For the rapids City Times

MARSHFIELD – Shakespeare as a family-friendly rom-com set in the Old West? A brisk and lively 90-minute romp into the forest set in 1879, when men were men, with a twist.

That is the setting for “As You Like It” directed by guest artist in residence Lisa Wolpe with a cast of 12 local actors, and presented as part of the sixth annual ARTi Gras Festival of the Arts, running March 14-23. The cast ranges in age from eight to 68.

Lisa Wolpe, a world-class Shakespearean actress, director and expert is spending three weeks in residence working with a company of 12 local actors in the Wisconsin Rapids, Stevens Point, and Marshfield area, preparing for the opening night of “As You Like It” on March 16 at 7 p.m., at the Helen Connor Laird Theatre on the Marshfield UW campus.

The show then travels to Wisconsin Rapids Community Theatre for a 3:30 p.m. matinee on March 17. The following week “As You Like It” will be performed at Nekoosa High School March 21 at 7 p.m., with the final performance at the Almond-Bancroft School March 22 at 7 p.m.

The 90-minute show will be performed without an intermission. Following each performance, the audience is invited to meet the cast.

General admission tickets for the Marshfield show can be purchased online at marshfield.uwc.edu/campus/arts/tickets or at the door. For information on the Wisconsin Rapids performance, visit http://www.wrctheatre.org.