Local playwright Jeanne Beckwith directs the Valley Players in William Shakespeare’s lively pastoral comedy As You Like It at the company’s Waitsfield theater. Set in the Forest of Arden, the play traverses themes of identity, gender, self-discovery and forgiveness still relevant more than 400 years after the Bard picked up his quill. The rollicking rom-com follows witty, resilient heroine Rosalind — disguised as an unassuming shepherd named Ganymede — through exile. With a kooky cast of colorful characters and memorable monologues, including the immortal "All the world’s a stage" speech, the tale continues to evoke joy, laughter and introspection for modern audiences.
