Shakespeare with an American Twist Comes to Wapelhorst June 21-30

The Riverside Shakespeare Company is nothing if not flexible. A few weeks ago when Frontier Park was awash, the theater company regrouped, searched for a new site and constructed a stage in Wapelhorst Park for their production of Romeo and Juliet.

And it's definitely Shakespeare with a twist. Riverside Shakespeare has re-imagined Verona as an American frontier town and the Montagues and Capulets as something more akin to the Hatfields and McCoys.

Of course, this is the company that moved the Taming of the Shrew into the 1960s and turned A Midsummer's Night's Dream into a steampunk fantasy—we've come to expect the unusual, and Riverside delivers.

The production runs Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from June 21 to June 30. Friday and Saturday shows start at 8 p.m. and Sunday shows start at 5 p.m.

And it's free.

Spokesman Chris Ferguson told Patch that the two-hour production aims to delight the whole family.

"So grab your kin folk, bring a lawn chair or a blanket and stop by the wood-fire pizza truck on the way down to the soccer fields in Wapelhorst Park for dinner and a show," Ferguson said.

There is free parking at Wapelhorst, which is at 1874 Muegge Road. A couple sets of bleachers are available, but you might want to bring a blanket or lawn chair just in case.