What's Happening in Lynnwood, WA…

Arguably the greatest playwright in history, Shakespeare has written such insightful works they are still performed around the world 400 years after he wrote them.

The city’s Shakespeare in the Park program is bringing two plays to Lynnwood audiences, both to be performed outdoors at the Lynndale Park Amphitheater. Wooden O Productions, part of Seattle Shakespeare, is performing “The Two Gentlemen of Verona,” and GreenStage is presenting “Henry VI, Parts 2 and 3.”

The first is one of Shakespeare’s earliest plays, some say it was the first. The convoluted plot involves two sets of masters and their servants, mistaken identity, falling in love with the same woman, and one of Shakespeare’s favorite devices—setting part of the action in a forest.

The Henry plays are part of Shakespeare’s masterful look at the history of English monarchs. He has examined the young “Prince Hal,” in “Henry IV, Parts I and II,” and “Henry V,” and “Richard III” is perennially popular, but “Henry VI” is not performed as often. The three plays in the “Henry VI” sequence examine the Wars of the Roses, civil wars fought between the Houses of York and Lancaster as they struggled for the throne. It is essentially a political play, and always relevant.

“Two Gentlemen” will be performed July 18, and “Henry” on July 25. The plays are free though a $5 donation is suggested. Performances start at 7.00 pm. Organizers of events like these will often use brochure printing to create programs for the audience.