Have you seen Twelfth Night already? If you have you’ll remember the beautiful music and songs that our talented cast lend their voices to. This year, Bard newbie Jeremy Spencer rose to the challenge of composing a style of music that would illuminate 1913 Illyria and he did it all from Calgary! We found out from the man himself how this all came about.

Read More about How Ragtime came to Twelfth Night

This year a garden oasis, next year a Vanier Park paradise – the greening of the Bard site has begun! Over the last few weeks SO much has been going on down at the park it’s hard to keep up: rehearsals, the Box Office moving in, volunteer training, and of course the tents going up.

Read More about Time to stop and smell the roses

Wardrobe malfunctions and other technical mishaps are always a possibility during live performance but nothing could prepare the audience for what was about to happen at the Twelfth Night dress rehearsal last night. Our invited volunteers, members, board members and staff streamed down to the Village in Vanier Park, to be this season’s very first audience members!

Read More about Malvolio’s Moustache Steals the Show

We’ve had our fair share of stars visit Bard over the years but during a rehearsal for Hamlet on the weekend we spotted a literal star sitting quietly in the back of the theatre: Stars lead singer and songwriter Torquil Campbell.

Read More about Creating Hamlet’s Playlist

Feeling washed up? Need a break?

Imagine, being instantly transported to a luxury spa in the Mediterranean, drifting away to a world of dramatic scenery, relaxation and indulgence. And, imagine if you could get all of that for $40 or less?  

Read More about Bard brings the Mediterranean and New Orleans to Vancouver

Enjoying a picnic in Vanier Park; wandering through the Bard Village, or meeting up with friends and catching your favourite play; there are many reasons that bring people to Bard on the Beach and we love hearing all of them! Need more reasons? Here are 28!

Read More about 28 Reasons why you can’t afford to miss out on Bard this season!

On Friday afternoon a large brown bear was spotted in the downtown region of Vancouver, British Columbia near West Hastings and Abbott streets. Sydney Cavanagh, who was first to notice the large animal, said “I was just sewing and when I looked up there it was. I was shocked.” Cavanagh stayed still and spoke calmly to the bear so as not to alarm it. Brown bears can be very dangerous and should not be approached but after some time Cavanagh said that the bear started to show canine-type loyalty and after a few hours wouldn’t leave her side.

Read More about Bear Sighting in Downtown Vancouver

Fierce windstorms, brutal rays of sunlight and shockingly beautiful views are just a few of the things our dynamic site duo: Sparky Lawrence and Sid Sadowski, and our fabulous site crew are forced to deal with to get the Bard tents up in time for our first performance in five weeks!

On Monday May 27 strong winds threatened to take the tent fabric for a flight over English Bay but with dust in their eyes, the site crew braved the elements and kept everything grounded.

Read More about The Canucks might be down but the tents are up!

By Roanne Ward

Inside the Holy Trinity Parish, in the quaint English town of Stratford-upon-Avon, lies a very important book. Probably one of England’s most visited churches; the parish contains the register recording Shakespeare’s baptism, the only written record indicating his birth.

 

The entry, in Latin, reads: “Guiliamus filius Johannes Shakspere” with the date 26 April 1564.

Read More about It’s Shakespeare’s Birthday! Or is it?

We’ve Broken Ground!

It takes a lot of time and people power to get the Bard Village and our two tents up and ready for you, and the work has begun!

Read More about We’ve Broken Ground!