As You Like It

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comedy, is a classic entrant in the pastoral tradition. This month's production, which runs three weekends beginning June 10, marks the fourth year that the Residential College and Nichols Arboretum jointly present Shakespeare in the Arb.

Like past Arb productions, A Midsummer Night's Dream and Much Ado about Nothing, As You Like It will travel to multiple locations in the park as its characters journey from the intrigue at court to the Forest of Arden. Of special note this year: one early scene (the wrestling match) will inaugurate the Arb's new amphitheater, an organically shaped structure designed by U-M architecture and landscape architecture grad students. And music and dance will be featured more prominently. The festive wedding finale will take place in one of the Arb's hidden gems familiar to those who saw Midsummer — the East Valley.

For director Kate Mendeloff, associate director Martin Walsh, and their merry band of thespians, the Arb provides special energy and inspiration. As Mendeloff described their rehearsal process recently, "We discover the play through the Arb and discover the Arb through the play."