The American Shakespeare Center hosts an internationally acclaimed theatre company that performs Shakespeare's works under their original staging conditions -- on a simple stage, without elaborate sets, and with the audience sharing the same light as the actors. Home to the ASC's resident troupe and the ASC on Tour, the Blackfriars Playhouse has been established as one of America's premier Shakespeare destinations.

Situated in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley in historic Staunton, Virginia, the 300-seat Blackfriars Playhouse -- the world's only re-creation of Shakespeare's original indoor theatre -- opened its doors in September 2001 and has already delighted tens of thousands of enthusiastic audience members from around the world. The product of years of research, this unique, historically accurate performance space provides the perfect backdrop for the ASC's Elizabethan staging practices, and has already been called...

The Blackfriars Playhouse is open year-round for Shakespeare productions, hailed by The Washington Post as "shamelessly entertaining" and by The Boston Globe as "phenomenal…bursting with energy." It's also the perfect venue for meetings and conferences, or for the wedding of your dreams. Additionally, the Playhouse is open for special musical and theatrical events, workshops, educational programs, and theatre tours.

Be sure to take a Virtual Tour of the theatre offered below, and find out why Southern Living believes that "Staunton's Blackfriars Playhouse will make you fall in love with Shakespeare."

EDUCATION:

The American Shakespeare Center is also an internationally recognized education department that teaches Shakespeare's works using their original staging conditions -- with a focus on the language, using a stage unimpeded by sets, and with the audience sharing the same light as the actors.  As an essential part of our mission to be a place to enjoy and to study Shakespeare in performance, the American Shakespeare Center is pleased to open its rehearsals to scholars, students, and researchers who wish to deepen their understanding of the process of staging a play. We invite those who would like to see a rehearsal to contact the Education department to schedule their visits.

Blackfriars Playhouse Virtual Tour
Click each of the pictures below to see a different view of the inside of the Blackfriars Playhouse. Things have changed a bit since these films were taken -- in particular, we've painted the Frons Scenae at the back of the stage to resemble what we think the original Blackfriars may have looked like. Also, for the comfort of today's audiences, during performances you'll see cushions and seatbacks on all our reserved seats. But here we show you the bare wood, so you can see the underlying simple beauty of the Blackfriars.
Stage	Benches 1	Benches 2	Balcony

• Going Green
• Globe II Theatre

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