Baker College Shakespeare Theatre

Past Productions

1970 The Taming of the Shrew
1971 A Midsummer Night's Dream
1972 Twelfth Night
1973 The Country Wife (by William Wycherley)
1974 The Tempest
1975 As You Like It
1976 Henry IV, Part I
1977 Much Ado About Nothing
1978 Love's Labours Lost
1979 The Winter's Tale
1980 Romeo and Juliet
1981 All's Well That Ends Well
1982 Macbeth
1983 The Merry Wives of Windsor
1984 Measure for Measure
1985 The Tempest
1986 A Midsummer Night's Dream
1987 King Lear
1988 The Taming of the Shrew
1989 As You Like It
1990 The Merchant of Venice
1991 Macbeth
1992 The Tempest
1993 Love's Labours Lost
1994 All's Well That Ends Well
1995 Romeo and Juliet
1996 Much Ado About Nothing
1997 The Winter's Tale
1998 Julius Caesar
1999 A Midsummer Night's Dream
2000 The Merry Wives of Windsor
2001 Macbeth
2002 Twelfth Night
2003 King Lear
2004 Othello
2005 The Taming of the Shrew
2006 Cymbeline
2007 Much Ado About Nothing
2008 Richard III
2009 The Tempest
2010 As You Like It
2011 Hamlet
2012 The Winter's Tale

Current Production: The Winter's Tale

This is an interim web page. More details and decor are coming soon.

Production Documents

Performance dates will be Thu.–Sat. Mar. 8–10 & 15–17: the two weekends between spring break and mid-term recess.

What is BakerShake?

Baker College commons

Since the premiere season in 1970, Rice University’s Baker Residential College has hosted the oldest continuous Shakespeare festival in Houston, bringing these classic plays to both the undergraduate population and wider Houston audiences.

Actors from across Rice University—students past and present, staff, and faculty—endeavor to present a lively, intimate, and high-quality performance. Six weeks of rehearsal give the undergraduate actors the chance to deeply inhabit Shakespeare's work and words, and Baker College Commons, originally the university-wide dining hall in the early 1900s, provides a stately space within which to perform. The space lends itself to fast entrances and exits and frequent interaction with the audience, thus recreating the experience of Shakespeare's own day.

Baker Shakespeare needs your donations to run a successful show! Please follow these instructions to make your donation.

  1. Visit http://www.rice.edu/giving/.
  2. Choose the "MAKE A GIFT NOW!" button on the right-hand corner of the page.
  3. Complete the secure online donation form.
  4. Select "Other" from the gift designation menu — and be sure to write "Baker Shakespeare" in the special instructions box.
  5. Your donation will be acknowledged by Rice for record-keeping purposes, and the funds will be routed directly to Baker College.

Contact

For more information, contact the BakerShake box office or the director.

Origins of Baker Shakespeare

Baker Shakespeare began in 1970, guided by college master Charles W. Philpott and inspired by two engineering students, Charles Becker and Ed Dickinson, who wanted to see Shakespeare at Baker. The college Commons, originally the Rice Institute's central dining hall, has since provided a visually exciting (albeit acoustically challenging) backdrop for over forty years of productions, ranging among comedies, tragedies, histories, and romances in settings lavish or minimalist, from ancient to modern.

Students choose a short list of plays in late fall, excluding those performed within the last ten years, then interview and select a director based on proposals. Past directors have included faculty members, alumni, and current students, as well as professional directors from Houston, Bulgaria, and England. Auditions in December or January allow six weeks or more of rehearsal before opening night.

Actors and crew come from any of the eleven residential colleges; students design and run almost all technical aspects (set, lights, costumes, etc.) of the show. Events such as the Shakespeare Faire and a Feast for Baker and Jones seniors also add to the drama, pageantry, and excitement of the Baker Shakespeare tradition.