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The Arts Beat is a weekly deep-dive into Memphis arts, music, dance, theater, fashion, film and events. Keep scrolling for a roundup of the best arts and culture stories from the week. Have a story idea? Send it to eperry@dailymemphian.com.
If you caught that the headline is inspired by a monologue in William Shakespeare’s play “As You Like It,” this column is for you.
If you didn’t recognize the reference, keep reading anyway.
“Shakespeare was writing for drunk, illiterate people who were poor,” Joshua Peugh said. “And somehow, over time, he’s become this unapproachable art that people feel like don’t belong to them, but really, his narratives and stories, they’re for people. They’re really human stories. They’re approachable.”
Peugh is choreographing “Macbeth” for Ballet Memphis.
This is not his first foray into transforming Shakespeare’s words into movement.
He choreographed “Romeo and Juliet” for Shaker Heights-based Ohio Contemporary Ballet and will choreograph “The Tempest” for Providence, Rhode Island-based Newport Contemporary Ballet.
“Dance is the same way,” Peugh continued. “Dance feels unapproachable because it’s been turned into capital ‘ART,’ and I think it can be motivating. It can be different things.”
Ballet Memphis closes its season with a version of “Romeo and Juliet” that artistic director Steven McMahon first choreographed in 2012. It will be performed at the Germantown Performing Arts Center, April 10-12, 2026.
Memphis organizations are offering a variety of opportunities to engage with The Bard’s work, including fashion, theater, and dance. Shows are happening all across the Mid-South and multiple are free.
Tennessee Shakespeare Co. is dedicated to live performances of Shakespeare’s plays, and significant plays written by classical, Southern and modern writers. It opens its 18th season with “Much Ado About Nothing” on Saturday, Sept. 27, in Collierville’s Town Square.
“Much Ado About Nothing” is part of the organization’s Shout-out Shakespeare Series, which brings free performances to a number of locations.
For the first time, the organization will perform two of the series in one season.
In February and March 2026, “Romeo and Juliet” will be performed as part of the organization’s Shout-out Shakespeare Series.
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Also, as part of its season, Tennessee Shakespeare Co. will perform a 1940s-set version of “The Taming of the Shrew” on its Tabor Stage in January and February 2026. Organization founder and producing artistic producer Dan McCleary directs.
Theatre Memphis opens its 2025-2026 season with “Hamlet” on Friday, Sept. 19.
Jeff Posson directs. Kevar Maffitt stars as Hamlet; John Maness plays his uncle Claudius.
The show runs through Oct. 5.
The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art’s Couture Collective hosts the second-annual Come As Thou Art ball on Friday, Sept. 26. This year’s theme is Shakespearean Masquerade.
The event includes a runway show with regional fashion designers and contests for attendees. Guests can compete for Best Villain, Best Witch, Best Mask, Best Paramour, Best Betrayer and Best Fool.
Broadway musical “& Juliet” comes to the Orpheum Theatre Nov. 25-30.
Emmy-winning “Schitt’s Creek” writer David West Read asks, “What would happen if Juliet didn’t end it all over Romeo?”
That alternate story is paired with pop songs Max Martin wrote for Kelly Clarkson, Katy Perry, Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys, Celine Dion, Justin Timberlake and others.
Such songs include “Since U Been Gone‚” “Roar,” “Baby One More Time,” “Larger Than Life‚” “That’s The Way It Is” and “Can’t Stop the Feeling!”
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