Seattle Shakespeare Company

very well done theatre. Kind of hard to see the stage when on the side seats, but its not that bad

While I enjoy these plays, this theatre is near impossible to find and the signage is nonexistent. It is completely unreasonable that they do not have phones open before shows to help people locate this very hidden theatre. Plus they don’t have late seating.

The Seattle Shakespeare Company is one of the best kept secrets of Seattle Theater. Unfortunately for them their outstanding work and terrific performances are still unknown to the vast majority of the masses. I am sure it’s a bit disheartening for them to see so many locals make the long and sometimes tedious trip all the way down to Ashland Oregon when work of such impressive caliber is regularly available here in nearby Seattle.
Their work is really fabulous and the artistic director has great vision that never fails to keep the performances fresh and engaging. Plus with such an intimate theater you truly get the opportunity to touch the fabric of the production and feel the depth of emotion that can be lost in a larger space.
I was fortunate to find this jewel many years ago, and my daughter and I have been attending performances for almost a decade. Now at the ripe age of 10 (yes, she cut her teeth on Macbeth when she was two — but only made it through the first act) she is becoming a Shakespearean aficionado if there is such a thing and eagerly looks forward to and dearly loves seeing the plays.
If you have a young one, the company can provide you with study guides for the plays that will dramatically enhance your child’s appreciation and understanding of the performances. I found that utilizing these texts really helped my daughter enjoy his texts and get past the language barrier that so often disengages modern patrons both young and old — yes the study guides have helped dad too.
If you have the time to go you should defiantly go, if you don’t have the time, then you should make the time — you won’t be disappointed.

I have tried desperately and many times to love Seattle Shakespeare Co. But sadly, they consistently disappoint. Generally poor to mediocre acting, direction of questionable focus, minimal sets (not necessarily a bad thing, but shouldn’t be flat and mundane), and the ever so boring, overused setting of the play in a contemporary or weird context to please a simple and undereducated audience. Shakespeare’s plays are timeless; they don’t need to be pimped up to be made «relevant». I have attended any number of performances in increasing desperation for real Shakespeare. Please SSC, sit down with your company and board and review, redefine your ideas of quality. By the way, the Ashland Shakespeare Festival is just as bad, maybe worse. They spend much more money on their conceptual crap.

A recent production of «As You Like It» has made me a fan for life. The acting was superb and the costumes and set went above and beyond my expectations. I particularly enjoyed the musical additions to the play. Well done! Creative. Inspiring. A wonderful date night activity. Go!

Looking for a quality local theatre experience? Well get your bootie over to Shakes! Every show I’ve seen there is creative, innovative and true to the text. I also appreciate their use of local Seattle talent, as we have a robust pool to choose from! I look forward to catching «A Doll’s House» in their upcoming season as their previous attempts to put up non-​Shakespeare shows have been great! Also, they sometimes will put tickets up on Goldstar at a discounted price! Or you can attend a Pay What You Can performance as well since they offer PWYC for every show. Now what are you waiting for?

I LOVE Seattle Shakes! Other reviews outline many of the same reasons (quality presentations, great acting, intimate setting, etc), so I won’t repeat those here.
Every year, I go to Ashland — Oregon Shakespeare Festival — and over the course of a week, I see every play. I’ll put SS up against OSF any day of the week! In fact, there have been a number of shows where I felt Seattle Shakes performance was better than OSF. All this at a lower cost and with no travel required.

Several years back, my then-​girlfriend (current wife) dragged me to a production of Caesar by the Seattle Shakespeare Company. In the cramped confines of their stage at Center House, we were treated to a well-​acted, creatively anachronistic version of the classic. We’ve come to many plays since, and they’re usually good, often excellent. Almost all the actors are local, which is practically obligatory in any market outside of New York or Los Angeles. Despite that fact, the quality holds up. It’s worth a visit here, even in those terribly uncomfortable seats (dont expect much for concessions, either).

Wooden O is a great partner who puts on free Shakespeare in the park during the summer!!! Would highly recommend! Great for families! Bring a picnic dinner and enjoy some great acting!

A friend and I attended Hamlet in December 2010 and were both thoroughly impressed and in love with the performance. A small intimate theatre definitely helps, but what really did it was that the actors knew their parts SO dang well. The production was simple, as it should be, Shakespeare’s words can stand on their own, and the actor’s really made them their own.
We were fortunate enough to be seated dead-​center in the second row, but the theatre is small enough that any seat ofers a wonderful view, and great acoustics. Before this show I didn’t even know this wonderful little theatre was tucked into the underbelly of the Seattle Center House.
If you have the opportunity to see a show with these fine actors and in this fantastic, intimate space: GO!
and yes, I did spell it theatRE, and that’s how I always spell it ;)

This is one of my favorite theaters in Seattle, and I work for a theater so that hopefully means a lot. The space is magical with perfect lighting, great acoustics, comfortable seating all hiding in the belly of the Seattle Center’s Center house. I was lucky enough to work in the tech booth when my theater troupe performed in this space during Bumbershoot this year. I loved it!
And what better way to use such a space than to display the brilliant works of Shakespeare? I’ve seen numerous plays here and most of them were perfect. Every now and then the Seattle Shakespeare Company takes a chance with the setting, the time period and the style that doesn’t really work. Sometimes the casting is a little off, but it’s never to the point that the show is ruined. Sometimes the casting is utter genius and it’s during moments like these that live theater really touches your soul. An example of this was the wonderful delivery of Prospero’s final soliloquy at the end of «The Tempest» in 2009. It was performed with such passion, gravitas and emotion that I had chills running down my spine. This is what Shakespeare is all about!

Just saw Hamlet at the SSc. I was blown away. This Hamlet actually contains humor, which was probably the original intention, although you never see it performed that way.
The actors were top notch. The theater is intimate, so buy your tickets early!
I didn’t give it 5 stars because I really like elaborate costumes with my Shakespeare, and this was a very stripped down set; costumes were black, white, Grey or beige. The set was minimal. It was still a fantastic production, though.

I was lucky enough to get a pair of comps to Henry V last night through Seattle Comp Tickets, and I really enjoyed my very first visit to the Seattle Shakespeare Co.
Their theater is an intimate little space nestled practically under the monorail at the Seattle Center. They have four shows every season– next year I am looking forward to Cymbeline and Brecht’s Three-​Penny Opera– that’s right, they don’t do JUST Shakespeare.
With pay-​what-​you-​can and preview nights, there’s no reason to miss a show if the recession has been a little too personal lately. However, if you can swing it, support the arts with your hard-​earned monies. Groups like Seattle Shakespeare Co. will put it to very good use.

I love me some Shakespeare, and Seattle Shakes knows how to serve it up right! Their space at the Center House Theater is small and intimate, so no matter where you sit you’re close to the action. Despite the small space they make great use of it with their set design.
I recently saw Twelfth Night and my date and I both had a great time. It was a hilarious rendition of yet another one of the Bard’s tales of mistaken identity. I particularly enjoyed John Bogar’s comically libidinous performance as Malvolio.
I also caught a preview performance of Electra and was impressed. The director, Sheila Daniels, is responsible for several of my favorite plays at Intiman theater. Unsurprisingly, the play was intense and filled with anguished performances – particularly Marya Sea Kaminski’s portrayal of poor, tortured Electra. I’ve got a few minor complaints with the story, but that’s Sophocles’ fault.
I’m looking forward to the rest of Seattle Shakespeare Company’s 2010 season, especially the Two Gentleman of Verona.

The Seattle Shakespeare has been in operation for over 16 years, and if you don’t think that is an accomplishment, you don’t know the Seattle theatre scene!
In a time when today’s hot theatre is tomorrows bankruptcy case, the Seattle Shakespeare Company has managed to put on innovative, consistently entertaining theatre while maintaining it’s scrappy, smaller theatre roots. The company attracts some of the best actors and directors of the Seattle/​Portland acting scene, and manages to make 500 year old plays sound fresh and new. Higher praise cannot be said.
You can find them tucked away downstairs at the Seattle Center House, at the mighty Seattle Center. I’ve found to call the box office to check if there is a game or concert at the Center (there’s ALWAYS something going on there), then to make my parking decisions based on that. Stupid, stupid parking.