But for the thousand-plus attendees at Tuesday night's performance of the play on the University of Montana Oval, those words might as well have applied to the spectacle itself.
Around these parts, Montana Shakespeare in the Parks is famous, sir, in its profession, and that is its great right to be so.
“We've come every year since (Hayley) was 3 years old,” said Jensen. “It's our last thing we do in the summer, before school starts.”
Tuesday's performance hadn't even begun when Hayley affirmed her love for the family tradition.
“I want to be Shakespeare when I grow up,” she declared, quickly correcting herself. “I want to be in this, in Shakespeare in the Parks.” Contrasting live theater to movies, she noted sagely, “they're real instead of fake, which is neat.”
Neat indeed. No other summertime arts tradition holds such a long and beloved reputation in Missoula and around the state as Montana Shakespeare in the Parks. Now in its 36th season touring the Treasure State, the Bozeman-based professional acting company draws casual picnickers, curious students and die-hard theater nuts for performances of some of the most beloved classics in the world of theater.
Peter and Janelle Gornick count themselves in the die-hard camp. The couple showed up to stake their blanket-space at the foot of the outdoor stage at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, waiting more than five hours for the play to begin. They brought backpacks stuffed with food and a couple of bottles of wine to bide the hours.
“I took the day off work, because I wanted to just relax and have fun,” said Peter, who works as a teller at Wells Fargo Bank. “I like to watch them set up and see the crowd come in, and we always meet interesting people.”
People like Gary Fee and Jo Burris of Alberton, who showed up around 3:30 and planted themselves next to the Gornicks. Fee and Burris have been attending Montana Shakespeare in the Parks productions for years with their friends, Bill and Gretchen Wilson of Missoula.
For the two-night engagements, each couple takes a turn planning dinner.
“Tonight, we have a first course of crab gazpacho with heirloom tomatoes,” explained Gretchen Wilson. “Then the second course is meat pies stuffed with elk burger and peas and potatoes. Then we have brownies with port, and we also brought three types of red wine. It's fun to plan it out and have a great picnic to go with the great theater.”
Fee nodded in agreement.
“These productions are as good as any I've seen anywhere,” he said. “You wouldn't expect it, since it's free and this company is traveling to every little crossroads in Montana. But they do an excellent, excellent job.”
Montana Shakespeare in the Parks returns to the UM Oval Wednesday night for a performance of Shakespeare's “Macbeth.”
On the lawn
Montana Shakespeare in the Parks will perform William Shakespeare's “Macbeth” tonight on the University of Montana Oval. The performance is free and open to the public. Audience members are encouraged to bring chairs and blankets to the performance. In case of rain, the performance will be held in the University Theatre.
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