The Shaw wishes to acknowledge and honour the land upon which we gather as the historic and traditional territory of First Nations peoples. In particular, we recognize and thank the Neutral Nation, the Mississauga and the Haudenosaunee for their stewardship of these lands over millennia.
In 1962, in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, lawyer and playwright Brian Doherty parlayed his love for the work of Irish playwright Bernard Shaw into a summer theatre festival, producing eight performances of Don Juan in Hell and Candida in the Court House auditorium. In this singular act of passion for theatre and culture, the Shaw Festival was born.
Today, with 10 or more productions each year performed in three theatres for an audience of more than 250,000, the Shaw Festival has grown to become a major Canadian cultural icon, a gem in this country’s rich cultural heritage. Inspired by the wit and passion of Bernard Shaw, the Shaw Festival is a contemporary theatre that features a smart, provocative, potent and diverse mix of plays from the past and present, performed by our celebrated repertory theatre Ensemble. The result is theatre that is challenging, surprising, often funny and always entertaining. These plays are lovingly and artfully brought to the stage each year by a talented team of actors, directors, and designers, showcasing the incredible tapestry of talent that this country contributes to the world.
Helmed by Artistic Director Tim Carroll (TC), this 59th Season which was to offer 14 productions from April 2 to December 23, including two Sondheim musicals Gypsy and Assassins, the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata, Bernard Shaw’s The Devil’s Disciple; and two Holiday Season shows has been largely cancelled due to Covid-19. Hoping to offer a smaller fall season featuring Charley’s Aunt and Flush as well as A Christmas Carol for the Holiday Season.
Recipient of Trip Advisor’s “Certificate of Excellence”, the Shaw Festival is … the perfect intermission from life.
“directly comparable in scope and quality to such ambitious south-of-the-border classical festivals as the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. If you’re up for a weekend—or a whole week—of first-class theater, you should give very serious thought to going there” – Wall Street Journal
“I’ll be back.” – American Theatre
Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), the acclaimed dramatist, critic and social reformer, was born in Dublin where he grew up in an atmosphere of genteel poverty.
The Shaw Festival, home to Two-Way Theatre, is a place where people who are curious about the world gather to share the unique experience of live theatre.
"It’s a nice problem to have: how to improve on last season?"
