Pericles at Audrey Stanley Grove in DeLaveaga Park

Santa Cruz Shakespeare invites you to experience Shakespeare’s Pericles, under the trees and stars of the Audrey Stanley Grove in Santa Cruz’s DeLaveaga Park this summer. Shakespeare’s brilliant late romance continues the 2025 festival’s sweep into the mythic. The first half of this rarely performed play follows Prince Pericles’ incredible journey through multiple kingdoms, wild adventures, desperate escapes; a magnificent love affair, a pair of storms at sea and a single shipwreck. And that’s just part one. The second half shifts some fourteen years later to Pericles’ daughter, Marina, who must survive her own trials: an assassination attempt, an abduction by pirates, the violence of a brothel. By the power of her kindness, wit and virtue, she rises above each of these dangers, finally meeting her father. The reunion of Pericles and Marina is one of the most beautiful scenes Shakespeare ever wrote. We cannot survive alone; the coming together of father and daughter is the rebirth of a world. The play ends, indeed, with another incredible rebirth; in love and unity, miracles are possible. Pericles runs July 29 through August 30, with Opening Night on July 31. Tickets available for purchase starting May 1. More information at santacruzshakespeare.org/season-2025 Seasonal box office hours are Tuesday through Friday from 12p.m. to 4p.m. beginning May 1. Call 831-460-6399.