Folger Theatre Presents World Premiere of “How Shakespeare Saved My Life”, written by and starring Broadway’s Jacob Ming-Trent

Limited Engagement Performances Begin June 9

“It’s brilliant and eminently theatrical” — Lily Janiak, San Francisco Chronicle

“Shakespeare would have loved this”— Beulah F. Vega, East Bay Express

“Live theater at its best” — Emily S. Mendel, Culture Vulture (San Francisco)

WASHINGTON, May 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Folger Theatre announces its final offer for the season, the world premiere of How Shakespeare Saved My Life, written and performed by Broadway star Jacob Ming-Trent and directed by renowned director Tony Taccone, on stage at the Folger for a limited engagement, June 9–July 5, 2026. 

Co-commissioned, developed, and presented by Folger Theatre, How Shakespeare Saved My Life dives into Ming-Trent’s turbulent youth. Blending Shakespeare with the voices of Basquiat, Biggie, and Tupac, the piece reveals how art helped a young artist find his identity, his purpose, and his path forward.

“I wanted to tell my story, but I wanted to tell it with purpose and for a purpose,” Ming-Trent shared about the inception of this play. “I thought there was another kid out there who needed to hear it, a young actor who needed to hear it, a young hip-hop artist, a young painter, a young whoever who needed to hear it and that my story could save their life. That’s why I called it How Shakespeare Saved My Life.”

In January, Ming-Trent was named one of American Theatre‘s “People to Watch,” and his recent performance as Falstaff in Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Merry Wives was nominated for a Helen Hayes Award for Best Ensemble. Folger Theatre audiences will remember Ming-Trent as Bottom from A Midsummer Night’s Dream performed at the National Building Museum in 2022.

On stage, Ming-Trent has appeared on Broadway in Shrek the Musical, Hands on a Hardbody, and, most recently, the revival of Gypsy. A film and television actor (Watchmen, Only Murders in the Building, R&J, and The Forty-Year-Old Version), he is an acclaimed Shakespearean actor earning a Drama Desk nomination as Falstaff in The Public Theater’s Merry Wives, and performing Shakespeare roles in The Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park, Red Bull Theater, and Theatre for a New Audience.

In addition to director Tony Taccone (The Harder They Come by Suzan Lori-Parks, and Kiss My Aztec, co-written with John Leguizamo), the creative team for How Shakespeare Saved My Life includes Tiffany Rachelle Stewart (Choreography), Takeshi Kata (Scenic Design), Danielle Preston (Costume Design), Alan C. Edwards (Lighting Design), Jake Rodriguez (Sound Design and Composer), Alexander V. Nichols (Projection Design), Taylor Kiechlin (Production Stage Manager), and Miranda Korieth (Assistant Stage Manager).

Co-commissioned by Folger Theatre and Red Bull Theater and co-produced by Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Folger Theatre, and Red Bull Theater, How Shakespeare Saved My Life earned rave reviews in the San Francisco press during its January debut at Berkeley Repertory Theatre and will have its New York City premiere this fall in Red Bull Theater’s production at The Public Theater.

Folger Theatre’s production of How Shakespeare Saved My Life has a performance time of 90 minutes and is onstage at the Folger Shakespeare Library from June 9–July 5, 2026. Accessible performances and related programming will be offered throughout the run of the production and are listed on the show’s web page. Tickets start at $20 and are available online at www.folger.edu/saved or by calling the Folger Box Office at (202) 544-7077.

Reviewing members of the press are invited to attend the Opening Night performance of How Shakespeare Saved My Life on Sunday, June 14, at 7:30pm or any performance after that date. Please reserve tickets through Colleen Kennedy, Senior Communications Manager, by Monday, June 1, via email at press@folger.edu. The press kit is available at www.folger.edu/hssml-presskit/.

Folger Theatre wishes to thank Premier Season Sponsors Dr. Bill and Evelyn Braithwaite, Season Sponsors Andrea “Andi” Kasarsky, Helen and David Kenney, and Scott and Liz Vance, Production Sponsors Nancy and Steve Howard, Contributing Sponsors Celia and Keith Arnaud, Artist Sponsors Karl K. and Carrol Benner Kindel, with special thanks to Share Fund and The Shubert Foundation.

Jacob Ming-Trent (Jacob and Playwright)*

Folger Theatre: How Shakespeare Saved My Life (Reading Room Festival 2024), A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Shakespeare Theatre Company: Merry Wives. Broadway: Gypsy revival, original cast, Shrek the Musical, original cast, Hands on a Hardbody, original cast. Off-Broadway: The Public Theater: The Harder They Come (Lucille Lortel Award nomination, AUDELCO nomination), Twelfth Night, Father Comes Home from the Wars (Lortel Award, AUDELCO nomination), Cymbeline, The Tempest; Shakespeare in the Park: Merry Wives (Drama Desk nomination); Classic Stage Company: Mother Courage; Red Bull Theater: Medea Re-Versed (Lortel nomination), The Alchemist, Mammon (Lortel nomination); Theatre for a New Audience: The Merchant of Venice, A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Epic Theater Ensemble: Widowers’ Houses; Lincoln Center Theater: On the Levee. Television: Showtime: White Famous (series regular), Ray Donovan (recurring); HBO: Watchmen (series regular); AMC: Feed the Beast (recurring); Only Murders in the Building; WU-TANG: An American Saga; New Amsterdam; God Friended Me; High Maintenance, and more. Film: Superfly, Forty-Year-Old Version, Snakes, R+J, Possession of Hannah Grace, The Bygone, Julie Taymour’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Psycho Therapy: The Shallow Tale of a Writer…, Friendship.

Tony Taccone (Director)**

Folger Theatre: debut; former Artistic Director of Berkeley Repertory Theatre (1997-2018), during which time the theatre produced more than 70 world, American, and West Coast premieres and sent 24 shows to New York, two to London and one to Hong Kong. Directing and Writing: Berkeley Repertory Theatre: Out of Character, Kiss My Aztec* (by John Leguizamo and Tony Taccone), Angels in America, It Can’t Happen Here* (adapted by Bennett Cohen and Tony Taccone), Aubergine* (by Julia Cho), X’s and O’s* (by KJ Sanchez), The Intelligent Homosexual’s Guide to Capitalism and Socialism, Ghost Light* (by Tony Taccone), Life Without Makeup, Rita Moreno* (by Tony Taccone), The Composer is Dead* (by Lemony Snicket), Tiny Kushner* (by Tony Kushner), Yellowjackets* (by Itamar Moses), Taking Over* (by Danny Hoch), Wishful Drinking* (by Carrie Fisher), Zorro in Hell* (by Culture Clash), many others; Broadway: Latin History for Morons* (by John Leguizamo), Wishful Drinking* (by Carrie Fisher), Bridge and Tunnel*, But the Giraffe/Brndibar*; The Public Theater: The Harder They Come* (by Suzan-Lori Parks); Regional: Oregon Shakespeare Festival: The Tempest, Continental Divide*, Othello, Pentecost, Coriolanus, The Cure at Troy; Mark Taper Forum: Angels in America* (by Tony Kushner); also Seattle Repertory Theatre, Yale Repertory Theatre, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Eureka Theatre Company, more. *denotes world premiere

Tiffany Rachelle Stewart (Choreography)

Folger Theatre: The Conference of the Birds. Choreography: Oregon Shakespeare Festival/The Old Globe: The Taming of the Shrew; Berkeley Repertory Theatre: How Shakespeare Saved My Life; Red Bull Theater: Medea Re-Versed; Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival: By the Queen; Oregon Shakespeare Festival: The Unfortunates. Acting: Broadway: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. Off-Broadway: The Signature Theatre/American Repertory Theatre Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992; Manhattan Theatre Club: Sugar In Our Wounds; The Public Theater: Pericles: Theatre for a New Audience: Julius Caesar; Cherry Lane: Vagina Monologues; Regional: Berkeley Repertory/Yale Repertory Theatres: The House That Will Not Stand; The Elley Theatre: The Winter’s Tale; Baltimore Center Stage/Milwaukee Repertory: Animal Farm, The Alliance, Vera Stark; Oregon Shakespeare Festival: Love’s Labour’s Lost & The African Company Presents Richard III; People’s Light: Mud Row by Dominique Morisseau (world premiere). Television/Film: Elsbeth, Law & Order, Law & Order SVU, Blacklist, Black Rose, Hotel Pennsylvania. Awards: Best Actress in a Drama, New York Television Festival “Black Rose”; Lucille Lortel for Best Revival (Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992); AUDELCO for Outstanding Ensemble (Sugar In Our Wounds). MFA in Acting, Yale School of Drama.

Takeshi Kata (Scenic Design)***

Folger Theatre: debut; Alliance Theatre, American Players Theatre, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Geffen Playhouse, Goodman Theatre, Guthrie Theater, Hartford Stage, La Jolla Playhouse, Mark Taper Forum, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, The Old Globe, Yale Repertory Theatre among others. Broadway: Bug (Tony nomination); Water for Elephants (Tony nomination); Prayer for the French Republic; Clyde’s (Drama Desk); Derren Brown’s Secret. Off Broadway: Atlantic Theater Company, New York Theatre Workshop, Manhattan Theatre Club, Playwrights Horizons, The Public Theater, Rattlestick Theater, Second Stage Theater, Signature Theatre, Vineyard Theatre. Awards: Drama Desk Award, Obie Award, Joseph Jefferson Award, Suzi Bass Awards, and Michael Merrit Award for Excellence in Design and Collaboration. Teaching: Associate Professor, University of Southern California, School of Dramatic Arts.

Danielle Preston (Costume Design)***

Folger Theatre: Julius X; Round House Theatre, TheaterWorks Hartford, Olney Theatre Center, Barrington Stage Company, Studio Theatre, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, Signature Theatre, Children’s Theatre Company, Berkshire Theater Group, and Theater J. NYC: 59E59, Lincoln Center/ Kennedy Center Awards: SETC Distinguished Keynote: Costume Design, Helen Hayes nomination 2024, OPERA America Tobin Director-Designer Prize 2022, Kenan Costume Fellow for the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts 2015, A.J. Fletcher Opera Institute Fellowship in Costume Design 2013. MFA in Costume Design from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. 

Alan C. Edwards (Lighting Design)***

Folger Theatre: debut; Off-Broadway: New York Theatre Week: My Joy Is Heavy; The York Theatre: Monte Cristo, Fires in The Mirror (Lortel nomination), Signature Theatre Company: Twilight: Los Angeles 1992; Vineyard Theatre: Harry Clarke (Lortel Award); National Black Theatre: Kill Move Paradise (Drama Desk nomination); Classical Theatre of Harlem: Twelfth Night, Memnon. Regional: Asolo Repertory Theatre: Beautiful; A.R.T.: Gatsby: An American Myth (Norton Award); The Old Globe: Appropriate; Alley Theatre: Fences. Dance: In The Same Tongue (Dianne McIntyre); Chasing Magic (Ayodele Casel); Lifted (American Ballet Theatre/Christopher Rudd). West End: Harry Clarke. Teaching: Assistant Professor of Lighting Design at Yale School of Drama. Training: MFA from Yale School of Drama. www.alancedwards.com

Jake Rodriguez (Sound Design and Original Music)***

Folger Theatre: debut; Regional Theater: Huntington Theatre Company: Oedipus el Rey, Don’t Eat the Mangos; Berkeley Repertory Theatre: How Shakespeare Saved My Life, Mother of Exiles, The Reservoir; Alley Theatre: Private Lives; Perelman Performing Arts Center: Between Two Knees; Stratford Festival: Frankenstein Revived. Awards: 2021 Honorary M.F.A. from American Conservatory Theater, 2004 Princess Grace Award. soundcrack.net @soundcrack.net

Alexander V. Nichols (Projection Design)***

Folger Theatre: debut; Broadway: Carrie Fisher’s Wishful Drinking, Hugh Jackman: Back On Broadway, Nice Work If You Can Get It, Latin History For Morons; Off-Broadway: Earnest Shackleton Loves Me, Through the Night, In the Wake, Taking Over, Horizon, Los Big Names, In Masks Outrageous and Austere, Bridge and Tunnel; Regional: Lyric Opera Chicago: Fidelio; Joffrey Ballet: Wabash and You; International: Hong Kong Ballet: Swan Lake; Upcoming: Washington National Opera: Nixon in China, Madama Butterfly; Goodman Theater: The Attic with Les 7 Doigts de la Main. www.alexandervnichols.com

Taylor Kiechlin (Production Stage Manager)*

Folger Theatre: How Shakespeare Saved My Life (Reading Room Festival 2024), The Winter’s Tale, Where We Belong; Signature Theatre: In Clay, Untitled Unauthorized Hunter S. Thompson Musical, Hair, Passing Strange, Into the Woods, La Cage aux Folles; Studio Theatre: Jonah, Fun Home, Espejos: Clean; Ford’s Theatre: Born Yesterday, A Christmas Carol, 12 Angry Men, Into the Woods, Fences, Silent Sky, Guys and Dolls, Come From Away; Kennedy Center: Acoustic Rooster’s Barnyard Boogie. Regional: Great Lakes Center for the Arts: Jersey Boys, Mamma Mia, Godspell; Bristol Riverside Theatre: 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Times Stands Still, The Producers, Triumph of Love; Williamstown Theatre Festival: Moscow x6. Education: BA, University of Mary Washington.

Miranda Korieth (Assistant Stage Manager)*

Folger Theatre: debut; Theater J: Eureka Day, Stories from the Brink, Chanukah in the Dark, Your Name Means Dream, The Hatmaker’s Wife; Shakespeare Theatre Company: The Wild Duck; Signature Theatre: Strategic Love Play, Job; Arena Stage: A Wrinkle In Time, Data: Studio Theatre: At the Wedding, Fat Ham, Fun Home: Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company: My Mama & the Full-Scale Invasion. Regional: Great Lakes Center of the Arts: Jersey Boys, Mamma Mia; Tantrum Theater: 9 to 5: The Musical, Carrie: The Musical.

Berkeley Repertory Theatre has grown from a storefront stage to an international leader in innovative theatre. Known for its ambition, relevance, and excellence, as well as its adventurous audience, the nonprofit has provided a welcoming home for emerging and established artists since 1968. More than 6 million people have attended over 500 shows at Berkeley Rep, which have gone on to win eight Tony Awards, nine Obie Awards, 11 Drama Desk Awards, a Grammy Award, a Pulitzer Prize, and many other honors. Berkeley Rep received the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre in 1997. To formalize, enhance, and expand the processes by which Berkeley Rep makes theatre, The Ground Floor: Berkeley Rep’s Center for the Creation and Development of New Work was launched in 2012. The Berkeley Rep School of Theatre engages and educates some 20,000 people a year and helps build the audiences of tomorrow with its nationally recognized programs. Berkeley Rep’s bustling facilities—which also include the 400-seat Peet’s Theatre, the 600-seat Roda Theatre, and a spacious campus in West Berkeley—are helping revitalize a renowned city. Learn more at berkeleyrep.org. 

Red Bull Theater, hailed as “a dynamic producer of classic plays” by Ben Brantley in The New York Times, brings rarely seen classic plays to dynamic new life for contemporary audiences, uniting a respect for tradition with a modern sensibility. Named for the rowdy Jacobean playhouse that illegally performed plays in England during the years of Puritan rule, Red Bull Theater is New York City’s home for dynamic performances of great plays that stand the test of time. With the Jacobean plays of Shakespeare and his contemporaries as its cornerstone, the company also produces new works that are in conversation with the classics. Since 2003, Red Bull Theater has produced 27 Off-Broadway productions and over 200 Revelation Readings of rarely seen classics, as well as offering Classes, Podcasts, Shakespeare in Schools, and more—serving a vibrant community of over 5,000 artists and reaching audiences of more than 200,000. The company’s unique programming has received ongoing critical acclaim and has been recognized with Lortel, Drama Desk, Drama League, Callaway, Off-Broadway Alliance, and OBIE nominations and Awards. For more information about any of Red Bull Theater’s programs, visit redbulltheater.com. 

* Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Manager in the United States

** Member of Stage Directors and Choreographers Society

*** Member of United Scenic Artists

ABOUT FOLGER SHAKESPEARE LIBRARY AND FOLGER THEATRE

About Folger Shakespeare Library

The Folger Shakespeare Library showcases the utility of Shakespeare and the humanities in cultivating healthy civic life. Anchored by the world’s largest Shakespeare collection, the Folger is also home to a world-renowned collection of books, manuscripts, and prints from the 1500s to the early 1700s. Visitors to the Folger can choose how they want to experience the arts and humanities, from interactive exhibitions to captivating performances, and from pathbreaking research to transformative educational programming. The Folger fosters curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking and welcomes visitors from Washington, DC and from across the globe. Learn more at www.folger.edu.

The award-winning Folger Theatre in our nation’s capital bridges the arts and humanities through transformational performances and programming that speak inclusively to the human experience. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Karen Ann Daniels, Folger Theatre continues its legacy through exciting interpretations and adaptations of Shakespeare and expands the classical canon through cultivating today’s artists and commissioning new work that is in dialogue with the concerns and issues of our time. Folger Theatre thrives both on its historical stage and in the community, engaging audiences wherever they happen to be. For more on Folger Theatre, please visit www.folger.edu/theatre.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/folger-theatre-presents-world-premiere-of-how-shakespeare-saved-my-life-written-by-and-starring-broadways-jacob-ming-trent-302773610.html

SOURCE Folger Shakespeare Library

Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PR Newswire. We takes no editorial responsibility for the same.