MIDSUMMER (ISH) & LA MANCHA to Headline Apollinaire in the Park Festival
Brooks Reeves and Parker Jennings lead a bilingual festival with food, music, and workshops in Chelsea.
Apollinaire Theatre Company will present the 2026 Apollinaire in the Park Festival on Saturday, August 29, bringing free theater, live music, dance, art, workshops and family activities to Chelsea Theatre Works and the surrounding Chelsea Square.
The festival will run from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m., with Teatro Chelsea's LA MANCHA at 5 p.m. and Apollinaire Theatre Company's MIDSUMMER (ISH): A 6 ACTOR, 60 MINUTE DREAM at 7:30 p.m. serving as the day's marquee theatrical events.
The Chelsea Theatre Works building, surrounding street and park will also feature a beer garden, local food and craft vendors, art exhibitions, bilingual programming, youth activities and a Costume Conversion Fashion Show.
MIDSUMMER (ISH): A 6 ACTOR, 60 MINUTE DREAM
For one performance only, six Apollinaire favorites will take on 17 roles in a 60-minute adaptation featuring lovers, fighters and magical sprites.
The cast includes Brooks Reeves, Parker Jennings, Cristhian Mancinas-Garcia, Joshua Lee Robinson, Paola Ferrer and Evan Turissini, joined by special guests both human and canine.
The performance begins at 7:30 p.m.
LA MANCHA
Teatro Chelsea will present LA MANCHA, a bilingual adaptation of Don Quixote, at 5 p.m.
The production follows Don Quixote as he loses himself in his books and yearns for the adventures he encounters in stories of knighthood. To the dismay of his family, he sets out to make his imagination a reality with the help of his next-door neighbor, Sancho.
Wrapped in tin foil and accompanied by his loyal “squire,” Don Quixote embarks on a journey unlike the one he imagined.
LIVE MUSIC, DANCE AND WORKSHOPS
Musical programming throughout the festival will include Latin hits, Mariachi singers and performances by special guests.
Alan Kuang & Bulletproof Funk will present breakdancing performances throughout the day. Kuang will also lead a Hip Hop Dance workshop, while Parker Jennings will return with the “How to Die on Stage” workshop.
Youth activities will include a performance by Apollinaire Play Lab students, face painting, a Hip Hop Dance workshop and lawn games.
ART, FASHION AND FOOD
Medford Brewing Company will host the festival's beer garden, with food available from local restaurants and food trucks. Arts and crafts from local artisans will also be available for purchase.
The Apollinaire Gallery will display the company's “Celebrating Our Immigrant Community” mural along with entries in the Costume Conversion Fashion Show.
Participating designers have repurposed theatrical costumes into new creations that will be featured in a fashion show on the Beer Garden stage and offered for purchase through a silent auction. Festival attendees will also be able to vote for their favorite designs.
Youth artwork will be displayed in the Riseman Family Theatre.
APOLLINAIRE IN THE PARK FESTIVAL 2026
Saturday, August 29, 2026
3 p.m.–9 p.m.
Chelsea Theatre Works
189 Winnisimmet St.
Chelsea, Massachusetts
Programming will also take place in Chelsea Square in front of the theater.
Admission is free.
The rain date is Sunday, August 30. In case of rain, attendees can call 617-887-2336 for updates.
ABOUT APOLLINAIRE THEATRE COMPANY
Apollinaire Theatre Company creates theatrical productions and programs from its home at Chelsea Theatre Works. Its programs include Teatro Chelsea, Apollinaire Play Lab, Apollinaire in the Park and the Resident Artist Program.
Past Apollinaire productions have included the immersive bilingual productions The Suppliant Women, Hamlet, And Your Little Dog Too and Romeo and Juliet, as well as Is This a Room, Touching the Void, Hedda Gabler, Every Brilliant Thing, Don't Eat the Mangos, Dance Nation, The Importance of Being Earnest, Uncle Vanya, Three Sisters, Songs of the Dragons Flying to Heaven and The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart.
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