Lupita Nyong’o, Peter Dinklage, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, & Sandra Oh cast in Twelfth Night in Free Shakespeare in the Park’s 2025 return
The Public Theater (Artistic Director, Oskar Eustis; Executive Director, Patrick Willingham) announced initial casting today for TWELFTH NIGHT, directed by The Public’s Associate Artistic Director/Resident Director Saheem Ali, which will reopen the revitalized Delacorte Theater in August 2025. At long last, Free Shakespeare in the Park will return to its home with an all-star cast of Public Theater alumni.
Join us to revel in the midsummer madness as twins Sebastian and Viola survive shipwreck, revenge plots, and the trick doors of love. The Public’s Associate Artistic Director and Resident Director, Tony Award nominee Saheem Ali directs this joyful romp welcoming all of New York back to the magic of Central Park’s beloved theater. Be there when the stage lights turn on again at The Delacorte—a New York City classic—with this high-powered production of the Bard’s classic comedy.
Initial casting for TWELFTH NIGHT includes Peter Dinklage (Malvolio), Jesse Tyler Ferguson(Andrew Aguecheek), Lupita Nyong’o (Viola), and Sandra Oh (Olivia). Additional casting and creative team details will be announced this fall.
"TWELFTH NIGHT is the epitome of joy,” shares director of the upcoming production and Public Theater Associate Artistic Director/Resident Director Saheem Ali. “It also happens to be the first production I ever saw at The Delacorte, as a college student taking the Chinatown bus from Boston. I’m delighted to be reuniting with my dear friend Lupita Nyong’o, joined by fellow Public Theater alums Peter Dinklage, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, and Sandra Oh. Free Shakespeare in the Park is a gift to our city. I’m honored to be helming this production as we reopen The Delacorte after an extensive and essential revitalization."
This production of Free Shakespeare in the Park’s TWELFTH NIGHT will be the seventh time Shakespeare’s classic comedy has been produced at The Delacorte. Previous iterations were produced in 1969 (directed by founder Joseph Papp), 1986, 1989, 2002, 2009, and an adaptation for Public Works in 2018. These four actors join the ranks of several celebrated performers who have played these roles on The Delacorte stage including Tom Aldredge, Barbara Barrie, Michael Cumptsy, Jeff Goldblum, Kim Greist, Anne Hathaway, Nikki M. James, Andrew Kober, Hamish Linklater, Peter MacNicol, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Audra McDonald, Kathryn Meisle, Michelle Pfeiffer, Sasha von Scherler, Fisher Stevens, Julia Stiles, Michael Stuhlbarg, and more.