Shakespeare in the Park Returns to 'Great Performances' with 'Twelfth Night'

Since Great Performances rekindled its relationship with The Public Theater and its long-running Shakespeare in the Park summer festival series in the mid-2010s, the recording of the live show has been the endcap of the PBS series' TV season, arriving in early to mid-May. Those who couldn't make it to the summer show in Central Park had to wait almost a year before finally getting to see what they missed, a scheduling decision that made plenty of sense in the pre-streaming era, but was already dated before the 2020s commenced. 

However, the theater's recent year-long renovation of The Delacorte Theater space in the park (which, after decades of outdoor living, desperately needed it) accidentally broke that pattern. Great Performances' producers were forced to find other British theater fare to air in May 2025, and wound up with multiple West End and Broadway substitutions that ended up covering the entire month. 

Regular viewers of Great Performances understandably assumed this was a one-off, and that when the Delacorte reopened in August 2025, the Shakespeare play selected for the grand reopening, Twelfth Night, would once again not air on PBS until May of the following year. However, it seems that Great Performances is using the disruption as an opportunity to course correct, with the stage performance arriving much earlier, airing on PBS stations in November 2025, mere weeks after the show closes. 

Here's The Public's synopsis of Shakespeare's perennial favorite:

Join us to revel in the midsummer madness as twins Sebastian and Viola survive shipwreck, revenge plots, and the trick doors of love. The Public’s Associate Artistic Director and Resident Director, Tony Award nominee Saheem Ali, directs this joyful romp, welcoming all of New York back to the magic of Central Park’s beloved theater.

After 62 years as the home of Free Shakespeare in the Park, the Delacorte Theater was due for a major makeover. When the theater makes its triumphant return this summer with Twelfth Night, it will be more welcoming, more accessible, and more sustainable than ever before.

The cast for the inaugural production in the newly renovated space is naturally stacked to the rafters. It stars Lupita Nyong'o (12 Years a Slave) and Junior Nyong'o (Twende) as twins Viola and Sebastian. The main cast also includes several Americans who have starred in hit British fare, including Sandra Oh (Killing Eve) as Olivia, Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones) as Malvolio, John Ellison Conlee (The Gilded Age) as Sir Toby Belch, and Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Absolutely Fabulous) as Andrew Aguecheek. 

Other well-known actors in the cast include Khris Davis (Judas & the Black Messiah) as Orsino, Daphne Rubin-Vega (Only Murders in the Building) as Maria, and b (WeCrashed) as Antonio.

The supporting cast and ensemble includes Ariyan Kassam, Valentino Musumeci, Moses Sumney, Kapil Talwalker, Joe Tapper, Dario Alvarez, Jaina Rose Jallow, Precious Omigie, Chinna Palmer, Nathan M. Ramsey, Jasmine Sharma, Julian Tushabe, Adrian Villegas, Ada Westfall, and Mia Wurgaft. 

Artistic director Saheem Ali adapted Shakespeare's play down to a sleek 90-minute show and directed the production.

Great Performances: “Twelfth Night” premieres on most local PBS stations, the PBS app, and the PBS Living Prime Video Channel on Friday, November 14, 2025, at 9 p.m. ET. It will move to PBS Passport for members in time for the December holidays.