“All the world’s a stage” … including parking lots and schoolyards.
The Drilling Company’s 31st season of Shakespeare in the Parking Lot presents Shakespeare’s popular comedy "As You Like It," a play filled with dual identities, multiple love stories, and a large cast that appears throughout the five-act performance. Most prominent is the female lead, Rosalind, who spends much of the play disguised as a man.
Given the production’s staging in an actual schoolyard, the presentation might have benefited from a quieter setting—possibly a forest—which would have made Shakespeare's dialogue easier to hear. However, as smartly directed by Hamilton Clancy, the production is true to the company’s bohemian ethos.
The play features many of Shakespeare’s familiar tropes: love at first sight, royal-court shenanigans, hidden identities, wise fools, mistaken perceptions, trickery, and—unlike some of his plays—a largely happy ending.
The convoluted plot unfolds when one royal family banishes another to the Forest of Arden, where love and intrigue blossom.
Rosalind (Lia Bonfilio), disguised as Ganymede, offers to “cure” the lovestruck Orlando (Patrick Hart) if he agrees to meet with her regularly. Meanwhile, the shepherdess Phoebe (Lizabeth Allen) falls for Rosalind/Ganymede even as she is pursued by the devoted shepherd Silvius (Dan Teachout).
Lia Bonfilio as Rosalind ,waiting outside of Shake Shack for her tardy Orlando in The Drilling Company's FREE Shakespeare in the Parking Lot's "As You Like It." (Lee Wexler)
Touchstone, the wise fool, is played with manic energy by Andy Rowell. He woos the country maiden Audrey (Carly Grissom), who abandons another suitor. The production’s choice to cast Audrey’s suitor as an older actor may be a subtle reminder that not all love is young.
Carly Grissom as Audrey is The Drilling Company's Shakespeare in Parking Lot's 2026 production of "As You Like It." (Lee Wexler)
Additionally, Orlando’s older brother Oliver (Emmanuel Elpenord) falls hard for Rosalind’s best friend, Celia (a delightful Thammie Laine Quach).
Along with the intertwined storylines, several musical interludes provide moments of relief from the frantic pace of the plot. Eventually, four couples are united, and Rosalind closes the evening with an epilogue:
“My way is to conjure you, and I’ll begin with the women. I charge you, O women, for the love you bear to men, to like as much of this play as please you. And I charge you, O men, for the love you bear to women—as I perceive by your simpering, none of you hates them—that between you and the women the play may please.”
Emmanuel Elpenord and Thammie Laine Quách as Oliver and Celia in The Drilling Company's FREE Shakespeare in the Parking Lot's "As You Like It." (Lee Wexler)
Whether due to the staging, the audience seated on three sides, or the unamplified actors entering and exiting through aisles and side entrances, one often strains to hear the dialogue. This is especially true when performers are facing away from the audience while competing with car horns, passing traffic, or drivers blasting music through open windows. Kudos to the cast for remaining focused and on cue despite these intermittent disruptions.
One of the few traditional theatrical elements retained in the production’s minimalist staging is the costume design. The bright red jacket worn by Orlando’s servant Adam (Robert Arcaro) could easily be mistaken for the uniform of a local restaurant waiter. Audrey’s black attire feels de rigueur for every season south of Canal Street, while Phoebe’s Chuck Taylors seem the ideal hipster choice for summer footwear.
The production successfully captures the bohemian spirit of New York City’s Lower East Side. The actors’ attire blends seamlessly with that of the neighborhood residents peering through the schoolyard fence as they pass by. At one point, an apparently intoxicated local interrupted the performance to ask how he could enter the schoolyard.
“How do I get in?” he slurred.
With grace and good humor, the cast directed him toward the entrance. It was a perfect example of the company’s accessible, everyman credo.
For 31 summers, The Drilling Company has brought free Shakespeare productions to the public. It is an admirable undertaking. Audiences have a rare opportunity to watch actors practice their craft in an intimate setting. "As You Like It" remains one of Shakespeare’s most beloved comedies, and its charm cannot be diminished by the occasional car horn or drive-by serenade. It may not be the way most people experience Shakespeare, but The Drilling Company presents it with energy, humor, and a distinctive New York spirit.
Why not try something new?
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