OK, so word has it there was a wrestling match in downtown Washington, DC, recently.  Big whoop. Rude, from start to finish. For my money, the best wrestling match takes place down at Staunton, Virginia’s Blackfriars Playhouse, in the early moments of As You Like It — William Shakespeare ’s classic comedy about romance, gender-switching, misanthropy, sibling rivalry — and oh yeah, that “Seven Ages of Man” bit our English teachers loved to death (and for all the wrong reasons). Hannah Nguyen as Charles wrestling Nick Ericksen as Orlando (in back: Aidan O’Reilly as Jaques and Angela Iannone as Duke Frederick) in ‘As You Like It.’ Photo by Madison Patterson. This summer, the American Shakespeare Center offers us two shows, with As You Like It first up — to be followed later in June by their own inimitable take on Thornton Wilder’s masterpiece, Our Town. In As You Like It, director José Zayas has created an evening filled with mayhem, one that manages to find humor in just about everything. Case in point — that wrestling match, which pits our tall romantic lead Orlando (the spot-on Nick Ericksen) against Charles, the most dubious strongman imaginable (played with gusto, and in an outrageously exaggerated muscle suit, by Hannah Nguyen). A brief pre-bout encounter with Rosalind, one of those love-at-first-sight thingies, inspires Orlando to perform miraculous feats of daring-do, with his bare hands no less.  Once Charles has been officially laid flat and the match won, we follow Orlando as he promptly exiles himself to the Forest of Arden to avoid his brother Oliver’s murderous plot against him. Turns out Orlando isn’t the only innocent on the run, because it is in the Forest of Arden, gentle reader, where the action really kicks in. An entire court, chock-full of characters, awaits him, and from this point onward, the play devolves delightfully into one bucolic vaudeville sketch after another, with humble shepherds, jesters, and lovers swapping one-liners and keeping us in stitches. And boy, do you know when you’re in the Forest of Arden here; when our romantic leads hightail it to the woods, we meet the exiled Duke Senior (Christopher Seiler, in great musical form) serenading us while the cast pulls out the garlands and greenery, with leaves so tall and wide you could almost hide behind ’em (and yes, hide they do). TOP LEFT Hannah Nguyen as Phoebe and Ronald Román-Meléndez as Silvius; TOP RIGHT: Summer England as Rosalind and Isabel Sanchez as Celia; ABOVE: Cast and Audience of ‘As You Like It.’ Photos by Madison Patterson. Central to this bucolic tale is Rosalind, whose face has launched a thousand incredibly crappily written love poems, now posted by Orlando on nearly every tree in the woods. Will they ever find each other again? Well, yes and no; because Rosalind is a woman in exile, in order to enter Arden safely, she must assume a male disguise, passing herself off as Ganymede (this, to ward off the creeps — Shakespeare does this a whole lot). Accompanied by her bestie, Celia — who now passes herself off as Ganymede’s kid sister — the two soon set up shop and buy a small patch of land. And once “Ganymede” has found Orlando again, he offers to teach the clueless Orlando a thing or two about love. As Ganymede. The absurdity of the situation speaks for itself, doesn’t it? As our cross-dressing heroine, Summer England offers us the most absolute and drop-dead hilarious Rosalind I’ve ever seen. Her comic timing is unmatched, and Ericksen’s Orlando offers us the perfect straight man. Another unexpected pleasure is Ronald Román-Meléndez’s double-turn as the sour Oliver (Orlando’s brother and nemesis) followed hard-on by his turn as the dim Silvius, a shepherd who is smitten with the feckless female, Phoebe (Hannah Nguyen, whose comic chops are once again gloriously on display). One of the American Shakespeare Center’s favorite stunts is to choreograph seemingly instantaneous costume and character changes, which the actors pull off with remarkable ease. Román-Meléndez’ ability to turn on a dime and, with a flip of his reversible coat, turn from villain to fool in a split second, is a reminder of the versatility and impeccable timing on tap here. As You Like It is a play of polar opposites, and perhaps the most telling study in contrasts here is between the professional misanthrope Jaques (pronounced JAY-kwiss, thanks very much) and the gregarious court fool Touchstone. Both find themselves in the Forest of Arden, and mirror each other, albeit distortedly, to nice effect. Aidan O’Reilly, southern drawl in tow, is a fine Jaques, and his delivery of the “Seven Ages of Man” speech is closer to the spirit of the original than I’ve seen in a long time. Usually staged as a set-piece (Zayas does so too, but with a twist), when it’s taken completely out of context,, “Seven Ages” sounds like one of those wistful Hallmark-card accounts of a mortal’s journey, something to sigh for. That Jaques is bored out of his skull, however, implies that this speech is more along the lines of the cynical poseur’s “Life — it’s soooo overrated, don’t you think?” So, not wistful nearly as much as it is a summary of why Jaques can’t stand to be around anybody; he’s seen it all. The only joy Jaques finds in life comes in the form of a motley fool he bumps into — enter Touchstone, who accompanies Rosalind and Celia and runs rings around them all. Geoffrey Warren Barnes II’s turn as Touchstone is the perfect foil for O’Reilly’s dour melancholy, and his act culminates in an acrobatic and charming breakdown of “The Seven Degrees of a Lie,” which, among other things, reminds us not to take Jaques’ earlier “Seven Ages” routine too seriously.  This being a comedy, we are treated to musical interludes both before and during the play, with Christopher Seiler leading the cast in the Zombies’ classic “Time of the Season” to kick things off, while O’Reilly, armed with his accordion (be advised; he ain’t afraid to use it) regales us with Tom Waits’ “Get Lost.” And since romance is the major theme here, Román-Meléndez serenades us with the ballad, “Como te extraňo mi amor” (‘How I miss you, my love’), which is somewhat ironic because the lovers who “miss” each other here actually see each other every day in the woods. As You Like It is a thrilling demonstration of what a professional repertory company can do, taking old standards and breathing new life into them at every moment. Time spent at Blackfriars is time well spent.  More I cannot say. More I need not say. Running Time: Two hours and 30 minutes, including one intermission. As You Like It plays through August 8, 2026, in repertory with Thornton Wilder’s Our Town (June 25 to August 9), presented by American Shakespeare Center at the Blackfriars Playhouse, 10 South Market Street, Staunton, VA. For tickets (starting at $39), call the box office at (540) 851-3400 or purchase them online. ASC also offers a Local Rush deal of 50% off tickets on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Learn more here. Cast and artistic team credits for As You Like It are online here. The summer season program is online here. ...read more read less