- June 2026
How does power corrode? CAST 2026: King Lear examines power as poison, one that rots families, fractures societies, and leaves devastation in its wake. The medieval historical fantasy setting, decorated with augural tapestries and crowns, is contrasted with a modern ensemble whose dancing unveils the raw emotional landscape beneath. This production shows that there are no victors in the pursuit of power, only casualties.
The Cambridge American Stage Tour (CAST), established under the patronage of Dame Judi Dench in 1998, is one of the major international theatre tours of the University of Cambridge. It aims to bring the work of Shakespeare to as wide an audience as possible in the eastern United States. Now in its 27th year, Cambridge University’s largest international tour show has been performing to packed houses and critical acclaim since 1998! Each September, some of Cambridge’s most talented actors, directors, designers and technicians travel across the Atlantic to bring a Shakespeare play to colleges, high schools and professional theatres on the East Coast.
- June 2025
We are excited to announce our touring production of Macbeth, supported by CAST and Cambridge in
America. As a company we have worked to foreground reproductive anxieties latent in the text,
contextualizing Macbeth’s ‘fruitless crown’ in the wake of a recent and painful still-birth, which in turn
sharpens Lady Macbeth’s famous reproductive language: ‘take my milk for gall’; ‘I have given suck and know how tender ‘tis to love the babe that milks me’. The detailed medieval costume against the paired back set places primacy on the actor rather than our ever changing stages, aiding in the flexibility of our production and retaining the all important ‘emotional blocking’ at the core of our affective vision.
Macbeth is the 25th CAST production to travel America, following the success of last year’s Julius Caesar. CAST aims at spreading Shakespeare far and wide, both as an educational introduction to the infamous bard, and to stretch and stimulate new discussion among those already acquainted with his works, and Macbeth specifically.
- June 2024
"Cry 'Havoc!' and let slip the dogs of war."
When Caesar returns triumphant to Rome, the people flood the streets in celebration. A group of educated elites are concerned by his popularity, and conspire to assassinate him. In the ensuing chaos, choosing what to believe and who to follow becomes the most important question of all.
Don't miss the home-run of this year's Cambridge America Stage Tour.
- June 2023
The Cambridge American Stage Tour (CAST), established under the patronage of Dame Judi Dench in 1998, is one of the major international theatre tours of the University of Cambridge. It aims to bring the work of Shakespeare to as wide an audience as possible in the eastern United States. Now in its 25th year, Cambridge University’s largest international tour show has been performing to packed houses and critical acclaim since 1998!
Each September, Cambridge’s most talented actors, directors, designers and technicians travel across the Atlantic to bring a Shakespeare play to colleges, high schools and professional theatres on the East Coast.
- October 2022
Is all’s well that ends well? For Shakespeare’s characters they have to save a king, run away to war, deceive a married man, disown a son, and kidnap their own soldier before things look brighter. And even then, things end better for some.
All’s Well That Ends Well is one of Shakespeare's problem plays. Crossing between comedy and tragedy the staging of this play will be whimsical, dark and funny. A modern minimalist retelling of Shakespeare's dark comedy. Run by the Production team of the cancelled American Stage Tour.
- September 2022
N.B. this show has been cancelled
Founded in the year 2000, CAST tours the East Coast of the USA and the Cayman Islands with a Shakespeare play for the month of September after rehearsing in Cambridge during August.
We visit numerous schools, universities and professional theatres across the USA, also providing educational workshops to help students with their understanding of Shakespearean English, acting technique and stagecraft.
- September–October 2020
Welcome to Sly’s, the most popular bar in Padua!
Bookish newcomer Lucentia and local Hortensia are both taken with the handsome bartender Bianco. The only hitch: his mother Baptista won’t let him settle down until his surly older brother Kit finds a partner. While Lucentia hatches a plan of subterfuge and disguise, Hortensia enlists the help of the arrogant Petruchia to woo Kit and leave his brother free to marry.
With both plots set in motion, grab a drink at Sly’s and watch the bar’s raucous patrons navigate a tricky journey towards love and self-realisation: maybe opposites really do attract after all.
Founded in the year 2000, CAST tours the East Coast of the USA and the Cayman Islands with a Shakespeare play for the month of September after rehearsing in Cambridge during August.
We visit numerous schools, universities and professional theatres across the USA, also providing educational workshops to help students with their understanding of Shakespearean English, acting technique and stage craft.
- September 2019
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR ANTIPHOLUS (and Dromio)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU !!!
We are delighted to invite you to Antipholus’ birthday bash! Join us on this very special day for some party-popping, disco-bopping, candle-blowing, fancy-dressing fun — the banners are up, the mini sausage-rolls are out the oven, and the fabulous birthday boy (and Dromio) has arrived; there is only one thing left to do… get this PARTY STARTED!
After being separated as infants, two sets of identical twins, with identical names, finally find themselves in the same place at the same time. Following years of travelling the world in search of their missing halves, Antipholus of Syracuse and his servant Dromio arrive in Ephesus (unbeknownst to them, the home of their long-lost siblings). However, standing in the way of their reunion is a chaotic series of mistaken identities, confusion, and a fair amount of cake.
Stick on a party hat and come celebrate Shakespeare’s most farcical comedy; reimagined as the world’s most anarchic birthday-do, this Comedy of Errors has us questioning who is who? What is going on? How many blooming layers of paper is there left to unwrap? And, really, how many errors can possibly be made in one day!?**
**SPOILER: many, many errors.
- August 2018
"I long
To hear the story of your life, which must
Take the ear strangely..."
Sixteen years of waiting. Three thousand miles to cross. One story, waiting to be told.
Prospero has waited through years and across oceans. The loss of her Dukedom in Milan and the betrayal of her brother cannot go unpunished. But as the storms of old politics rise again, lovers take their first embrace and fools plot murder, the clock is ticking - and for Prospero to succeed even spirits above and monsters below must have what they desire.
Gather around our light, and let us tell you the story of Prospero's life.
- October 2017
‘swift as a shadow, short as any dream;
the jaws of darkness do devour it up’
the ~woods is open. it’s business as usual. oberon’s on the door. titania rules the floor. the mechanicals get ready for their set out the back and besotted couples seek clandestine corners - inebriated with love & flowers™. but solace sought here is seldom found. and anyway what happens in the ~woods stays in the ~woods.
hermia & lysander are in love (for now). they decide to run away together and there's only one place they can meet. but when helena, hermia's bff (for now) puts d8s before m8s and tells the jealous demetrius of the lovers' plan, the night descends into a chaotic dance of pursuit & deceit. soon the late night dwellers of the ~woods emerge from the haze only to find they themselves are tangled in this messy love octagon.
this reimagined, pleather-covered story about love, trust, and losing your mind is shakespeare ripped into the present day. after all, 'the course of true love never did run smooth'.
- February 2017
“Ireland musn’t be such a bad place, so, if the Yanks want to come here to do their filming.”
It’s 1934 in the small island community on Inishmaan, and the gossip is flying because Hollywood director Robert Flaherty is coming to neighboring Inishmore to film his big hit ‘Man of Aran’- and there’s a small chance that some of the locals might get cast. No one is more excited by this opportunity than ‘Cripple’ Billy, who longs to escape from his tedious daily life and the shadow of being defined by his disability.
Martin McDonagh’s pitch black comedy examines an ordinary coming of age story in extraordinary circumstances. This script will simultaneously have you crying with laughter and holding your breath in apprehension. Don’t miss this beautiful homage to Irish story-telling.
- August 2016
"All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players..."
Duke Frederick has usurped and exiled his brother Duke Ferdinand. Oliver de Boys is plotting against his brother Orlando’s life. Rosalind has disguised herself as a man, and run off into the Forest of Ardenne alongside her cousin Celia. Jacques is meta-theatrically moping around the stage. Touchstone is trying desperately to herd goats. Silvius is being shunned by everyone he meets. Amiens's throat hurts. Shakespeare’s early comedy takes us into a world of mistaken identities, murderous plots, cross-dressing, pastoral love, and wrestling.
With a modern, gender-bending, bohemian aesthetic, live music, and a lot of ribbons, CAST 2016 brings one of Shakespeare’s best-loved comedies to the stage. Join us under the Greenwood tree.
The Cambridge American Stage Tour (CAST), established under the patronage of Dame Judi Dench in 2000, is one of the major international theatre tours of the University of Cambridge. It aims to bring the work of Shakespeare to as wide an audience as possible in the eastern United States. Now in its seventeenth year, Cambridge University’s largest international tour show has been performing to packed houses and critical acclaim since 2000. Each September, Cambridge’s most talented actors, directors, designers and technicians travel across the Atlantic to bring a Shakespeare play to colleges, high schools and professional theatres. CAST is increasingly renowned as a showcase of the leading dramatic talent in Cambridge, including countless actors and directors about to enter the world of professional theatre.
- November 2015
Panopticon n. A hypothetical prison with cells arranged around a central well, from which prisoners can at all times be observed.
Join three experienced Footlights laughter-generators for an evening of paranoid sketch comedy in the cramped and personal panopticon of the Corpus Playroom, where anything is possible and nothing is certain.
Will comedy duo Rob and Tom accept outsider Oliver as one of their number? Will the two halves of the audience put aside their age-old disputes and finally unite in peace? Will the performers use the evening as an excuse to suddenly cut the lights and harvest your organs? No. We promise that won’t happen.
Panopticon is a brand-new sketch show from the cognitive entities that brought you Grizzly, Bafflesmash Presents: Back in the Cellar, The Footlights Harry Porter Prize 2015: Warp Factor, Booby and Bafflesmash Presents: Menagerie.
- August 2015
castcambridge.com
“If I be waspish, best beware my sting.”
The stubborn, rebellious Katherina must consent to marriage, before her sickly sweet, and much desired younger sister Bianca is allowed to be a wife to one of her many suitors. While Petruchio attempts to “tame” the shrewish elder sister, the suitors battle to win the younger by disguising themselves all under the watchful eye of Baptista, their father.
Are the dreams of happy endings all that they were meant to be? We’ll see…
A play within a play, and high on music, dance and laughs, Shakespeare’s greatest comedy is full to the brim of plot twists and turns. Shakespeare’s use of scintillating dialogue, foolery and daring schemes are jam-packed into our two hour performance of Romance and Revenge!
Fifteen years since its first tour, CAST returns to the east coast of the USA in September 2015.
- May 2015
"Banish not him thy Harry’s company: banish plump Jack, and banish all the world.” (II.iv)
Henry IV, consumed by guilt for the rebellion by which he seized the throne, faces an uprising of his own. His enemies are uniting to challenge his rule, yet all the while his heir Hal shuns his royal responsibilities, instead keeping company with the apparent miscreants of Eastcheap: drunkards, thieves and a certain John Falstaff. Caught between two worlds and two domineering paternal influences, Hal must decide between fulfilling his birthright and a life of heady merriment.
A traditional playhouse setting, complete with live band, will be the backdrop to this interplay of political intrigue and boisterous comedy: an exploration of identity against the forces of responsibility and revelry.
- January 2015
Join Footlights regulars Theo Wethered, Jordan Mitchell, Guy Emanuel, Archie Henderson and Milo Edwards for Sunset Eternal: a new hour of stand-up, songs, double-act and double-entendre.
Come. Laugh. Cry. Listen. Breathe. Continue.
Previous praise for performers:
"Creative and absolutely hilarious" - The Tab
"Fantastic... had me in hysterics" - TCS
"The performers were all excellent in both timing and delivery, and their unwavering energy" - Varsity
"Yum." - The Tab
From the people that have collectively brought you Booby, Pelican, Dystopia: The Musical, Amirite?, Dumpf; and numerous Footlights smokers.
- October 2014
The backyard of a suburban home, Connecticut, August 1948. Set over 24 hours, the play is a claustrophobic portrayal of the conflict between a man’s duties to his immediate family and to his wider national family. Tensions rise and fall as the family simultaneously attempts to come to terms with the past and to fashion a future for itself though it feels impossible.
- September 2014
For its 15th year, CAST will once again be touring the USA in September with a company of Cambridge's finest actors, directors, designers and crew.
Hero and Claudio are falling in love, but aren’t a strong enough pairing to outplay the scheming Don John. Meanwhile, old sparring partners Beatrice and Benedick revel in their war of words, but neither wants to get married and certainly not to each other. As they take up opposing corners, matching each other line for line, their friends team up to plot a way to bring them together.
For this cast of players, it’s a game of five acts.
Filled with live music, a line up of vibrant characters and sparkling dialogue, this is Shakespeare’s comedic skill at its absolute best. As devious strategies are prepared, sides drawn and redrawn, and untruth after untruth exposed, the outcome of each romantic match is just too close to call at least until the final hand has been shown.
- September 2013
Get ready for CAST's mesmerizing Measure for Measure. Now in its 14th year, the Cambridge University American Stage Tour (CAST) will once again be taking a company of Cambridge's most talented actors, directors, producers and technicians to universities, high schools and professional theatres across the USA. Stylish, intoxicating, hilarious and tragic by turn, this production will hurl you head first into modern day Vienna with vigour and passion. With a timeless aesthetic inspired by cinematic icons ranging from Fellini to Tarantino, it will be a whirlwind of political corruption, gender subversion, sex and scandal, justice and mercy...
"Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall."
The law no longer has any hold over the citizens of Vienna. Duke Vincentio's lax leadership has left everyone, including the government officials themselves, to their own devices. The sex trade has taken over the shadier pockets of society. The brittle Angelo is left in charge, but the disguised Duke has in fact stayed in the city to keep an eye on his deputy. Angelo assumes power with relentless spite: oppression and fear reign. But, after meeting the enchantingly wilful Isabella - the sister of imprisoned Claudio - he can't adhere to his own rules. Deceit, hypocrisy and scandal spiral out of control until a final effort for resolution and order makes us question what order really is…
- September 2012
Trouble is brewing in turbulent Rome. Mark Antony, triumvir and legendary soldier has abandoned his domestic duties in favour of his beguiling Egyptian queen. While pirates rush the shores, discontent seethes in the hearts of men and in none more so than the eminent Octavius Caesar. Into a spinning backdrop of furious wars, forced smiles and too firm handshakes, Antony must come home. Yet even the titans of Rome cannot sever him from the pull of Cleopatra, the volatile point around which Antony whirls and anchors his world.
Marking the launch of CAST’s 13th stage tour, this year’s production explodes onto the stage with a stark, visceral, physically powerful rendering of one of Shakespeare’s most vibrant tragedies. Devastatingly poignant and startlingly comic, Antony and Cleopatra sets rising star against a hero in decline, while pushing to breaking point the passion that could topple empires.
“Now Antony must leave her utterly”
“Never, he will not.”
- September 2011
“Now o’er the one half-world | Nature seems dead, and wicked dreams abuse | The curtain’d sleep.”
One of the greatest works in Western literature, 'Macbeth' explores the very nature of human existence: love and duty, power and loss, good and evil.
A barren, post-apocalyptic wasteland, dead trees, and broken mirrors. Cambridge American Stage Tour’s 2011 production of Shakespeare’s tragic masterpiece presents a nightmarish vision of the future, where nothing is quite as it seems. Inspired by modern dystopian fiction, prepare to descend into a landscape of broken dreams and bloody ambitions, inhabited by murderers and madmen. In a world of royal isolation, amidst smiling courtiers and a promise of immortality, Macbeth is king of nothing.
Under the patronage of Dame Judi Dench, CAST has given sixteen students the opportunity to tour America over the past twelve years, establishing itself as one of the most prestigious tour shows in Cambridge, performing across the East Coast in cities from New York to New Orleans, Boston, Washington DC and Miami.
- September–October 2010
CAST is a student-run theatrical company which, every summer, tours a Shakespeare play down the East Coast of the United States. The tour itself will be in September 2011, after a three week rehearsal period in Cambridge during August. There will be a home run in Cambridge in Week 0 of Michaelmas term. Under the patronage of Dame Judi Dench, CAST has given sixteen students the chance to tour America for the last eleven years, performing in such places as Miami, New York, Washington DC and Boston. Each year we visit between 8 - 12 venues, from schools and universities, to town halls and even in the urban regeneration project gardens of New York City!
CAS is an amazing opportunity for all those involved. Participants of the tour will be asked for a financial contribution of up to £500 (which is far, far cheaper than a trip to the Edinburgh Fringe!) The trip is heavily subsidized, so this contribution pays for almost everything for the 7 weeks: accommodation and food for the three week August rehearsal period in Cambridge, flights to America, accommodation in America, travel in America from New York right down to Miami, some food in America and stash - ALL FOR £500!
- October 2009
‘I am the dog: no, the dog is himself, and I am the dog--Oh! the dog is me, and I am myself; ay, so, so.’
‘The Two Gentlemen of Verona’ is one of Shakespeare’s earliest comedies, and is a heartwarming tale following the fortunes of four lovers, three outlaws, two clowns and a dog. Valentine leaves Verona to seek his fortune in Milan, where he falls in love with Silvia. Valentine’s best friend Proteus comes to Milan to visit him, where he too falls for Silvia, prompting a story about betrayal, about love, about friendship, and about a clown with a cute little dog. Hilarity ensues.
CAST, the Cambridge University American Stage Tour, was founded in 1999 with the aim of producing an annual Shakespearian tour of the East Coast of the United States of America with a small group of Cambridge's most talented actors and technicians. CAST also provides the opportunity for American students and young people to participate in workshops, as a way of introducing them to Shakespeare or building on the knowledge they already have.
http://www.srcf.ucam.org/cast/2009/home.html
- August 2008
"Once more unto the breach, dear friends..."
The Cambridge University American Stage Tour, on its ninth tour, is proud to present Henry V: one of Shakespeare's most memorable and exciting plays, his most patriotic piece, and an epic and vigorous portrayal of one of England's most popular national heroes.
"Small time, but in that small most greatly lived, This star of England"
Several years of bitter civil war have left the people of England restless and dissatisfied. The new king, Henry, must live down his wild adolescent past, gain the respect of his country and secure his place on the throne. As he lays claim to the 'vasty fields of France' and his fleet sets sail across the Channel, rumors of assassination are rife. Henry must not just bury his feelings but also risk all he holds dear if he is to succeed. Prepare to witness a tale of conspiracy and betrayal, of royalty and treachery, of romance and conquests, and of tennis balls, as this dynamic and dramatic production makes you question where heroism ends and immorality begins.
- October 2007
Leontes is a jealous man and suspects his queen, Hermione, of adultery with his brother. His persecution kills her and their son. Their infant daughter is sent into exile in Bohemia and named Perdita: she is discovered by a mad hatter who raises her as his own. Sixteen years later Perdita is the belle of Bohemia: she is loved by Florizel and adored by bumpkins. Events conspire to bring together Leontes' stagnant court and the vibrant but dangerous wonderland of Bohemia and a kind of healing is achieved. These fantastical worlds will be realised with design inspired by Lewis Carroll's Alice. A cast of eight will portray upwards of twenty characters in a self-consciously theatrical production, physically building new worlds with their bodies. Exit, pursued by a teddy bear.
- August 2006
If music be the food of love, play on...
Viola is dressed as a boy and is in love with Duke Orsino, but Duke Orsino is in love with Olivia. Olivia's servant Malvoilio thinks Olivia is in love wth him, but Olivia is really in love with Viola...or is that Viola's twin brother Sebastian? Only the fool Feste knows the truth!
Beneath the surface of this sparkling and hilarious comedy lie life's darkest and most terrible truths. Under their laughter the inhabitants of Illyria are plagued by loneliness, grief, revenge, humiliation, alcoholism, and madness. This greatest and darkest of Shakespeare's comedies reminds us that in the tragi-comedy of life we must capture whatever fleeting happiness we can...
- September 2005
Returning victorious from war, Don Pedro and his officers arrive at the English country home of Leonato, totally unprepared for the scheming, sex and celebration to come. Their rest and relaxation is ruined by beautiful daughters, and jealous, wicked half-brothers, as new passions are born, old flames are re-ignited and plans are made for both marriage and mischief.
With an occasional cricket match, afternoon tea on the lawn and perhaps even jazz, Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing is a witty whirlwind of love and hate, tragedy and happy endings, teaching us that in the “merry war” of the sexes, no-one is safe from Cupid’s darts.
Hailing from the land of Shakespeare and cricket, this slick and professional true-to-life production is guaranteed to leave you mesmerized and yearning for those lazy sunny afternoons.
- October 2004
'Come woo me, woo me, for now I am in holiday humour and like enough to consent.'
Following a 3 week tour of the United States, CAST returns to Cambridge with Shakespeare's comedy, 'As You Like It'. A colourful feast of music, clowning, cross-dressing and country wenches this promises to be a fantastic start to the new year at Cambridge and a great way to see the newly refurbished ADC.
All information for this Camdram Entry (excluding the description above) was added by the CAST 2018 Tour Managers and is based on an archived programme. However, this actual Camdram entry was created at the time of the original show. It is also worth noting that the exact dates/times of the performances listed are not known. However, the venue order is correct.
If you have any more information regarding this show or would like to know more, please get in touch.
- October 2003
Strange things are happening on the shortest night of the year. When a pair of young lovers flee from their parents and an arranged marriage, they stumble into a woodland world of moonlight and enchantment. A civil war has broken out in fairyland and, followed by rival suitors, these mortals find themselves trapped under the orchestrations of Oberon, King of the Fairies, and his mischievous sprite Puck. With the powers of a magic love juice, a midsummer madness befalls the lovers. The order of the woods is further shattered by the disastrous play rehearsals of a troupe of mechanics and when wild protestations of love spring from the Queen of the Fairies towards a donkey, it seems that only magical powers can end this, the longest night.
The acclaimed Cambridge University American Stage Tour(CAST) returns with Shakespeare’s sparkling comedy, set in a carnivalesque world where our dreams and reality meet. Let CAST transport you to the enchanted woods, as we present Shakespeare’s masterpiece in a production as funny, sexy, magical and scary as the course of true love itself.
All information for this Camdram Entry (excluding the description above) was added by the CAST 2018 Tour Managers and is based on archived documents provided by Beast. However, this actual Camdram entry was created at the time of the original show.
If you have any more information regarding this show or would like to know more, please get in touch.
- October 2002
The Camdram entry for this show has been added retrospectively by the CAST 2018 Tour Managers.
This tour never travelled to the USA. However the ADC Homerun in October still occurred.
If you have any more information regarding this show or would like to know more, please get in touch.
- September 2001
The Camdram entry for this show has been added retrospectively by the CAST 2018 Tour Managers.
All information is based on an archived programme.
If you have any more information regarding this show or would like to know more, please get in touch.
- September–October 2000
The Camdram entry for this show has been added retrospectively by the CAST 2018 Tour Managers.
All information is based on archived material.
If you have any more information regarding this show or would like to know more, please get in touch.
- September–October 1998
The Camdram entry for this show has been added retrospectively by the CAST 2018 Tour Managers.
All information is based on an archived programme.
This show was never known under the title of "CAST" at the time but it is credited as being the precursor to the first official CAST tour in 2000. Instead, this tour of the Eastern United States was funded by CUADC.
If you have any more information regarding this show or would like to know more, please get in touch.
