Shakespeare & Company

Shakespeare & Company was founded in 1978 by Tina Packer in Lenox, Massachusetts, nestled in the scenic Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts. The organization operates as both a professional theater company and a renowned training center dedicated to classical performance. From its inception, Shakespeare & Company has been committed to making Shakespeare's works accessible, visceral, and deeply human through a training methodology that integrates voice, body, and text into a unified performance approach. The company has grown from a small ensemble into one of the most respected classical theater organizations in the United States, attracting actors, directors, and theater practitioners from across the country and around the world. Its beautiful campus in the Berkshires provides an immersive environment where the natural surroundings become part of the creative experience.

The training programs at Shakespeare & Company center on a holistic methodology that weaves together Kristin Linklater's voice work, extensive movement training, and rigorous text analysis into a single integrated approach to classical performance. The flagship Summer Training Institute offers intensive multi-week programs where actors work deeply on Shakespeare's language while simultaneously developing their vocal and physical instruments. Fall and winter intensives provide shorter but equally rigorous training opportunities for actors who cannot commit to the full summer program. The company also conducts workshops throughout North America, bringing its distinctive training approach to actors in cities and communities far from the Berkshires. This combination of residential intensives and traveling workshops makes Shakespeare & Company's training accessible to a broader range of performers than a single-location program could serve.

The Linklater voice work that forms a core pillar of Shakespeare & Company's training is one of the most respected voice methodologies in the English-speaking theater world, and Shakespeare & Company is one of the premier places to study it in depth. Actors learn to free their natural voice from habitual tensions, expand their vocal range, and connect their voice directly to their emotional and intellectual impulses so that speaking Shakespeare's verse becomes an act of genuine expression rather than technical recitation. The movement training complements the voice work by developing physical expressiveness, spatial awareness, and the ability to embody character through the whole body rather than relying solely on facial expression and vocal delivery. Text analysis sessions teach actors to mine Shakespeare's language for clues about character, intention, and emotional truth, treating the verse structure, imagery, and rhetorical patterns as a practical acting score. Together these three elements create actors who can handle classical text with both technical skill and emotional authenticity.

Daily life at Shakespeare & Company during the summer intensive is immersive and demanding, with actors moving through voice sessions, movement classes, text workshops, and rehearsals in a schedule that fills most of the day. The campus in Lenox includes performance spaces, rehearsal halls, and outdoor stages set among beautiful grounds that encourage informal gatherings, conversations, and the kind of unstructured creative time that can be as valuable as formal sessions. The community atmosphere is notable for its warmth and collaborative spirit, with faculty and students working side by side in an environment that values artistic exploration over competitive hierarchy. Evening performances by the resident company give training participants the opportunity to see the techniques they are studying applied at a professional level. Many participants return year after year, deepening their practice and building lasting relationships with fellow artists and faculty members who become important figures in their ongoing creative development.

Shakespeare & Company's training attracts a diverse range of performers, from young actors fresh out of undergraduate programs to seasoned professionals looking to deepen their classical skills and reconnect with the fundamentals of their craft. The programs are particularly popular among actors who feel their training has overemphasized psychological realism at the expense of vocal and physical expressiveness, and who want to develop the technical skills needed to handle heightened language and classical texts. Educators and theater teachers also attend in significant numbers, seeking to bring Shakespeare & Company's methodologies back to their own classrooms and rehearsal rooms. The organization's education programs reach thousands of students annually through residencies and partnerships with schools across the country, extending the company's influence far beyond its Lenox campus. The alumni network is substantial and includes actors working on Broadway, in regional theater, in film and television, and in theater education at every level.

The Summer Training Institute tuition typically ranges from approximately $1,500 to $4,000 depending on the specific program, length of study, and whether housing is included. Fall and winter intensives are generally priced at lower levels, making them accessible entry points for actors exploring the training. Housing and meals are available on or near campus at additional cost, though the Berkshires location means that overall living expenses during the intensive are lower than comparable programs in New York City or Los Angeles. Compared to full-time conservatory programs that cost tens of thousands of dollars per year, Shakespeare & Company's intensive format provides concentrated, high-quality classical training at a fraction of the annual investment. Scholarship and financial aid opportunities are available, and the company actively works to make its training accessible to actors from diverse economic backgrounds. When you factor in the quality of instruction, the reputation of the Linklater voice methodology, and the professional-level production work happening alongside the training, the value proposition is strong for actors serious about classical performance.

Shakespeare & Company is an outstanding choice for actors at any level who want to develop or deepen their classical performance skills through one of the most respected integrated training methodologies in American theater. It is particularly well-suited for actors who feel their voice and body are not fully engaged in their work, and who want to unlock greater expressiveness and range through sustained, expert-guided practice. Actors preparing for classical roles in professional productions will find the intensive format ideal for focused preparation. Theater educators seeking to bring world-class classical training methodologies back to their own programs will find the experience invaluable and directly applicable. If you are primarily interested in on-camera technique or contemporary realism, Shakespeare & Company should be a supplement to rather than a replacement for other training. Consider pairing a Shakespeare & Company intensive with year-round training at a studio in your home city for the most comprehensive development.

Apply early for the Summer Training Institute, as popular programs fill up well before the start date and early registration often provides the best housing options. Arrive with your voice and body in good condition by maintaining a regular warm-up routine in the weeks before the intensive, as the work begins at a high level of physical and vocal demand from day one. Bring comfortable, movement-friendly clothing and supportive shoes for the extensive physical work, and be prepared for outdoor rehearsals and performances that are part of the Berkshires experience. Read at least two or three Shakespeare plays before arriving so that you have a baseline familiarity with the language, even if close text work will be part of the program curriculum. Keep a journal during the intensive to capture insights, exercises, and breakthroughs that you can reference and practice after returning home. Connect with fellow participants and faculty through post-intensive communication, as the relationships formed during these concentrated training experiences often become important professional connections and ongoing artistic partnerships.