March 20, 2025 – April 20, 2025

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Joe Mucciolo, Raven Lorraine, Summer England, and Rasell Holt in The Comedy of Errors.

“We came into the world like brother and brother; And now let’s go hand in hand, not one before another.”
— The Comedy of Errors, Act 5, Scene 1

 

Buckle up for Shakespeare’s most hilarious family reunion at the Blackfriars Playhouse!

In this whirlwind of mistaken identities and madcap mix-ups, two sets of twins, separated at birth, find themselves unknowingly in the same city, setting off a cascade of confusion.

As chaos erupts in the streets of Ephesus, family ties are stretched to their limits with uproarious misunderstandings and heartfelt reunions.

Through all the laughter and slapstick, Shakespeare reminds us that even the wildest of circumstances can’t break the bonds of family.

Whether you’re a die-hard Shakespeare fan or discovering this classic for the first time, The Comedy of Errors promises an evening of laughs, love, and the heartwarming power of family to bring everything home.

 

Run time: TBD

Age requirement: 7 and up. Read our full policies here.

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Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors is a lively and fast-paced comedy full of mistaken identities, slapstick humor, and heartfelt reunions. While the play is celebrated for its humor and wit, it also touches on themes that may prompt deeper reflection. This production is recommended for ages 7 and up, but parents may want to consider the following elements before attending:

  • Physical Comedy: The play features moments of slapstick humor, including physical confrontations and exaggerated actions intended for comedic effect.
  • Family Separation and Reunion: The plot centers around long-lost siblings and parents, with themes of separation, loss, and eventual reunion.
  • Mistaken Identity and Deception: The narrative relies on characters being mistaken for others, leading to misunderstandings and moments of frustration or confusion.
  • Verbal Humor and Insults: Characters use sharp wit and occasional insults for comedic effect, which may include light references to relationships or gender roles.
  • Social Dynamics: The play highlights themes of class, power, and servitude that may spark conversations about societal roles.
  • Potential Tension: Some scenes feature heightened emotions or characters in distress, although these moments are resolved within the comedic tone of the play.

The Comedy of Errors offers a joyful exploration of family, identity, and reconciliation. We encourage parents to consider their child’s comfort with these elements and use discretion when deciding to attend.

STUFFF THAT HAPPENS IN THE PLAY
  • Syracusan merchant Egeon is arrested in Ephesus, where travel from Syracuse is punishable by death.
  • Egeon tells the Duke he’s searching for his long-lost family:
    • twenty-five years ago, a shipwreck separated him, his wife, his twin sons (both named Antipholus), and their twin servants (both named Dromio).
    • Egeon raised one Antipholus (and one Dromio) in Syracuse, but seven years ago they left to search for their brothers.
    • Egeon has been searching for all of them ever since.
  • The Duke, moved by his story, gives Egeon until 5 p.m. to raise bail and avoid execution.
  • Meanwhile, Antipholus and Dromio of Syracuse also arrive in Ephesus, still seeking their twins, who – unbeknownst to them –  have been living in Ephesus. 
  • Chaos erupts as everyone repeatedly mistakes one set of twins for the other.
  • As the clock ticks, hilarity, accusations of sorcery, and joyful reunions ensue…
Director Notes

Black and White Photo of the Table Read for The Comedy of Errors Spring 2025 production at American Shakespeare Center. The Director, Chris Johnston, and other company members sit at folding tables on the Blackfriars Playhouse Stage for the first Table Read.

(Director Chris Johnston at the Spring 2025 Table Read for Comedy of Errors.)

Comedy of Errors is about family. After an epic shipwreck (thank you early modern theatre plot device) a family is torn apart, separated from one another and unsure if they will ever see each other again.

When we meet Egeon, he is a defeated man at the end of his journey to find his son Antipholus, who has been looking for his lost brother for years. Egeon and Antipholus separately travel the globe looking for the cure to their deep existential crisis. Nothing about the moment before this play begins really seems funny. In fact, this play begins more like the final act of a tragedy than the first scene of a comedy, and that is where the humor of this play lives.

 

The text of this play sets up the mistaken identities in such a grounded (aside from the early modern shipwreck plot device) way that any actor who commits to the words on the page, and to their scene partners opens the doors for the comedy to creep in. That’s the gold of this play. 430 years after its first performance (possibly for Gray’s Inn, December 1594) and it is still hilarious and watchable. The jokes are still funny. This is because Shakespeare has given us characters who are all in pursuit of their very own specific truth.

Antipholus is desperate to find his lost brother, and in the strange land of Ephesus is having the best day of his life amid his existential crisis. Dromio, his servant, always committed to cheering Antipholus up, finds a household that seems to know him and is more than ready to punish him for his confusion.

On the flip side of this coin, we meet the other Antipholus, who is having marital troubles and experiencing the very worst day of his life. All these characters want is to repair their situation and heal their family, albeit in different ways, and we as an audience find it hilarious.

With Shakespeare’s brilliant verse, prose, puns, and rhymes he has given us a timeless title about how hard a person can be willing to work to find and heal the family that makes them feel at home.