Annual events such as Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan, the Nutrien Fringe Theatre Festival and Sum Theatre’s free public park performances offer a wide variety of theatre options for all ages and virtually every taste.

Here’s a look at what to expect from the 2019 versions of these popular summer staples. Get out there and enjoy!

THEATRE IN THE PARK

For the last seven summers, professional theatre has come to local parks throughout Saskatoon. The family friendly shows are offered for free by Sum Theatre, a company with eight core values: excellence, community, sharing, citizenship, accessibility, innovation, inclusion and fun.

This year’s Theatre in the Park show is The Young Ones, an original story created by playwright Yvette Nolan set in a futuristic world that has been turned into a desert by waste and pollution. A young girl is visited by a bear and told she must head out on a quest to save her land.

“It is a hero’s journey – but the hero is not who you might expect,” said co-director Joel Bernbaum. “The Earth is too hot, the land is too dry and The Young One is visited by a bear, who says there is an answer. It’s a story about the very scary subject of climate change with – as Yvette Nolan says – little moments of hope.”

Theatre in the Park attracts more than 7,000 people to local parks during the month of July. This year’s production, which features audience participation, puppets and an original score, integrates American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters into the performances. In keeping with the theme of protecting the planet, the show’s sets and costumes were created with repurposed and recycled materials.

Bernbaum said Sum Theatre tries to be responsive to the urgent issues of our times. Everything the company does is guided by its values, which “inspire and motivate us to do our best work,” he said.

“Community’s greatest need is community itself. We believe in using the power of the theatre to bring people together and create that community,” said Bernbaum. “It’s entertaining, yes, and it’s also critical. These are challenging times. We need more than ever to come together and be together.” The Young Ones runs until July 25. For a list of dates, times and locations, go to sumtheatre.com.

SHAKESPEARE ON THE SASKATCHEWAN

Are you ready to laugh and have some fun? If so, head down to Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan’s iconic riverbank location for this year’s offering of two beloved comedies: As You Like It and The Comedy of Errors.

“Given that it is our 35th summer and the last summer on the old site setup, we wanted to have a celebratory summer,” said Will Brooks, the festival’s artistic producer. There is a lot for Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan to celebrate, including a site makeover that will result in a new amphitheatre, box office, dressing room and more. Construction is slated to begin this fall. Brooks described Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan’s take on As You Like Is, directed by Anita Smith, as “a big, beautiful, wild version of the great play with an Alice in Wonderland twist.”

Meanwhile, this season’s version of The Comedy of Errors, directed by Joshua Beaudry, is set in southern Florida with “lots of big characters,” said Brooks. “Imagine Duck Dynasty meets Shakespeare,” he said. “This makes for a wonderful, light-hearted poke at our southern neighbours – tons of fun.” While Brooks is not directing this summer, he is creatively involved in the productions through his focus on lighting design.

“Lighting design is something I have done a number of times for the festival, but more often than not I am doing it in conjunction with directing – so it is sneaky,” he said.

“This year I chose not to direct one of the main-stage productions, as we are focusing a lot of time on raising the funds and working on the designs for our new site development. Not directing gave me a chance to focus on that, but I still wanted to be involved creatively in the shows – so I decided to still hang on to the lighting design. It is a great way to stay connected with the shows even if I am not directing.”

As You Like It and The Comedy of Errors run until Aug. 18. For more information, visit shakespearesask.com.

NUTRIEN FRINGE THEATRE FESTIVAL

The Nutrien Fringe Theatre Festival is a 10-day community festival that takes place in the heart of Saskatoon’s Broadway district.

At the centre of the fun-filled – and sometimes provocative – annual event is a lineup of unique theatre performances presented by local, national and international artists. Also popular is the street festival component of the Fringe, which features live performances, shopping and food vendors.

It’s the 30th anniversary of Saskatoon’s Fringe – which was first launched and produced by former 25th Street Theatre artistic director Tom Bentley-Fisher – so a birthday party will be held following the festival’s preview night on July 31.

This year’s festival will have a dose of nostalgia as past Fringes are remembered, but attendees can expect to see some new things, too. For example, there will now be three busking circles: two will remain on Broadway Avenue, with a third in W.E. Graham Park near the food vendors. There’s also a new leader at the helm of the Fringe, as Anita Smith took on the executive director role on May 1. It’s a busy time for her; in addition to her work with the Fringe, she’s also the general manager of Saskatoon Summer Players and is directing As You Like It for Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan.

Smith said she excited to work with the “phenomenal” staff at 25th Street Theatre.

“I think that we are going to be able to do great things together and that is exciting to me.”

Another change for the Fringe is the relocation of its office. The festival headquarters, previously located in a portable building at Victoria School, are now based out of the Broadway Collective at 733 Broadway Ave. yearround.

“With the support of a generous donor, Robert Steane, we are investing in beautifying the street portion of the festival,” Smith added. “People should expect to see some new signage, some cool-down spaces – something that I, as a parent, have noticed a need for in the past – and some festive street and sidewalk paintings by an artist named Jovan, both on Broadway and at the venues.

“We have partnered with Family Focus Eyecare as a sponsor to beef up Family Fringe Days over the August long weekend. We have added an extra day of programming and we hope families will join us in W.E. Graham Park, behind Victoria School, for some great fun over the long weekend. We are working with organizations from all over the city, including the Wonderhub, Saskatoon public libraries and the children’s festival, to offer fun and inclusive programming. As a parent, I am very excited about this initiative and making use of this green space.”

The Fringe will run from Aug. 1 – 10 and will showcase 231 performances of 33 plays in six venues over the course of 10 days.

-Shannon Boklaschuk