Our Values:
Curiosity
Our process encourages a playful and thoughtful examination of the texts of Shakespeare and his contemporaries that fosters new discoveries for actors and audiences alike.
Community
We value the audience as an essential part of our ensemble and invite them to engage and have fun while we tell the story. We aim to make Shakespeare accessible and understandable to everyone, which is why our collective is a mobile one. By not being stuck in one place, we can travel to meet new communities where they are.
Bravery
We commit to a rehearsal and performance process that invites our actors and collaborators to be bold, have fun, and take risks. Creating a safe space where each collaborator feels valued empowers everyone in the room to bravely explore and investigate choices that inspire them.
Authenticity
We are interested in challenging preconceived notions about these classical works and exploring new, authentic, and engaging ways of telling these stories.
Meet the Founding Fools
Kailey Potter
Kailey is an actor, educator, and choreographer from Greenville, SC and holds an MFA and MLitt in Shakespeare and Performance from Mary Baldwin University. She's recently performed with Elsewhere Shakespeare, Vagabond Shakespeare, and the Warehouse Theatre. She taught at Clemson University and the South Carolina Governor's School for the Arts and Humanities and has worked as a teaching artist with Shakespeare & Company and the American Shakespeare Center Theatre Camp. ​
Kailey believes in gender parity in theatre, that every play can be improved by a sword fight, and that early modern theatre is for everyone.
Beth Somerville
Beth is a director, actor, teacher, and stage manager from Portland, Maine. She earned her Master of Letters and Master of Fine Arts with a concentration in directing from Mary Baldwin University’s Shakespeare and Performance program in partnership with the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, Virginia.
She has recently enjoyed directing for Shakespeare & Company’s Fall Festival, stage managing the Wisconsin Shakespeare Festival, and acting and teaching for Portland Stage’s Education Department. Beth is passionately dedicated to the idea that performing and enjoying Shakespeare is for anyone who wants to come play and explore.
Beth and Kailey have been working together since 2020, when they both enrolled in Mary Baldwin University's Shakespeare and Performance graduate program.​​
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Over the course of their three year program, they collaborated together on eight full productions, two staged readings, and countless directing scenes.
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Somehow, this is the only photo of them together on stage from that time.
Kailey as The Hermit and Beth as Modestia in Treehouse Shakespeare Ensemble's 2023 production of The Birth of Merlin by William Rowley. Photo by Miscellaneous Media.