The Summer Shakespeare Festival is the oldest and biggest open-air festival in Europe presenting works by William Shakespeare.

The Festival takes place from the end of June to the beginning of September on open-air scenes in Prague (Prague Castle and Music and Dance Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague), Brno (Špilberk Castle), Ostrava (Silesian Ostrava Castle) and Bratislava (Bratislava Castle). The Festival was started by President Václav Havel when he opened the Prague Castle to artists in the early 1990s in an effort to attract the public there. The first Shakespearean play was staged in 1990 and the festival has been held regularly since 1998.
The Festival enjoys wide popularity as we can see in the demand for tickets, record audience numbers (close to 90,000 per season) and its overall standard reflected in the unparalleled and lively media response and appreciative criticism. Around 150 plays are staged during a summer in an open-air auditorium seating 600 – 1,000 people which is as a rule filled to capacity. The Festival with its annual premieres has established itself during its existence as an event that the public at large does not miss. Plays staged exclusively for the Summer Shakespeare Festival are presented in Czech and sometimes in Slovak.
Although the Festival is largely intended for Czech audiences, the organizers collaborate with foreign ensembles working with Shakespearean themes. The audiences have been able to see during the Festival the comedies ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ and ‘A Midsummer Night‘s Dream’ performed in English by British Shakespeare Company (2009), the comedy ‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’ played by GB Theatre Company (2010), an appearance of the London-based company Shakespeare‘s Globe with the project ‘Globe on Tours – Hamlet’ (2014), a concert evening ‘Patrick Doyle – Shakespeare in Concert’ (2015), the tragedy ‘Richard III’ (2016) performed by the Prague Shakespeare Company to mark the four hundred years’ anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death. Prague Shakespeare Company also performed comedy Measure for Measure (2018), tragedy Othello (2019), comedy Midsummer Night’s Dream (2021,2022) and tragedy Romeo and Juliet (2023).

Twelfth Night (Večer tříkrálový)

Dates: July 10–15, 2025 | 20:30
Description:
A comedy where nothing is quite as it seems. Viola is and isn’t Cesario. Cesario is and isn’t Sebastian. Love is and isn’t love. This enchanting tale follows the adventures of lost twins who unexpectedly reunite in Illyria, where love, laughter, and confusion weave together into an unforgettable story.

Hamlet (SK)
Dates: July 21–22, 2025 | 20:30
Description:
Presented in Slovak, Hamlet explores eternal questions about truth, action, and corruption. This political and family tragedy reveals the complexity of a world corrupted to its core, as Hamlet struggles with his conscience and the meaning of being. Ľuboš Kostelný’s performance earned the prestigious DOSKY award for best male lead.

Othello

Dates: July 25–27, 2025 | 20:30
Description:
A powerful study of jealousy and the destructive power of lies. Othello, a respected Venetian general, falls prey to the cold manipulations of Iago. Set against the prosperous but fragile backdrop of Venice and Cyprus, the play exposes how poisonous words can destroy love, lives, and society itself.

Learlike
Dates: July 28, 2025 | 19:00
Description:
What happens when King Lear is retold through the eyes of his four daughters? This fresh interpretation by the women-led Greensleeved collective reveals deep resistance and complexity in family power struggles and the breaking of old orders, told from a contemporary female perspective.

The Winter’s Tale
Dates: July 29–30, 2025 | 20:30
Description:
A tale blending tragedy and comedy, The Winter’s Tale moves from jealousy and loss to forgiveness and redemption. A powerful story of broken families and miraculous reunions, Shakespeare’s exploration of time and change offers hope beyond despair.

Love’s Labour’s Lost
Dates: August 1–3, 2025 | 20:30
Description:
Four noblemen swear off women to devote themselves to study, but their vow is tested when a princess and her ladies arrive. Bursting with witty wordplay, playful deception, and a “play within a play,” this early Shakespeare comedy is a sparkling examination of love and folly.

As You Like It
Dates: August 5–7, 2025 | 20:30
Description:
In this joyful comedy, identities shift, passions flare, and a magical forest offers refuge and revelation. As love triumphs over conflict and confusion, Shakespeare’s pastoral world celebrates freedom, laughter, and the transformative power of love.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Dates: August 8–9, 2025 | 20:30
Description:
On a midsummer night, magical creatures and mortals collide in a world turned upside down. Lovers, nobles, craftsmen, and fairies navigate passion, jealousy, and enchantment in Shakespeare’s beloved comedy full of humor, irony, and unexpected twists.

Full Programme and tickets available here : Program