FINANCIAL DISTRICT — Shakespeare's star-crossed lovers have found a home in a Lower Manhattan castle.
"Romeo and Juliet" is coming to Castle Clinton — a historic, open-air space that overlooks New York Harbor in The Battery — for three weeks of free performances.
The classic play is being staged by the Shakespeare Downtown, a new local theater company created specifically to bring performances to Castle Clinton.
The landmark, built in the early 1800s, has been used as a military fort, a theater, a beer garden, the country’s first immigration station and even an aquarium.
Billie Andersson, the artistic director of Shakespeare Downtown — who’ll also play Juliet in the company’s inaugural performance run — said she passed Castle Clinton one day and realized, "wow, this would a perfect venue, out in the open, for Shakespeare."
The company has initially hoped to stage the play in 2015 at Castle Clinton, but planning for the unique space took some extra time, Andersson said.
Andersson's husband, Geoffrey Horne, a director and teacher for more 30 years at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film institute, will direct the Castle Clinton performances.
Horne has led several productions of Shakespeare plays throughout the years, and Andersson is a longtime stage actress and producer.
The group plans on holding free shows from June 7 through June 25, Tuesday to Saturday. Shows will run 6:30 p.m. to 8:15, with no intermission. Performance goers can start getting wristbands to hold their space beginning at 5 p.m. for that evening's play, The theater can hold up to 200 people each night.
Andersson said she hopes to make Shakespeare in Castle Clinton an annual event, like a Downtown counterpart to the popular free Shakespeare performances in Central Park.
"We're really thrilled to finally be doing this," said Andersson, who's lived Downtown for many years. "It's taken a lot of work, but it will be lovely."
