CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Iowa’s midsummer heat subsided slightly during a special night at the Shakespeare Garden.
Under the welcomed shade of trees, a crowd gathered for the fourth annual Midsummer Garden Arts Fair on June 28, 2025 in the garden at Ellis Park, 2550 Ellis Blvd. NW.
The balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet; poetry readings; music; dances and “Soaring,” choreographed in 1920 by modern dance pioneers, entertained the audience.
Shakespeare Garden was established in 1927 by the city of Cedar Rapids and the Wednesday Shakespeare Club, which continues today.
The garden has recently undergone a revitalization that includes benches, decorative paving, stone planters, ADA-compliant pathways, plantings and more.
Read more about the revitalization efforts.
Club member Barb Rhame noted the garden has retained iris, roses, pansies and other plants mentioned in Shakespeare’s works, with additional native plants.
A weeping mulberry tree planted in 1927 survived Iowa’s 2020 hurricane-strength derecho windstorm and the 2008 flood, along with original peonies and the 1968-built stone walls facing Ellis Boulevard.
See photos from a past Midsummer Garden Arts Fair
Music at the Midsummer Garden Arts Fair was provided by the Five Seasons Chamber Music Festival, with soprano, Ann Lawrence. Readings were by Stephanie Wagor, president of the Wednesday Shakespeare Club, and scene performed by Cami Rezabek and Seth Engen. Dancers were staged by Carol Maxwell Rezabek.
The event is supported by The Northwest Neighbors Neighborhood Association, Five Seasons Chamber Music Festival, City of Cedar Rapids, Wednesday Shakespeare Club, Cedar Rapids Garden Club, and the Friends of Shakespeare Garden.
Shakespeare Garden revitalization efforts are a private-public partnership. Find more information, including how to donate, at: www.friendsofshakespearegarden.org and see more photos from this year’s event, below:
Thank you for the great pictures and article.