Now an undeniable Ann Arbor summer tradition, Shakespeare in the Arb began in 2001, when Katherine Mendeloff, lecturer IV in Residential College, LSA, was asked to direct an outdoor production as part of a three-year Ford Motor Co. grant for arts in the Nichols Arboretum. That year, Mendeloff chose “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” a tale of fairies who wreak havoc on the hearts of a group of lovers deep inside a forest. Since that first production, several Shakespeare classics have come to life inside the Nichols Arboretum, including “As You Like It,” “Twelfth Night” and “Much Ado About Nothing.” Each production has boasted a variety of actors, from students and faculty to community members.
— Adapted from materials provided by the Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum and the LSA website, lsa.umich.edu/mbg/
