March 26, 2026 - 7:00 pm
Tickets now on sale for Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Are Dead
Comedy considered Tom Stoppard’s greatest work
St. Louis, MO (February 2, 2026) – Tickets are now on sale for ROSENCRANTZ AND GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD, presented by the ST. LOUIS SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL (Tom Ridgely, Artistic Director and Kate Tichelkamp, Executive Director) in association with ALBION THEATRE (Robert Ashton, Artistic Director). Considered playwright TOM STOPPARD’S greatest masterpiece, this absurdist buddy comedy asks the question: What happens when you’re not the main character of the story? The production runs from March 26-April 11, 2026 at the Kranzberg Arts Center Black Box Theater.
Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Are Dead, directed by TOM RIDGELY, flips Hamlet on its head, following two side characters who suddenly find themselves trapped inside a story they don’t fully understand. As events spiral around them, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern wrestle with fate, free will, friendship and the unsettling realization that they may have very little control over what happens next.
“Stoppard is one of the few writers since Shakespeare who could use language to such dizzying and exhilarating effect,” said Festival Artistic Director TOM RIDGELY in a statement. “His breakthrough hit is at once a profound rumination on the very nature of existence and an exquisitely funny caper of two friends completely out of their depth. It’ll be the first professional production of this masterpiece in St. Louis and an absolute treat for all who get to see it.”
Robert Ashton, Founder & Executive Director, Albion Theatre, “I am delighted to be working with Tom and the Festival on one of Stoppard’s most well-known plays. Our inaugural show in 2022 was a Stoppard piece, Heroes. It’s great to see two groups collaborating, particularly on a work by one of the best playwrights of the English language in the last 60 years.”
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead won several awards during its original 1968 Broadway run, including Tony Awards for Best Play, Best Scenic Design, Best Costume Design and Best Production of a Play. The play was later adapted into a 1990 film written by Stoppard and starring Tim Roth (Guildenstern), Gary Oldman (Rosencrantz) and Richard Dreyfuss (Player). In 1997, the play was performed at The Old Vic in London in honor of its 50th anniversary and featured Daniel Radcliff as Rosencrantz.
The New York Times said of Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead: “Very funny. Very brilliant. Very chilling. It has the dust of thought about it and the particles glitter excitingly in the theatrical air.”
Tom Stoppard won numerous awards during his storied career, including the 1998 Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for Shakespeare in Love. Additionally, Stoppard provided crucial rewrites to several blockbuster films including Hook, 102 Dalmatians, The Bourne Ultimatum, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, and, most famously, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Steven Spielberg once remarked, “Tom [Stoppard] is pretty much responsible for every line of dialogue” in The Last Crusade.
ROSENCRANTZ AND GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Dramatists Play Service. www.concordtheatricals.com
The St. Louis Shakespeare Festival’s commitment to radically accessible free theater is made possible through the support of hundreds of Festival supporters throughout the year. Lead support of the 2026 Season comes from Edward Jones, Regional Arts Commission ARPA for the Arts, Whitaker Foundation, Switch, Missouri Arts Council, and Pershing Charitable Trust.
Learn more about Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead at the Festival’s website: https://stlshakes.org/