Blackfriars Playhouse in historic downtown Staunton, Va. is featuring three Shakespeare plays this summer: The Merry Wives of Windsor, Titus Andronicus and Much Ado About Nothing, all of which are running until the end of August. Much Ado was first performed by Shakespeare’s troupe in late 1598 or early 1589, says ASC Artistic Director Jim Warren. He notes that the play immediately became popular and remained in the company’s repertoire until the Puritans closed the theatres in 1642. In 1993, a film version by Kenneth Branagh included an international cast of theatre and film stars.

Much Ado about Nothing contrasts the wit of characters Beatrice and Benedick with the heroic blunders of Dogberry and company. As the villain Don John devises a scheme to shatter the wedding of young lovers Claudio and Hero, the friends of Beatrice and Benedick conspire to trick them into admitting their much-denied love for one another. The Blackfriars Playhouse performance of Much Ado has been praised in local reviews.

The American Shakespeare Center is an internationally-acclaimed theatre company that performs Shakespeare's works under their original staging conditions: On a simple stage, without elaborate sets, and with the audience sharing the same light as the actors. Home to the ASC's resident troupe and the ASC on Tour, the Blackfriars Playhouse has been established as one of America's premier Shakespeare destinations.

The ASC began as a touring-only company over 20 years ago in Harrisonburg, Virginia. As they adapted the staging of the plays among a variety of venues while they were on the road, they developed staging that more directly engages the audience. The experience brought them to the roots of the Shakespeare experience. This close involvement with the audience is exactly what Shakespeare had in mind as he penned his plays, says Warren.

The 300-seat Blackfriars Playhouse - the world's only re-creation of Shakespeare's original indoor theatre - first opened its doors in September 2001. The theater is a product of years of research, and is historically accurate.