Shakespeare in Central Park at Delacorte Theater
The Free Shakespeare in the Park is a very popular annual event for both locals and visitors of New York City. Every year the shows are presented from the stage above the lanes at the Delacorte Theater. The cherished venue feature large-scale productions of famous works with full costumes inspired by the Renaissance Era. Since its inception over 60 years ago, the Theater has hosted over five million people from across the globe.
Notable performances have included James Earl Jones in Othello, Meryl Streep in The Taming of the Shrew, and Al Pacino in The Merchant of Venice.
Arrive early and have a picnic before the show!
And if you don’t have time to bring your own picnic basket, the Public Fare offers delicious meals or a quick snacks before the show. The menu includes sandwiches, gourmet hot dogs, snacks, decadent desserts, coffee, wine and beer. Public Fare is a seasonally-operated outdoor cafe conveniently located at the Delacorte Theater – accepting all major credit cards and cash.
HOURS OF OPERATION
Shakespeare Events begin at 8:00 PM
Public Fare (Taub Box Office: 212.967.7555) open daily 10:00 am to 7:00 pm
*Closed on July 4th) is re-opening for the 2025 season.
4 WAYS TO GET TICKETS
- FREE DISTRIBUTION IN CENTRAL PARK
- FREE VIRTUAL TICKETING LOTTERY
- FREE DOWNTOWN LOTTERY DISTRIBUTION AT ASTOR PLACE
- SKIP THE LINE AND SUPPORT FREE SHAKESPEARE
DIRECTIONS
Closest Subway Lines are B, C at 81st Street. Enter Central Park on 81st & Central Park West. Follow the signs along the path to the Delacorte Theater.
More about the Venue : Delacorte Theater
Celebrating its 62nd Anniversary, the Delacorte Theater officially opened in Central Park on June 18, 1962 with The Merchant of Venice, directed by Joseph Papp and Gladys Vaughan and featuring George C. Scott as Shylock.The Merchant of Venice was followed that summer by a production of The Tempest, directed by Gerald Freedman and featuring Paul Stevens as Prospero and James Earl Jones as Caliban. The first Delacorte summer season concluded with King Lear, directed by Joseph Papp and Gladys Vaughan and featuring Frank Silvera as Lear. Since then more than 100 productions have been presented for free at the Delcorte Theater. Highlights of past Delacorte productions include Othello in 1964 with James Earl Jones; Hamlet in 1975 with Sam Waterston; The Taming of the Shrew in 1978 with Raul Julia and Meryl Streep; The Pirates of Penzance in 1980 with Kevin Kline and Linda Ronstadt; Henry V in 1984 with Kevin Kline; Much Ado About Nothing in 1988 with Kevin Kline and Blythe Danner; Richard III in 1990 with Denzel Washington; Othello in 1991 with Raul Julia and Christopher Walken; The Tempest in 1995 with Patrick Stewart; The Seagull in 2001 with Natalie Portman, Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline and Philip Seymour Hoffman; Mother Courage in 2006 with Meryl Streep and Kevin Kline; Macbeth in 2006 with Liev Schreiber; HAIR in 2008 with Jonathan Groff and Will Swenson; Twelfth Night in 2009 with Anne Hathaway; The Merchant of Venice in 2010 with Al Pacino and Lily Rabe; As You Like It with Lily Rabe and Stephen Sondheim’s Into The Woods with Amy Adams, Denis O’Hare, and Donna Murphy in 2012; and most recently, last summer’s acclaimed production of The Comedy of Errors with Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Hamish Linklater, and Alex Timbers and Michael Friedman’s world premiere musical adaptation of Love’s Labour’s Lost.
Free Shakespeare in the Park 2024
photo courtesy of publictheater.org
The Public Theater presents an extended run of Shakespeare’s great tragedy “Hamlet”.
The 2023 season of Shakespeare in the Park has concluded. The Delacorte Theater will be undergoing a renovation with the expected re-open date of summer 2025.
“A 500-year-old play exploring the need for a strong foundation of family, with music and words, Shakespeare’s Hamlet has much to say about humanity and the importance of our connectedness to each other.” – Director Kenny Leon.
The is the fifth “Hamlet” in the 61 years of Shakespeare in the Park, and features Ato Blankson-Wood, a 38-year-old Tony-nominated actor who has starred in musical adaptations of Twelfth Night and As You Like It.
The production runs for nine weeks in total, from June 8th (previews begin) to August 6th. The official opening is Wednesday, June 28th.
Shakespeare in the Park tickets are FREE and will be distributed in a variety of ways across all five boroughs:
In-Person Ticket Distribution in Central Park
- A Public Theater Patron ID is required to receive a free ticket, and you are encouraged to create or confirm your ID before arrival by visiting publictheater.org/register.
- Free tickets are distributed at 12:00 PM (Noon) every day when there is a public performance.
- Performance days may vary weekly, so check the performance calendar: HAMLET Website and Calendar
- Seat locations are randomly distributed; not based on the position of a person in the line, and you and your group are not guaranteed to be seated together.
- People waiting for free tickets must line up along the paths designated by The Public Theater staff and The Parks Department.
- Each person (age 5+) may receive two (2) tickets while supplies last.
- Anyone who attempts to create a line inside the park before 6:00 AM is sent to the end of any line that has formed outside the park.
Please note that there are three separate distribution lines at Delacorte Theater in Central Park:
1) General Distribution Line
2) Senior 65+ Distribution Line
- Ticket recipients must be 65 or older on the performance date.
- This line has access to benches, shade, and restroom facilities.
- Tickets are for seats in Section E, which offers accessible seating: including seating accessed with no stairs, seating accessible by ramp, seating accessed with limited stairs, wheelchair accessible locations, wheelchair transfer accessible locations, and seating to support hearing or vision loss based on proximity to the stage.
3) Access for People with Disabilities Line
- This line has access to benches, shade, and restroom facilities.
- Ticket recipients must attest to the need for accessible seating: including seating accessed with no stairs, seating accessible by ramp, seating accessed with limited stairs, wheelchair accessible locations, wheelchair transfer accessible locations, and seating to support hearing or vision loss based on proximity to the stage, seating locations for select performances where American Sign Language, Open Captions, and Audio Descriptions will be offered (visit the HAMLET website and calendar to confirm those dates before attending a distribution), and seating for guests who need extra space outside the measurements of The Delacorte seating.
In-person standby line in Central Park
After the final ticket is distributed for that day’s performance, anyone who did not obtain a ticket may begin to form a standby line at Delacorte Theater.
- A Public Theater Patron ID is required to receive a free ticket, and you are encouraged to create or confirm your ID before arrival by visiting publictheater.org/register.
- The Public Theater staff will begin to monitor this line, starting at 6PM.
- Tickets may begin to be distributed to this line any time after 6PM through the beginning of the performance or when The Public Theater staff dismisses the line.
- Pending availability, free standby tickets will be distributed, 2 per person.
- Performance days may vary weekly, so check the performance calendar: HAMLET Website and Calendar
- Seat locations are randomly distributed, not based on the position of a person in the line.
- People waiting for free tickets must line up along the paths designated by The Public Theater staff and The Parks Department.
- There are no separate standby lines for General, 65+, or people with disabilities since all tickets received on standby are the best available at their time of release.
Other Ways to Acquire Tickets
- In-person lottery at The Public Theater
- In-person distribution in the boroughs
- Digital lottery with TodayTix
- Become a supporter of The Public Theater with a gift of $300 or more to access reserved seating (seats are limited to keep the majority of tickets accessible to all).
For free ticket availability for each evening’s performance, visit the DAILY TICKET UPDATE
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