Rainy nights keep crowds away from Shakespeare by the Bow

The long run of rainy weather is putting a damper on Theatre Calgary's outdoor staging of Hamlet.

The company's Shakespeare by the Bow puts on shows at Prince's Island Park every summer.

But 11 shows have been cancelled because of rain since late June, program director Haysam Kadri told the Calgary Eyeopener.

"At this time last year, we'd cancelled about three or four," he said.

"We've seen consistent poor weather for six or seven weeks now."

Kadri says the pay-by-donation performances have seen a big drop in attendance.

"We'll survive for sure, but the numbers are significantly down."

The forecast shows the possibility of showers every day through to next Wednesday.

There are six evening shows each week at 7 p.m. from Tuesday to Sunday, with a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday.

The 80-minute play runs until Aug. 21.

"It is family friendly. Kids might not understand it, but there's enough to engage their attention with the action that happens on stage. Lots of swords," Kadri said.