Family Matinee THE MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR Plays at Utah Shakespeare Festival, Now thru 8/29

Always seeking creative ways to introduce new audiences to live theatre, the Utah Shakespeare Festival has announced the return of Festival Family Days and Student Access cards. Both programs encourage and invite a younger demographic to attend the Festival.

TWe started programming a family friendly matinee in the Auditorium Theatre because we want parents to enjoy the Festival with their kids and expose them to Shakespeare at a young age,” said R. Scott Phillips, festival executive director.

This year’s family friendly matinee is The Merry Wives of Windsor. Tickets are $15 for select performances: today, July 11 and July 18, 26, 31, August 9, 15, 22, and 29. Tickets must be purchased by June 15. Use the discount code FAMILY when purchasing tickets online at bard.org.

Also, Student Access cards are on sale now and can be purchased in person at the Utah Shakespeare Festival Ticket Office. These cards are $35 and allow one student unlimited access to Festival productions from August 15 through October of this year. The cards can also be used for any Playmakers performance. Playmakers is the Festival’s educational theatre program that features community children performing full productions.

Marketing Director Kami Terry Paul created the Student Access card last season as an affordable option for students to enjoy the many Festival offerings. Students must present their student ID and another form of ID to purchase the Student Access Card at the Festival Ticket Office. To redeem the card for tickets, students must show their card and a matching student ID on the day of the show. Tickets are non-transferable.

Tickets are on sale for the Festival’s 51st season, which runs now through October 20, 2012. The eight-play season includes Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor, Titus Andronicus and Hamlet. The season will also include Alain Boubill and Claude-Michel Schönberg’s epic musical Les Misérables, Friedrich Schiller’s Mary Stuart, Moliére’s Scapin, Christopher Sergel’s adaptation of Harper Lee’s classic American novel To Kill a Mockingbird, and back by popular demand Marie Jones’ Stones in His Pockets. For more information and tickets visit www.bard.org or call 1-800-PLAYTIX.