Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival | Discover Lehigh Valley

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Mapped location of Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival

DeSales University, 2755 Station Ave. Center Valley, Pennsylvania 18034

(610) 282-9455

Overview

PA Shakespeare Festival Celebrates “Legends and Legacy” During its 2026 Summer Theatre Series

PA Shakespeare Festival, the Lehigh Valley’s Professional Equity Theatre hosted on the campus of DeSales University, returns for its 2026 Summer Theatre Series running May 27 through August 2. This season’s theme, “Legends and Legacy,” celebrates a remarkable convergence of milestones including the Festival’s 35th anniversary, 30 years as the official Shakespeare Festival of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the 25th anniversary of its educational WillPower Tour, and the nation’s Semiquincentennial. Featuring acclaimed actors and artists from Broadway, television, and film, the season honors legendary voices in theatre, music, and literature through nine dynamic productions.

The 2026 lineup includes August Wilson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece The Piano Lesson; the electrifying jukebox musical Million Dollar Quartet featuring the music of Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins; and Shakespeare’s timeless tragedy Romeo and Juliet, presented in repertory with Ken Ludwig’s comedic Sherlock Holmes adventure Moriarty. Audiences can also enjoy The Complete Works of Jane Austen, Abridged, a fast-paced comedic celebration of Austen’s beloved novels, as well as the Festival’s signature “Extreme Shakespeare” production of Coriolanus.

The Family Theatre Series continues with the free “Play On!” Community Tour production of As You Like It, the new children’s play Sheila the Magical—The Princess & The Frog Prince Part 2, and Shakespeare for Kids presents Romeo and Juliet, performed both onstage and throughout community libraries across the region.