The second annual Wisconsin Shakespeare Festival will be held in Eau Claire this summer at the Pablo Center.

The festival will take place in July and will include productions of three Shakespeare plays, the Improbable Fiction New Works Series and a performance by the Merely Players, a group of young performers focused on Shakespeare’s works.

The young actors will also participate in workshops involving Shakespeare’s acting and writing.

The Improbable Fiction New Works Series will occur on July 24. The series will feature performances of original plays by playwrights from around the world. The Merely Players will perform around Eau Claire from July 2 through July 26.

During the “Main Stage Season,” productions of “Romeo and Juliet,” directed by Kathleen Barth, “Twelfth Night,” directed by Arthur Grothe and “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) (revised) (again),” directed by Larisse Campbell, will take place from July 5-28.

Logan Ackerman, a second-year English education student with a minor in theatre, is one of two UW-Eau Claire students who will be performing at the Wisconsin Shakespeare Festival.

Ackerman will play the roles of Samson and Watchman in “Romeo and Juliet.” He will also understudy Romeo.

“A lot of the people who auditioned are from all over the country, so it’s going to be really exciting to work with a lot of professional actors and people from other universities who are studying theatre as undergraduates,” Ackerman said.

Ackerman said he submitted an audition tape this past January and received a callback toward the beginning of the semester. He will be living in Eau Claire over the summer with rehearsals beginning near the end of the semester.

“I’ll be getting to work with a lot of fantastic people. It’s kind of an honor that Eau Claire gets to host this,” Ackerman said. “I know at least a few other states hold their own festivals, so a lot of the actors involved in this one will be auditioning for multiple around the country.”

Ackerman said he started acting at a young age and that UW-Eau Claire’s rich theatre programs were part of what drew him to the school.

Cast-wise, Ackerman said there are roughly twenty actors involved in the festival. He said there are quite a few more, including some professors, who are involved in set design and costumes.

“It will be great to work with people I know from here, but also the chance to meet and work with people from all over who are involved with theatre,” Ackerman said.

Ackerman said events like the Wisconsin Shakespeare Festival help younger generations learn to appreciate and enjoy Shakespeare’s works.

Wojahn can be reached at [email protected].