IOWA CITY, IA- Riverside Theatre, Iowa City's resident professional theatre company, will kick off its summer season, Riverside Theatre in the Park, on Friday, June 15 with As You Like It by William Shakespeare, directed by Theodore Swetz.

For tickets and information, call the Riverside Theatre Box Office at (319) 338-7672 or visit www.riversidetheatre.org.

In As You Like It, Rosalind, Shakespeare's most breathtaking heroine, and her boyfriend Orlando find themselves in the enchanted Forest of Arden, where "all the world's a stage," and where sudden infatuation is as confusing as it is beautiful. As You Like It has everything people adore about Shakespearean comedy: mistaken identity, cross-dressing, madness, mayhem, laughter, and romance...plus an original score and a cappella singing!

Kansas City based director Theodore Swetz directs this romantic comedy. Swetz is a founding company member of American Players Theatre in Spring Green, Wisconsin, and is currently head of graduate actor training at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

"I believe we all need a little bit of 'Arden' in our lives - a place to reinvent and rejuvenate. We hope that a starry night at the Festival Stage gives our audiences one such escape," said Swetz.

Several returning actors will appear in featured roles in As You Like It: Kalen Harriman (Mary's Wedding, Romeo and Juliet, Love's Labour's Lost, Boom) as Rosalind, Jim Van Valen (A Steady Rain, Ah, Wilderness!) as Jaques and Tim Budd (Walking the Wire, The Cripple of Inishmaan) as Touchstone. Additional guest artists hail from Kansas City, Chicago, Milwaukee, and New York City.

The production features costumes by Genevieve Beller, scenic design by Shawn Ketchum Johnson, lighting design by David Thayer, and music composition by John Mistler.

Riverside Theatre in the Park also includes Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, directed by Kristin Horton, which opens Friday, June 22. As You Like It and The Merchant of Venice will then be performed in rotation until July 8.

Riverside Theatre in the Park is performed outdoors at the Festival Stage in Iowa City's Lower City Park every summer.

To make an evening at the park, audience members are invited to picnic before the show. Wraps, desserts, and beverages are available at the box office before the show and during intermission.

One hour before each main stage performance, patrons may gather at the Green Show Stage (located next to the pavilion) to brush up on the plot of that night's play with original story theatre versions of the evening's play performed by the Apprentice Company.

Directions to Lower City Park and information about parking can be found at www.riversidetheatre.org.

Single tickets for Riverside Theatre in the Park range from $17-$39 with discounts available for students, seniors, and youth, as well as those wishing to purchase tickets to both shows.

Patrons are also invited to take advantage of the four Family Nights, which will take place on June 17, 24, 26, and July 3. On Family Nights, up to two adults accompanying a youth will receive their tickets at the $17 youth price. Family nights are sponsored by funding from the Johnson County Community Foundation. Family Night performances begin at 7 p.m.

Tickets to Riverside Theatre in the Park can be ordered by calling the Riverside Theatre Box Office at 319-338-7672. The Riverside Theatre Box Office is open Tuesday-Saturday, noon to 4 p.m. Single tickets may also be ordered online at www.riversidetheatre.org.

Amana - Shirley Valentine, a one-woman comic drama written by Willy Russell opens July 5 on The Old Creamery Theatre's Studio Stage in Middle Amana.

Tired of talking to the walls of her kitchen and living a life less - quite less - then what she dreamed of, Shirley Valentine goes to Greece with a friend. What she discovers is that the old Shirley, who loved life and wasn't afraid to live it, was there all along.

Shirley Valentine features Marquetta Senters of South Amana and is rated Theatre R for adult content. Tickets are $27 for adults and $17.50 for students. Call the box office at 800-35-AMANA or 800-352-6262 or go online for tickets www.oldcreamery.com.

Shirley Valentine is sponsored by JBF Philanthropic Trust and runs through July 22. Show times are Thursdays and Sundays at 3 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. Group rates are available. Reservations are recommended. Student rush tickets are available for $12. No reservations are accepted for rush tickets. Come to the box office no earlier than 30 minutes before a performance for this special rate. A student ID is required for rush tickets.

The Old Creamery Theatre Company is a not-for-profit professional theatre founded in 1971 in Garrison, Iowa. The company is celebrating 41 years of bringing live, professional theatre to the people of Iowa and the Midwest.

Sponsored by John Deere

What: Ballet Under the Stars

Who: Ballet Quad Cities

Where: Lincoln Park Classic Theatre 11th Ave & 38th St Rock Island, IL

When: June 8, 9 & 10 at 8:00pm

Ticket Prices: No Admission Charged!

Three evenings of no admission charged ballet performances - a perfect time to introduce your family to our family of dancers at Ballet Quad Cities! Bring a picnic supper, chairs, or a blanket and spend an evening under the stars at lovely Lincoln Park.

The program will bring back favorite selections from this past season including the Black Swan Pas de Deux and an excerpt from The Sleeping Beauty as well as other audience favorites.

Also joining the dancers on stage are students from Frances Willard Elementary School in Rock Island who participated in an after school program lead by company dancer Margaret Huling.  The 8 students learned original choreography and will perform with brightly colored Chinese ribbons.  The Dance with the Stars program was funded by a grant from Quad City Arts Dollar$: Community Access to the Arts.

For more information, please call 309-786-3779 or visit www.balletquadcities.com