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American Shakespeare Center Home of the Blackfriars Playhouse, the first-ever re-creation of Shakespeare's indoor theatre, nestled in the heart of Virginia’s beautiful Shenandoah Valley.
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Home of the Blackfriars Playhouse - the world's only re-creation of Shakespeare's indoor theatre

10/10/2026

The best clique in town can be found inside the Blackfriars Playhouse. Our wonderful Stage Management team keeps the show running behind the scenes.

Just like our acting troupe, our SM teams change season to season, and each team shows up with an outstanding ability to take on the challenge of our lo-tech, lights-on theatre that is unlike any other.

And for that, we celebrate them. Happy International Stage Management Day.💛🎭

✨Featuring:
Jocelyn Thompson, ASC's Summer 2026 Stage Manager -
Rachel Kilgore, ASC's Summer 2026 Assistant Stage Manager
Hailey Pearce, Fundraising & Development Manager -

🎥 Video by Madison Patterson

10/09/2026

And if a soul is what that costs, I don’t think that’s so much, really, because what’s a soul ever done for me?”
-Winnifred

Happy Opening to the Cast & Crew of Jen Silverman’s WITCH. The Devil comes to the quiet village of Edmonton with a bargain to strike. Power, love, security, whatever your heart desires, he can get. The price? Just your soul. Playing NOW at the Blackfriars Playhouse in Staunton, VA.

📅 Runs Through November 14, 2026
🎟 Reserve your now (link in bio)

😈Drop a 😈 in the comments if you’ll be joining us.

✨Cast
Nick Ericksen as Frank Thorney Nick Ericksen
Morgan Rose Ford as Winnifred ⚡️morgan⚡️
Sara J. Griffin as Elizabeth Sawyer Sara Griffin
Ronan Melomo as Cuddy Banks Ronan Melomo
K.P. Powell as Scratch (the Devil) KP Powell
Christopher Seiler as Sir Arthur Banks Christopher Seiler

✨ Creative Team
Director Jemma Alix Levy
Playwright Jen Silverman
Stage Manager Kassandra Melendez-Ramirez
Assistant Stage Manager Kaela A.C. Wilson
Assistant Stage Manager Grayson Fulp
Assistant Director Becca Westbrook Becca Westbrook
Production & Repertory Coordinator Johnny Williams III
Intimacy Choreographer Haley Fentriss Roberts
Wardrobe Shop Manager & Design Assistant Amy Monsalve Amy Monsalve
Costume Coordinator & Wardrobe Supervisor Trina Yager
Costume Technician/Shop Hand Kaylei Kipper Kaylei Kipper
Prop Designer & Shop Manager Conrad Gothard
Props Artisan & Assistant Shop Manager Grace Easterday Grace Easterday
Fight Director John Paul Scheidler
Music Director Christopher Seiler Christopher Seiler

📸Photos by Madison Patterson ✨madison✨

10/09/2026

“And if a soul is what that costs, I don’t think that’s so much, really, because what’s a soul ever done for me?”
-Winnifred

Happy Opening to the Cast & Crew of Jen Silverman’s WITCH. The Devil comes to the quiet village of Edmonton with a bargain to strike. Power, love, security, whatever your heart desires, he can get. The price? Just your soul. Playing NOW at the Blackfriars Playhouse in Staunton, VA.

📅 Runs Through November 14, 2026
🎟 Reserve your seat now at americanshakespearecenter.com

😈Drop a 😈 in the comments if you’ll be joining us.

✨Cast
Nick Ericksen as Frank Thorney .ericksen
Morgan Rose Ford as Winnifred
Sara J. Griffin as Elizabeth Sawyer
Ronan Melomo as Cuddy Banks
K.P. Powell as Scratch (the Devil)
Christopher Seiler as Sir Arthur Banks

✨ Creative Team
Director Jemma Alix Levy
Playwright Jen Silverman
Stage Manager Kassandra Melendez-Ramirez
Assistant Stage Manager Kaela A.C. Wilson
Assistant Stage Manager Grayson Fulp
Assistant Director Becca Westbrook
Production & Repertory Coordinator Johnny Williams III
Intimacy Choreographer Haley Fentriss Roberts
Wardrobe Shop Manager & Design Assistant Amy Monsalve
Costume Coordinator & Wardrobe Supervisor Trina Yager
Costume Technician/Shop Hand Kaylei Kipper .kipper
Prop Designer & Shop Manager Conrad Gothard
Props Artisan & Assistant Shop Manager Grace Easterday .upsidedown_artisan
Fight Director John Paul Scheidler
Music Director Christopher Seiler

📸Photos by Madison Patterson

Jen Silverman’s WITCH opens THIS Friday, October 9th. But before we sell our souls, let’s meet the cast of this darkly f...
10/07/2026

Jen Silverman’s WITCH opens THIS Friday, October 9th. But before we sell our souls, let’s meet the cast of this darkly funny tale of power, patriarchy, and the price of getting what you want.

📍Blackfriars Playhouse, Staunton, VA
✨ PWYW Preview Thursday, October 8th
🥂Opening Night, Friday, October 9th
📅 Runs Through November 14th
🎟 Reserve your seat now at americanshakespearecenter.com

✨Cast
Nick Ericksen as Frank Thorney .ericksen
Morgan Rose Ford as Winnifred
Sara J. Griffin as Elizabeth Sawyer
Ronan Melomo as Cuddy Banks
K.P. Powell as Scratch (the Devil)
Christopher Seiler as Sir Arthur Banks

✨ Creative Team
Director Jemma Alix Levy
Playwright Jen Silverman
Stage Manager Kassandra Melendez-Ramirez
Assistant Stage Manager Kaela A.C. Wilson
Assistant Stage Manager Grayson Fulp
Assistant Director Becca Westbrook
Production & Repertory Coordinator Johnny Williams III
Intimacy Choreographer Haley Fentriss Roberts
Costume Designer Erin M. West
Wardrobe Shop Manager & Design Assistant Amy Monsalve
Costume Coordinator & Wardrobe Supervisor Trina Yager
Costume Technician/Shop Hand Kaylei Kipper .kipper
Prop Designer & Shop Manager Conrad Gothard
Props Artisan & Assistant Shop Manager Grace Easterday .upsidedown_artisan
Fight Director John Paul Scheidler
Music Director Christopher Seiler

📸Photos by Madison Patterson

Jen Silverman’s WITCH opens THIS FRIDAY. Take a sneak peek into this darkly funny tale as the troupe prepares to bargain...
10/05/2026

Jen Silverman’s WITCH opens THIS FRIDAY. Take a sneak peek into this darkly funny tale as the troupe prepares to bargain with the Devil himself. Directed by Jemma Alix Levy, don’t miss this modern retelling inspired by the 1621 Jacobean drama The Witch of Edmonton.

📍Blackfriars Playhouse, Staunton, VA
✨ PWYW Thursday, October 8, 2026, 7:30 PM (Preview)
🥂Opening Night. Friday, October 9, 2026 7:30 PM
📅 Runs Through November 14th, 2026
🎟 Reserve your seat now at americanshakespearecenter.com
✨Cast
Nick Ericksen as Frank Thorney .ericksen
Morgan Rose Ford as Winnifred
Sara J. Griffin as Elizabeth Sawyer
Ronan Melomo as Cuddy Banks
K.P. Powell as Scratch (the Devil) (not pictured)
Christopher Seiler as Sir Arthur Banks

✨ Creative Team
Director Jemma Alix Levy
Playwright Jen Silverman
Stage Manager Kassandra Melendez-Ramirez
Assistant Stage Manager Kaela A.C. Wilson
Assistant Stage Manager Grayson Fulp
Assistant Director Becca Westbrook
Production & Repertory Coordinator Johnny Williams III
Intimacy Choreographer Haley Fentriss Roberts
Wardrobe Shop Manager & Design Assistant Amy Monsalve
Costume Coordinator & Wardrobe Supervisor Trina Yager
Costume Technician/Shop Hand Kaylei Kipper .kipper
Prop Designer & Shop Manager Conrad Gothard
Props Artisan & Assistant Shop Manager Grace Easterday .upsidedown_artisan
Fight Director John Paul Scheidler
Music Director Christopher Seiler

📸Photos by Kaity Kearschner

10/03/2026

Happy Mean Girls Day to all who celebrate.

Looking for something fun to do tonight? Head over to americanshakespearecenter.com to find out what's playing at the Blackfriars Playhouse.

✨Featuring:
Audience Services Manager - Rosemary Richards

🎥 Video by Madison Patterson

10/02/2026

“If I could somehow discover what causes life to spark. If I could somehow direct the power of lightning to ignite that spark.” –Act I

🧌 Happy Opening to the Cast & Crew of MARY SHELLEY’S FRANKENSTEIN. Electric, visceral, and unsettling, this haunting stage adaptation blurs the line between human and monstrous in a gothic masterpiece that still chills and thrills. Just in time for spooky season. Playing NOW at the Blackfriars Playhouse located in Staunton, VA.

📅 Runs Through November 14, 2026
🎟 Reserve your seat now at americanshakespearecenter.com

Drop a 🧪 in the comments if you’ll be joining us.

✨ Cast
Daniel DeYoung as Lord Byron, Scottish Sailor, Professor Waldman, & Creature
Isa Guitian as Claire Clairmont, Portuguese Sailor, Mother, Villager, Sofia, Angel of Death, William, Woman in Black, & Wedding Officiant .guitian
Angela Iannone as Dr. John Polidori, Walton, Henry Clerval, & DeLacey
Ronald Román-Meléndez as Percy Bysshe Shelley, Victor Frankenstein, & Felix
Isabel Sanchez as Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, & Elizabeth Lavenza

✨Creative Team
Director Aidan O’Reilly
Stage Manager Alexander Carey
Assistant Stage Manager Grayson Fulp
Assistant Stage Manager Kaela A.C. Wilson
Assistant Director Mili Koncelik
Production & Repertory Coordinator Johnny Williams III
Costume Designer Erin M. West
Wardrobe Shop Manager & Design Assistant Amy Monsalve
Costume Coordinator & Wardrobe Supervisor Trina Yager
Costume Technician/Shop Hand Kaylei Kipper .kipper
Prop Designer & Shop Manager Conrad Gothard
Props Artisan & Assistant Shop Manager Grace Easterday .upsidedown_artisan
Fight Director John Paul Scheidler
Fight Captain Ronald Román-Meléndez
Music Director Christopher Seiler
Music Captain Daniel DeYoung
Music Assistant Joan Raube-Wilson
Intimacy Choreographer Haley Fentriss Roberts
Movement Director Emily Oleson
Casting Consultant Peter Simon Hilton

📸Video by Madison Patterson

Spooky Season has commenced. 🎃🧙‍♀️The Blackfriars Playhouse has the perfect spooky night out for all your ghouls and ga...
10/01/2026

Spooky Season has commenced. 🎃🧙‍♀️

The Blackfriars Playhouse has the perfect spooky night out for all your ghouls and gals.

🌪️THE TEMPEST runs until November 13th
🧪MARY SHELLEY’S FRANKENSTEIN opens October 2nd and runs until November 14th
🧹WITCH opens October 9th and runs until November 14th

Find tickets at americanshakespearecenter.com

✨Featuring:
Sara J. Griffin

📸Photos by Madison Patterson

🕯️Lights ON Blackfriars invites you inside the work before the performance begins.These live, in-person theatre conversa...
09/30/2026

🕯️Lights ON Blackfriars invites you inside the work before the performance begins.

These live, in-person theatre conversations at the Blackfriars Playhouse bring together the artists and scholars behind our Fall 2026 repertory to explore the stories, ideas, history, and creative choices shaping the work onstage. You’ll hear from directors, dramaturgs, educators, and scholars, discover more about the worlds behind The Tempest, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, and Witch, and head into the performance with a little more to listen for.

🗓️ Select Saturdays | 11:00 AM
📍 Blackfriars Playhouse, Staunton, VA
⌚ About 1 hour | Just after the Playhouse Tour

Upcoming Schedule:
Oct 3 – Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein Director Conversation with Aidan O’Reilly
Oct 10 – Witch Director Conversation with Jemma Alix Levy
Oct 17 – Dylan Mabe on Early Modern English society, religious doctrine, and rumors of corruption
Oct 31 – Dr. Michelle Brock on witchcraft in the early modern period
Nov 14 – Dr. Peter Kirwan on the dramaturgy of The Tempest

No prior Shakespeare knowledge required—just curiosity.

Free for Blackfriars Circle members. Tickets available for all other guests.

Pair it with a Playhouse Tour and make a full morning at the theatre under Shared Light.

Did you know that the American Shakespeare Center offers ASL-interpreted performances on select dates at the Blackfriars...
09/30/2026

Did you know that the American Shakespeare Center offers ASL-interpreted performances on select dates at the Blackfriars Playhouse in Staunton, Virginia? Actors and audiences share the same room, the same light, and the same live moment.

Join us on Wednesday, October 28th, for our ASL-interpreted performance of William Shakespeare's THE TEMPEST.

For more information and tickets, visit https://americanshakespearecenter.com/events/asl-interpreted-performances/

💖ASL Interpreters
Emily Haynes McGee
Dr. Lindsey Snyder

📸Photo by Madison Patterson

Address

10 S Market Street
Staunton, VA
24401

Opening Hours

Wednesday 1pm - 5pm
Thursday 1pm - 5pm
Friday 1pm - 5pm
Saturday 12pm - 4pm
Sunday 12pm - 4pm

Telephone

+18776824236

Website

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