A sea storm, a shipwreck, a magical spirit, an island, a prince, a princess, a monster and clowns —The Tempest, Shakespeare’s final play, is being performed by the Free Shakespeare in the Park Theatre Company at the Amazon Community Center’s South Lawn Amphitheater until August 25. With themes of revenge and, ultimately, forgiveness, The Tempest is one of Shakespeare’s most praised plays. The audience is welcome to join in by cheering and clapping for the heroes, or cheering and clapping for the villains if that’s their preference. People are encouraged to bring picnics, blankets and beach chairs. The showings are family-friendly, and Free Shakespeare in the Park Theatre Company makes sure that its performances are accommodating with amplified sound and ADA accessibility. Kicking off in 1999, this year’s showing of The Tempest will be the company’s 23rd production — there was a two-year COVID hiatus. Last year the company performed Much Ado About Nothing. Prospero, the unfairly banished former duke of Milan, sees a ship coming in the distance, caught in a maelstrom of a storm, all according to his plan. A play about power and the misuse of power, The Tempest at first relies on magic to right wrongs but finally settles on the human magic of forgiveness to move past the wrongs. — Pierce Baugh V
