Theatre-Hikes to premiere show at Cantigny

The idea came to Frank Farrell, fittingly enough, while he was on a walk.

This was in 1997, and Farrell was working with students as a guest equity actor at Grand Valley State University.

He was out for a stroll, memorizing his lines for Shakespeare’s “As You Like It,” when some of the Bard’s words provided some unanticipated inspiration.

“All the world’s a stage,” Shakespeare wrote. “And all the men and women are merely players.”

“It just hit me all at once,” Farrell said.

Faster than you can say Stratford on the Avon, the production of “As You Like It” became “As You Hike It.”

Farrell formed a professional company called Theatre-Hikes in 2001. The group performs theater productions in outdoor settings with the audience walking from scene to scene and has made a name for itself at venues such as the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Millennium Park, the University of Chicago and the Chicago Botanic Garden.

On Saturday, Aug. 20, Cantigny Park in Wheaton will play host to Theatre-Hike’s premier performance of “Work Song: Three Views of Frank Lloyd Wright.”

“I was seeing something the world needed,” Farrell said, “to bring exercise to theater, where you usually sit for a couple hours and watch someone else do something.”

There is always a hike leader to direct the audiences — which may be up to 300 people — to the different locations during the show and to get them seated.

The performance at Cantigny will be a biography of Frank Lloyd Wright. There are three acts, each moving through the architect’s life chronologically, with each act having a different style. The performance will be broken into scenes in seven locations across the grounds.

An image of a house is built throughout the play, as a symbol of the buildings Wright has left with us.

“It’s more of a thoughtful play than one with a lot of action,” Farrell said.

When Theatre-Hikes first began, directors exclusively chose plays about nature. Later, they began broadening their range by finding locations that give the audience the feeling of being enclosed with trees and bushes.

Shows are chosen based on the season: in the summer, the scenes mainly take place in shaded areas and in October, when it gets colder, directors try to stage the shows in the sun. Last year, Theatre-Hikes did some winter shows in January and February with performances of “The Snow Queen” by Hans Christian Anderson and “The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus” by L. Frank Baum.

The Theatre-Hikes actors bring as few materials with them as possible.

“It makes us have to do a lot of our own invention, because something like a table is too cumbersome to bring into the woods,” Farrell said.

Pianos also are too difficult to bring along so keyboards and string instruments are used for music. The actors also make use of elaborate costumes to add to their performances.

Theatre-Hikes is part of the Leave No Trace organization and believes in using natural environments without causing any harm, leaving each place as if they were never there, Farrell said.

Seating will be on the lawn so guests are encouraged to bring their own blankets or chairs.

The two-hour traveling performance of “Work Song” will take place at 1 p.m. Tickets are $10 and may be purchased in advance at the Cantigny Park Gift Shop or parking booth.

The park is open every day during the summer from 7 a.m. until dusk, and a schedule of events at the park can be found at Cantigny.org.

if you go

What: Theatre-Hikes performance of “World Song: Three Views of Frank Lloyd Wright”

When: 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 20

Where: Cantigny Park, 1S151 Winfield Road, Wheaton

Tickets: $10

Info: cantigny.org