For the first time since 2019, Walla Walla University’s Shakespeare Festival Study Tour took 14 students to Ashland, Oregon, to visit the city’s annual Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF).
“During just four days in Ashland, students become experts in not just understanding Shakespeare but also recognizing the complex and creative process of translating drama from the page to the stage,” said Cynthia Westerbeck, department chair and professor of English.
Though there are a variety of Shakespeare festivals all over the country, Westerbeck believes the OSF is the best fit for this study tour. Since its founding in 1935, the OSF has become a nationally renowned theater arts organization that presents a rotating repertory season of up to 10 plays and musicals.
This year, students enjoyed productions of Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar,” “The Merry Wives of Windsor,” and “As You Like It” and Sondheim’s “Into the Woods.” The trip also featured a backstage tour where students could learn more about how the theater company manages to produce multiple plays each day.
Westerbeck led the tour with the help of Lauren Peterson, assistant professor of English. In preparation for each play, they hosted class discussions so students could better appreciate and critique the interpretive choices made by the directors and actors.
After attending the tour, Seth Wohlberg, senior film, TV, and media major, said his favorite part was getting to talk about each production with friends and classmates: “I loved hearing everyone's thoughts, and it was really fun just being involved in good conversations.”
As a big fan of Shakespeare, and theater in general, Courtney Easterbook, junior English major, was also excited to visit the OSF. She said, “All of the acting, theater spaces, and creative choices at the festival were absolutely incredible.”
This year’s tour was especially meaningful for three of the attending students who were involved in the WWUdrama spring production of “The Merry Wives of Windsor.” Westerbeck said, “It was helpful to the rest of the class to get to hear their interpretation of a play they knew so well. It was especially gratifying to see them note the specific places where they preferred their own interpretation.”
Wohlberg was one of those students. His previous experience gave him a better understanding of the play and a greater appreciation for everyone involved—from actors and directors to prop developers and audio-visual crew members. Wohlberg said, “I don't think I would have realized nor truly appreciated it all if I hadn't been a part of the process myself.”
The Shakespeare Festival Study Tour is a special opportunity for those in and beyond the English department to experience the magic of live theater, while earning two credits of upper-division general studies English. Learn more about the Department of English and Modern Languages and any future study tours at wallawalla.edu/english. For more trip photos, follow the department on Instagram @wwu_english_modernlang.
Posted Sept. 4, 2025
