Forest Park Theatre’s annual free Shakespeare in the Park is back with Pericles, a nautical tale of an adventurous prince.
“It’s an adult fairy tale,” said Richard Corley, founder of Forest Park Theatre and the show’s director. But it’s also a story with parallels to the real world, about a migrant who’s looking for refuge.
In the play, believed to be written at least in part by William Shakespeare, Pericles is a young prince who has been exiled from his country. As he searches for a new home, he loses his ship and men, competes in a tournament for a princess’ hand in marriage, and experiences love, loss and redemption.
“It’s very meaningful today to tell the story,” Corley said. He’s also added some elements that he said are unusual for Shakespeare plays, including foreign languages, songs and movement.
“This is exponentially the most complex production we’ve done,” Corley said. “Everything about it is new and unusual and a dynamic new experience for the audience.”
Avery-Slade Fountain stars as Pericles and Elizabeth Hope Nahulak is his wife, Thaisa. Nine other actors — some of whom have been with Forest Park Theatre since its beginning, and some who are new additions — will join them on stage for the production in the meadow behind the Altenheim.
A new theater group in town
Forest Park Theatre is a relatively recent addition to Forest Park. Corley founded the group in the spring of 2021.
Corley has a bachelor’s in acting, plus two master’s degrees in theater history and directing. He started a theater in New York City in the 1980s, then worked as associate producing director and artistic director at a theater and acting company. Today, Corley and his wife teach at the University of Illinois Chicago’s theater program.
“When we moved to Forest Park, we noticed two things,” Corley said. The first was that Forest Park is a diverse, welcoming place to live, he added. “And we also noticed there was no theater.”
So, Corley founded Forest Park Theatre, partially as a way for his acting students at UIC to bridge from school into a theater profession.
Shakespeare in the Park was an accessible and familiar way to bring theater to Forest Park, Corley said.
“That’s something that people know and something people can relate to,” Corley said, all free of charge. “I thought we’d do it as a gift to the community.”
Shakespeare in the Park was inspired by the playwright’s original shows, which were performed without microphones, lighting and sound systems.
“This is the way Shakespeare’s plays were meant to be done,” Corley said.
During the summer of 2021, Forest Park Theatre put on its first production of “As You Like It” outside behind the Roos Recreational Center.
But it was difficult to hear microphone-less performers with the noise from I-290 and the Ferrara Candy Company next door.
So, in the summer of 2022 and 2023, Forest Park Theatre moved its productions to The Grove at Altenheim. Two years ago, the cast performed “Imogen,” Corley’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Cymbeline.” Last year’s Shakespeare in the Park production was “Measure for Measure.”
Though Forest Park Theatre doesn’t have its own theater, it’s looking for donations for a place to rehearse and perform. The search has intensified since the group is expanding its offerings this year.
Last year, Corley said Forest Park Theatre started introducing the concept of year-round theater by hosting play readings at American Legion Post 414.
Now, Forest Park Theatre is expanding its official productions. It will put on “The Misanthrope” by Molière and “Electra” by Sophocles in the fall and spring at Madison Street Theater in Oak Park.
As the Forest Park Theatre ensemble gears up for its fourth Shakespeare in the Park production, Corley said he hopes the audience is entertained, but also comes away with a sense of hope.
“It’s a good play to be doing right now because it’s about people who lose their lives, go through very difficult times and, at the end of it, still are open to faith and miracles,” Corley said. “My wish is that everybody in our extremely divided time can come together and see this as an old story that speaks to the human need for reconciliation and community and hope.”
Forest Park Theatre will perform Pericles at the Grove at Altenheim, 7824 Madison St. Performances start at 5 p.m. Aug. 9 through 11, and Aug. 16 through 18. They are free and open to the public.
