“Willliam Shakespeare—a man from a hick town with a high school education.” With that disarming characterization, Shakespeare & Company demystifies the often daunting Bard of Avon. Shakespeare and the Language That Shaped a World, a 45-minute presentation followed by an optional hands-on workshop, is intended mainly for kids but is enjoyable and instructive for grown-ups too. The whirlwind performance by six S&Co actors weaves passages of text around slapstick chases and swordfights, mischievous jokes and snapshots of biography and history—all of it entertaining, often riotous and totally accessible.
Weekend performances through April at Shakespeare & Company, 70 Kemble St., Lenox, (413) 637-3353, www.shakespeare.org.
