Shakespeare for the Birds Program
June 12th and 13th, 2021, from 2:00 to 4:00 pm, Story Mill Park, Bozeman
Directed by Gretchen Minton, produced by Kevin Brustuen
Introduction and Directions
Nine actors will be strategically placed along walking paths in the bird sanctuary portion of Story Mill Park, performing scenes and singing songs from Shakespeare related to birds. Audience members will be guided to these performance locations in small pods of 10-12 people in each, as they enjoy the sounds and sights of birds in nature, while at the same time listening to 400-year-old thoughts about these species.
Shakespeare for the Birds performers and poems
“The thrush and the jay” (Winter’s Tale). Song and guitar by John Hosking
“I’ll have a starling” (Henry IV, Part 1) and the story of Eugene Schieffelin. Andrew Rathgeber
“The rise of a tyrant” (a compilation from Macbeth, Henry VI, and Venus & Adonis). Keegan Grady and Stephanie Campbell. Bird mask by Stephanie Campbell
“The cuckoo then on every tree” (Love’s Labours Lost). Song and cello by Katherine Fried
“Swan songs” (a compilation from Romeo & Juliet, As You Like It, Merry Wives of Windsor, King John, and Othello). Painting and excerpts by Aaron Schuerr
“A hawk from a handsaw” (Hamlet and “Heron” by Theodore Roethke). Marc Beaudin
“The lark or the nightingale?” (Romeo & Juliet, with Merchant of Venice and Sonnet 29). Kirsten Daniels and Gabe Taurman
“Mortimer” (a poem by Marc Beaudin). Andrew Rathgeber
About those birds
Shakespeare loved birds. Growing up in a small rural town in England, Shakespeare spent many hours surrounded by nature. His love of birds is reflected in his plays and poetry, including over 64 different species of birds referred to 606 times in his plays and poetry.
In 1890, a Shakespeare-lover living in New York City wanted to recreate Shakespeare in some way, so he imported many of Shakespeare’s birds to New York City, which introduced several invasive species to the United States. For more of this history, see
www.bbc.com/news/magazine-27055030
Special Interests of Performers
Please support our performers by visiting their websites:
Katherine Fried:
Actor, musician, writer, and visual artist www.katherinefried.com
John Hosking:
John’s album of original songs, "Wide Open Door" is available on iTunes, Spotify and all other digital outlets. Purchase CDs here:
Aaron Schuerr:
Plein Air painter. See my work here:
Stephanie Campbell:
Mask artist. I have examples of my art and my work at my webpage here:
Marc Beaudin:
Mark’s recent book about birds, Life List: Poems, is a runner-up for the Montana Book of the Year award. Here is his website with more of his writings: