Shakespeare On Tour

The William Inge Center for the Arts is at Independence Community College (ICC), Independence, Kansas. Its namesake, the late William Inge, is a writer who won the Oscar for Best Screenplay for “Splendor in the Grass” and Pulitzer for Drama for “Picnic.” He is one of the few writers who had four straight hits on Broadway (Come Back, Little Sheba; Picnic; Bus Stop; and The Dark at the Top of the Stairs); each became a movie with the biggest stars of the era.

As Inge is best known for his plays, the Inge Center emphasizes playwriting. Since 1981, its signature William Inge Theatre Festival has brought to Independence the nation’s most acclaimed playwrights: Arthur Miller, Neil Simon, Stephen Sondheim, and Lynn Nottage are among the Pulitzer Prize-winning dramatists who have attended as the playwright Honoree. In 2025, the Inge Festival, held at ICC, will honor John Patrick Shanley, the Oscar-winning writer of the film “Moonstruck” and the Pulitzer Prize-winning dramatist of “Doubt.”

Year-round, the Inge Center hosts playwrights-in-residence, who live in Independence and work on new scripts. These scripts are then workshopped with the aid of directors and actors nationally, regionally, and from ICC. The Inge Center also conducts active arts-in-education programs. In 2010, the Kansas State Legislature proclaimed the William Inge Theatre Festival the Official Theatre Festival of Kansas.

The Inge Center also produces educational touring shows, which is the focus of this Arts Touring Roster proposal. In 2024, the Inge Center toured “Romeo and Juliet” throughout high schools in southeast Kansas. This adapted hour-long version retained the original Shakespeare language and was flexibly designed to be performed in spaces such as multipurpose rooms or gyms. The tour included an interactive educational engagement. A professionally produced study guide was provided to instructors.

ICC will produce a one-hour Shakespeare production. Set, lighting, and costumes will be readily transportable and adaptable to varied spaces, such as community halls and multipurpose rooms. The company will provide a technician, all sound/other equipment, and sets up and strikes.

The production will be a one-hour excerpt of the comedy “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” The performance retains the original Shakespeare text while simplifying some of the sections more obscure to contemporary audiences. Inherent to its educational mission, after each show, the audience will be invited to stay for a talkback with the cast and crew: included at no extra cost.

The performers will be trained students and experienced mature actors from the region, who often take part in the Inge Festival’s professional shows. The director is a longtime Actors’ Equity Association union actor with 20-plus years of experience, including at Shakespeare Theatre New Jersey (STNJ). This tour is modeled after an existing one at STNJ; further, ICC has permission to alter the relevant STNJ Teachers’ Guide, which are offered to the hosts at no charge. The technical director and designer has extensive experience in professional and academic settings, including the Inge Festival.

Two optional educational and activities are offered for an additional fee. Each are one hour in length.

Workshop Number 1: Demystifying Shakespeare. An interactive workshop where participants read with one another Shakespearean scripts to analyze and “decode” Shakespeare’s rhythm and wordplay.

Workshop Number 2: Stage Combat. Learn the stage combat you just saw in the show! Experience how choreography can tell the story of non-violent yet realistic fight scenes on stage. Company provides wooden dowels for use. Limit of 20 participants. Age level 14 through adult.

One-hour performance plus post-performance 15-minute audience talkback: $2,000 (Additional cost for travel and/or lodging beyond 140 miles one-way from Independence KS)

Demystifying Shakespeare one-hour workshop: $150 Stage Combat one-hour workshop: $275; limit of 20 participants, company provides equipment; ages 14 through adult.

Booking required minimum 30 days in advance Minimum of 30 foot by 30 foot level performance area required. No formal stage or theater facility necessary; show is designed to adapt to spaces such as multipurpose rooms, community meeting spaces or athletic facilities. Performance can be held under standard room lighting, though, if available, there is potential to utilize stage facilities. The company brings its own sound system and technician. Show available for booking Aug. 30, 2025, through May 15, 2026.