Review: ShakesBEER Pub Crawl for a Great Time

Get ready to enjoy beer and The Bard together at the next "ShakesBEER" pub crawl. The first one was presented this past Saturday in the East Village and there's another scheduled for Saturday, May 20th. This is an afternoon of fine Shakespearean entertainment, in neighborhood bar venues that work perfectly for guests. We attended the first one of the season and had a great time.

Produced by the NY Shakespeare Exchange (NYSX), ShakesBEER is New York City's original Shakespearean pub crawl. It is an immersive experience that allows you to kick back, relax, have a cocktail or a beer and experience wonderfully performed classic theatre.

At each of the establishments a different Shakespearean scene or mash-up is presented. They include pieces from "As You Like It," "Measure for Measure," "Twelfth Night," and one of NYSX's signature mash-up scenes. The directors for the performances are Corey Atkins, Nathaniel P. Claridad, Cristina Lundy, and Liz Thaler. Featured in the cast is Melissa Carlile-Price, Sarah Kinsey, Anthony Manna, Jay Ben Markson, and Kathryn Metzger. And while the performances are spot-on, they also have a playful tone that make them charming and well suited to the venues. And don't be surprised if an actor springs up right next to you.

The ShakesBEER pub crawl launches at Parkside Lounge on East Houston Street at 3:00 pm and visits four bars through the late afternoon ending at 6:00 pm. The other venues are Mama's Bar; Croxley's Ale House; and Donnybrook. All four of the bars are within a few blocks of each other. Gather some of your friends, join in the rollicking fun and make your reservations. ShakesBEER tickets for the 5/20 pub crawl are $49 which includes one drink at each of the bars. Drinks include beer, wine, or select cocktails. To purchase tickets, visit www.nysx.org.

New York Shakespeare Exchange

Ross Williams is the Artistic Director of NYSX. The company boldly popularizes Shakespeare for diverse, contemporary audiences in new and timely ways. NYSX is responsible for this season's critically acclaimed, smart phone-obsessed "Much Ado About Nothing," last season's attention-getting "Hamlet10" and the premiere of a highly praised adaptation of Shakespeare's epic poem, "The Rape of Lucrece," which reverberated with audiences for its no-holds-barred portrayal of sexual violence against women. Their brand new "Intersections" traveling theatre program is designed to integrate various factions of a community (regardless of their comfort with theatre or Shakespeare) -- to create a mini Shakespeare festival that engages local businesses, colleges & high schools, and social groups. NYSX's The Sonnet Project -- in which filmmakers from across the country have shot short films in New York locations based on all 154 Shakespeare sonnets -- has generated extensive media coverage and is being used as a classroom tool around the world. The project's next phase -- to commission films made across the United States and internationally -- launched this year. Visit www.SonnetProject.org for more details.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of NYSX

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