power and awe for decades. But when their youngest son returns home with an unexpected friend, he isn't prepared for both the literal storm that leaves them stranded, or the figurative one that leaves ancient secrets exposed. The bonds of love are tested and the family's legacy begins to splinter as the Jaspers have to reckon with the men and women behind the myths. Brimming with sharp-witted humor and surprising revelations, this story will have you on the edge of your seat. Winner of the 2025 Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award for Best Play, Purpose is a stunning triumph of American drama by one of the nation's most celebrated playwrights. Directed by OSF Artistic Director Tim Bond.
What the Constitution Means to Me
March 17 – July 31, 2027
Thomas Theatre
Not your grandma's history (until it is)
When playwright Heidi Schreck was 15 years old, she loved the U.S. Constitution—so much that she traveled the country, competing in Constitutional oratorical contests to earn money for college. But when she unearths secrets about her own family history, she also discovers that this critical founding document can both protect and betray us—and she questions how it will shape the next generation of Americans. Part stand-up comedy and part hard-hitting investigation, Constitution, directed by OSF Associate Artistic Director Kaytlin McIntyre in her OSF directorial debut, is a deeply personal journey that's hilarious, moving, and profoundly human. Sure to spark conversation, Constitution explores the questions that “We the People” should be asking.
What the Constitution Means to Me is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com
The Winter's Tale
April 14 – October 30, 2027
Thomas Theatre
A jealous king, a queen accused, a newborn daughter abandoned: The stakes are high in Shakespeare's classic story of suspicion and its tragic consequences. But years later in a beautiful, faraway land, when a prince woos his love, a shepherdess—who is not what she seems—the pendulum swings from darkness to delight, leading the couple on a surprise voyage back to where the story began. This fantastical tale from late in Shakespeare's career turns vengeance into redemption and mourning into magic in a new production directed by Shana Cooper (The Taming of the Shrew) in OSF's most intimate space, the Thomas Theatre.
Frida … A Self Portrait
August 11 – October 29, 2027
Thomas Theatre
Brazilian writer-performer Vanessa Severo seamlessly weaves chapters of Frida Kahlo's bold and tumultuous life with chapters of her own in this surreal, music-filled solo show. Transporting audiences to Frida's beloved home in Mexico and morphing effortlessly into figures close to her—her father Guillermo, her husband Diego, and more—Severo enacts stories from Frida's life as passionately as she narrates her own. The result is a portrait of two powerful and fiercely determined women, both overcoming physical adversity to tell their own stories. Joanie Schultz directs this evocative new work giving voice to an artist and her muse.
The Comedy of Errors
May 28 – October 16, 2027
Allen Elizabethan Theatre
A stormy shipwreck separates two sets of twins at birth, a cataclysm that keeps them apart for years. When two of them boldly enter the bustling city of Ephesus in search of their respective twins, their arrival leads to several merrily madcap cases of confusion: wrongful accusations, wrongful imprisonments . . . and, technically, the wrong wives. The topsy-turvy mayhem and slapstick-fueled hilarity never stop in this early Shakespeare romp that has inspired comedies from the 1600s through today. Marcela Lorca (A Midsummer Night's Dream) returns to direct the vibrant and family-friendly classic about the search for belonging and a place to call home.
Shrek The Musical
May 29 – October 15, 2027
Allen Elizabethan Theatre
When a grumpy green ogre named Shrek finds his beloved swamp overrun by displaced fairy-tale creatures, the hulking loner strikes a deal with a scheming Lord to get his home back. That deal sends him on a once-in-a-lifetime journey alongside a hilarious Donkey and a fierce princess—a journey that reveals that anyone, even a less-than-fresh-smelling ogre, can be a hero. Joyously irreverent and endlessly entertaining, the blockbuster film comes to life outdoors in OSF's historic Allen Elizabethan Theatre. With a humorous score from a Pulitzer Prize–honored and Tony Award–winning musical theatre duo and under the direction of Bill Fennelly, Shrek will have everyone in the family embracing their inner ogre.
Shrek The Musical is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI.
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