With twelve years under the tents, Craig Erickson is a veteran of the Bard stages—and he’s someone who needs no introduction. 

This summer, Craig is back on our BMO Mainstage, clad in Brooks (and occasionally, a fake mustache) in an unmissable performance as the hilariously jealous Mr. Ford in The Merry Wives of Windsor. Says Stir, “If the wives spend the evening delighting in the chaos, Mr. Ford spends it suffering through it.”

We had the chance to sit down with Craig to chat about how he found his way into the theatre, navigating between the comedic and the dramatic, and the influences that he drew on when bringing Mr. Ford to life

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you got your start in theatre?
I was born in Saskatchewan, and I was the only child for four years, so I was always on my own in these wide open spaces. My imagination was pretty wild, so I think that’s where I developed a kind of flair for the dramatic. That’s where I felt the true me, even though everyone around me were farmers. My mom likes to take some credit too: she was a city gal, and she loved to do drama and she can be very silly, so I think I took some of that from her. Then I thought I might want to be a journalist, so I took English literature in university, and then I realized, “I’d be a terrible journalist.” I thought about acting and decided to pursue a Master of Fine Arts, so I went down to Texas—Southern Methodist University in Dallas—and I did a three-year conservatory program. I was very, very raw. I was the only one without a BFA already, but there’s no doubt I improved the most. I was very eager and just soaked it all in. I went to New York for a year after that, and then Toronto for seven years, and then I’ve been in Vancouver for most of the new millennium. I liked Toronto as an artistic city, but Vancouver, for me, has been much better than I could have ever expected. One doesn’t have to be pigeonholed here, in my experience. I’ve loved being here and getting to be a leader in the theatre community, and Bard is a huge part of that. It feels like an artistic home. It’s always scary to say that, because I’m not really an insider, per se. I just ended up here for 12 years, sometimes in very funny ways. I’ve done 25 different Shakespeare plays—34 different productions in total—so Bard offers me a chance to keep exploring this great writer, which I’m very thankful for.

Ashley Wright as Falstaff and Craig Erickson as Mr. Ford in The Merry Wives of Windsor (2026) | Photo by Emily Cooper

In The Merry Wives of Windsor, you play Mr. Ford, and what a character. How do you dive into a role like that?
I start with the text and see what I can mine from that: what I say and what’s said about him. It’s finding the truth that’s there, and then turning up the comedy dial. I’m using at least three or four different Looney Tunes characters in this role. Bugs Bunny and his friends always influence my comic characters in some ways, but this guy’s more Daffy Duck, I would say. Then it’s being reminded that he’s saying this line, and there’s some real hurt underneath that. Let’s see how we can ground the character and allow the audience to come into his story even for a brief moment, before we go, “Oh, this guy’s nuts.” It’s being in touch with these feelings of loss that can lead to jealousy, or the insecurity that can lead to envy. It’s not like I write a 40-page biography of Mr. Ford, but it’s a bit of reality and commitment to the words—and if it comes out funny, even better.

Craig Erickson as Mr. Ford in The Merry Wives of Windsor (2026) | Photo by Emily Cooper

And we have to talk about—spoiler alert—“Dancing On My Own.” How did that moment happen?
It’s such a great song. They encouraged me to go for—if not complete sincerity—some sincerity with it, but to also add little touches of his self-awareness that he’s performing. I don’t know exactly what the reality is. I don’t think anybody does, but it doesn’t really matter. He’s not doing karaoke. He’s not really doing a musical. He’s just singing. It feels like a gift, because it doesn’t really matter what I do. It’s such a great tune in that situation, which is coming out of his frustration and pent-up anger, and it just does all the work.

You kind of touched on it earlier when you were talking about grounding Mr. Ford, but how do you navigate between comedy and drama?
I do feel like the gift of acting is that you get to try on different aspects of the human experience. You can be feeling really bad about a situation, but then someone says something about it that you’ll find really funny. Or even like a day or an hour later, you can laugh at yourself for taking yourself so seriously. So the comic and the dramatic go together. But I’ve been influenced by lots of comedians and cartoons.

The Company of The Merry Wives of Windsor (2026) | Photo by Emily Cooper

You mentioned Looney Tunes?
Yeah, Looney Tunes, definitely. There’s Ricky Gervais, and the original The Office was a big influence for me. [Charlie] Chaplin and Buster Keaton, those original silent film stars. Pete Holmes, a stand-up comedian. I like to write as well, so I’m always thinking of characters. I’m the sum of my influences, but it’s also our particular way of filtering the situations we’re in and the love that we receive. We need a lot of love to do comedy, because it’s hard. You just have to enjoy the process of sharing yourself and being vulnerable, because when characters do that—even someone ridiculous, like Mr. Ford—we kind of feel for him, even for a moment. 

To kind of switch things up a bit: in Macbeth, you play one of the Figures and one of the Murderers in this very different world. What has that been like for you?
It’s been really enjoyable. Being in repertory is a mentally refreshing way to work eight shows a week, and Macbeth has been great fun. I feel really blessed that they trust me with the weird stuff. For The Two Gentlemen of Verona last year, Dean [Paul Gibson] was like, “So we’ve got this snobby, rich character as Proteus’ dad; and we’ve got one of the Outlaws as Dee Snider from Twisted Sister with a guitar, but he speaks Norwegian; and also, I want you to lay in a lawn chair on stage for 20 minutes, and then you come to life in a Weekend at Bernie’s reference.” Yeah, sign me up. For Macbeth, the main challenge for me is just changing clothes quickly backstage. By that, I mean the 40lb robes. That might be an exaggeration, but it feels like it at the end of a two-show day. The silicone masks were a good challenge, too. There’s one entrance where we come from a very tight space somewhere on the set, and I had one claustrophobic moment in rehearsal because the masks are basically suctioned to your face, so they don’t breathe well, and then there’s a robe on top and a veil over your face. I was like, “I think I need to get out of here.” The time came for my two comrades, Zahf [Paroo] and Raf [Rogers], to appear, and the third was nowhere to be found.

Craig Erickson, Raf Rogers, and Zahf Paroo as Figures in Macbeth (2026) | Photo by Emily Cooper

Speaking of Macbeth, I also wanted to touch on your understudy role for Macduff. What has it been like working with Jacob Leonard and bringing your different life experiences to a character like that?
Understudies have been a change that we need to embrace in the industry. We need the ability for people to call out when they’re not well or during the odd time where there’s something very important in their life. It’s good to have that backup when life collides with your job, even when it’s a great job like Bard. Jacob and I are actually good pals. We’ve been bay mates the last two years in our dressing room, and he’s a sweet kid, super talented. As far as Macduff, I observed him and his blocking, but in an emotional role like that, I didn’t rely on exactly what he was doing. I tried to use the words to inform how I would do it. Even in a very truncated non-process, I’m just trying to find a product that, if I needed to go on, I can do. But even so, you’re trying to find those emotional touchstones. I like the challenge. It keeps the brain sharp as you get older, right?

Now, thinking back to your time at Bard as a whole, is there a moment that stands out to you or a memory that you really cherish?
It might be recency bias, but I really enjoyed last year’s process with The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised] [again]. We were creating the script as well as building it, so we had absolute freedom in rehearsals to improvise and put forth ideas. Mark Chavez is such a generous leader in that way, and making him laugh was a great honour to me. The year before that, in Measure for Measure, there was that awful monologue of Angelo’s where I stand on the desk with a mic, and I say, “You can’t go anywhere. I’ll blaspheme your name if you don’t do what I want.” Then I extend the microphone to the whole crowd, really slowly and with such arrogance, as if to say, “Does anyone have anything to say?” That, on its own, is a moment, but once I did have someone yell, “Incel!” It’s what I was courting, but it was hard for me to really commit to wanting an answer. I’m a sensitive soul! To stand there and look at everyone and then get feedback was alarming, but also gratifying, because they had to say something and we want that in our society. Getting to play the first Mark Anthony in Julius Caesar in 2007, too. To do the “Friends, Romans, countrymen” speech for the first time at Bard felt like a real honour.

Is there anything that you’ve been reading or watching or listening to?
I’ve just been getting into Enneagrams. At its worst, it’s seen as a kind of self-help personality tool, but it’s a lot more than that. There are a lot of books on it as a kind of spiritual formation tool, and really, they’re ideas about what motivates us positively, and then if we go too far, the possible temptations or ways in which we manipulate. I’m interested in that self-knowledge, and the idea that that shadow work allows you to be a more authentic human and be able to extend more kindness to others. 

Finally, when you’re not at Bard, what do you like to get up to?
Writing’s always been part of my life, so I’ve always got ideas on the go for that. I like to hike. When I can, I’m always trying to arrange—I was going to say play dates, but it almost feels like that with my kids. They’re all older now and everyone’s got their own schedule. I’m very prone to being the overly eager dad trying to arrange something, and they’re like, “We just saw you.” I’m like, “But that was four days ago.” 

Thanks so much for chatting with us, Craig! 

There’s only one week left for you to catch Craig in action in The Merry Wives of Windsor and Macbeth before our 2026 Season closes on September 19. Get your tickets now online or by calling our Box Office!