Fridays at 5 PM
Spend Your Friday Nights at ASC
Looking for the perfect way to kick off a theatre-filled weekend in Staunton, VA? Head over to the Blackfriars Playhouse from 5-6 PM on Fridays during most show runs throughout the year to catch an engaging series of lectures, workshops, and panels presented on our beautiful stage.
Featuring renowned Shakespeare scholars, brilliant theatre industry experts, beloved ASC creative team members and staff, and knowledgable community partners, Friday Night Lights On events are designed to bring deeper context and meaning to the plays within our season.
FNLO functions as a perfect standalone outing to get your quick Playhouse fix or as a pre-show “appetizer” before enjoying the full meal that is an ASC production, either that same night or later in the weekend. The calendar of speakers and events will be updated throughout the year.
TICKETS: $7 general admission, $5 students/teachers/Blackfriars Circle members
UPCOMING Schedule
Friday, September 27: Dr. Ralph on Macbeth
Dr. Ralph, Co-Founder of the American Shakespeare Center and author of ShakesFear and How to Cure It, is not only a true Shakespeare expert, but also a beloved and engaging speaker with unique insights on Shakespeare’s plays that are perfect for first-timers and life-long scholars alike. You will leave this hour with Dr. Ralph feeling enriched and freshly excited to see Macbeth at the Blackfriars Playhouse, prepared with a deeper understanding of the core brilliance of the play and what makes it special. No ASC experience is truly complete without attending a Dr. Ralph talk, so don’t miss out on this chance!
FRIDAY, OCTOBer 4: “‘let it thunder to the tune of greensleeves!’: Merry wives, music, and comedy” with simon smith
Dr. Simon Smith, Associate Professor of Shakespeare and Early Modern Drama at the Shakespeare Institute of University of Birmingham, will present a talk on music in The Merry Wives of Windsor. Studies tend to overlook Merry Wives in favor of the musical riches of plays like As You Like It and Twelfth Night. This talk will instead put Merry Wives in dialogue with the rest of Shakespeare’s comic writing around the turn of the sixteenth century, suggesting that his experiments in Merry Wives are a crucial context for understanding the more extensive musical possibilities explored in later plays. Come learn how theatre-makers today might draw productively on the multiple possibilities the texts offer when staging Merry Wives!
BROUGHT TO YOU IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MBU SHAKESPEARE AND PERFORMANCE.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11: “techie talk” – A Q&A with the asc props department
Join Conrad Gothard, ASC’s Technical Properties Supervisor, and the Props Team for a fun, engaging Q&A session! Learn all about what it takes to design, source, build, and maintain props and scenic elements for a year-round repertory theatre like the American Shakespeare Center. Learn how to “think like a props designer” when it comes to Shakespeare’s plays and gain a deeper appreciation for the creativity and skill that goes into creating all the props and scenic you see onstage in the four shows of our Summer/Fall Season.
FRIday, october 18: Q&A With DRACULA director, MATT RADFORD DAVIES
Matt Radford Davies is a veteran ASC director and actor. His most recent work as a performer was in 2023’s The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised] (again) and as a director for Love’s Labour’s Lost in 2017. He is back with the American Shakespeare Center this fall to direct Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors. Come spend a Q&A hour with Matt as he discusses the rehearsal process and his approach to comedy and doubling within small casts. Get answers to all your burning questions about this hilariously horrific new production!
FRIDAY, october 25: activating the audience in macbeth with k.p. powell and lia wallace
Join K.P. Powell, current ASC actor playing the title role in Macbeth, and ASC Education Programs Manager, Lia Wallace, as they discuss the powerful dynamic that exists between audience and actor at the Blackfriars Playhouse. With “universal lighting” in place (meaning the house lights stay on during the performance), characters in the play are able to make eye contact and speak directly to the audience. This unique performance style gives the audience a more active role in the storytelling. Join K.P. and Lia to discover first-hand all the methods ASC actors utilize to “activate the audience” to create a more visceral theatre-going experience unique to the Blackfriars.
Friday, november 1: “Something Wicked This Way Comes: Witches, Demonology, and the Struggle for Control in Medieval/Early Modern England and Scotland”
Join ASC’s Finance Assistant, Nina Ryan, for the perfect day-after-Halloween presentation. Iron your pointy hats, polish your brooms, and prepare for an enchanting evening of exploration into the realities of witchcraft in Medieval/Early Modern England and Scotland. This lecture will explore the enduring myths, widespread texts, and harrowing trials that fueled centuries of fascination and inspired Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Nina holds an M.Phil in Medieval Studies: Culture and Civilization from Trinity College Dublin.
Friday, november 8: Dr. Ralph on the supernatural
Dr. Ralph, Co-Founder of the American Shakespeare Center and author of ShakesFear and How to Cure It, is not only a true Shakespeare expert, but also a beloved and engaging speaker with unique insights on Shakespeare that are perfect for first-timers and life-long scholars alike. You will leave this supernatural hour with Dr. Ralph feeling enriched and excited to see some vampires, ghosts, witches, and more onstage at the Blackfriars Playhouse this season. No ASC experience is truly complete without attending a Dr. Ralph talk, so don’t miss out on this chance.
Friday, november 15: “Undead Aristocrats: the history of the vampiric mythos” WITH AIDAN O’REILLY
Spooky season continues with Aidan O’Reilly, current ASC actor playing the title role in Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors. This talk will cover the history of vampires from their start in Eastern European folklore and superstition, to their existence being debated by medical professionals and the clergy of the 17th and 18th centuries, to their lives in literature and cinema up until today.
Friday, november 22: “Dracula, The Man of Legend” with Hailey Pearce
Can’t get enough of vampires? The myth of Dracula spans thousands of years, way before Bram Stoker’s novel. Join ASC Box Office Concierge, Hailey Pearce, as she uncovers the man behind the fangs, and explores the rich and complicated history behind a Romanian legend as we enter closing weekend of Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors.
“Shadows and Superstitions” SUBSCRIPTION Package
The month of November will feature four thrilling Friday Night Lights On events themed around the supernatural. From vampires to witches and beyond, we are offering 20% off ticket prices with a subscription package for all four FNLO events in November (5-6 PM on 11/1, 11/8, 11/15, and 11/22). Purchase this package deal and save big on these engaging and festive presentations, the perfect way to celebrate “spooky season” this fall. The total package cost is $22.40 for general admission and $16 for students, teachers, and Blackfriars Circle members.
Interested in participating further?
Does the work you do intersect with ours in a way that our audience would find engaging? Let’s have a conversation about it! Now, you have the chance to join us on stage as part of our Friday Night Lights On (FNLO) series. Fill out the submission form here to pitch us your hour-long lecture, discussion, demonstration, workshop, or more, and we will get back to you about logistics.
1 hour