Finding good work by the bard can be hard, whether your fandom is die hard or you’ve never heard of Juilliard. Unlike my weak rhymes, Shakespeare’s poetry is unrivaled and there are plenty of places to get your fix. Here are five of the best Shakespeare productions playing now and very soon.

Hamlet | Washington D.C.

Playing Now

By far the most famous of Shakespeare’s works and the one you absolutely must see live if you haven’t before. You know the story from The Lion King or Sons of Anarchy, but you don’t know it the way The Shakespeare Theatre–one of the premiere Shakespearean theatre companies in the country–tells it. An unabridged Hamlet is so hard to find, but at STC they are always concerned with preserving the work as best they can. Led by artistic director Michael Kahn, they existed previously in The Folger Theatre (a replica of Shakespeare’s Globe) before moving to the Sidney Harman Hall in 2007. You know it’ll be legit, so I guess the only question left is: To see or not to see? Shop Tickets

A Midsummer Night’s Dream | Woodland, CA

Starting February 9

The sexy comedy that has tickled audiences for almost 500 years is about to be playing at California’s Woodland Opera House. The Woodland is a cozy space near Sacramento that’s been around since 1896 in its current form. If you live in the area and you’ve never been, this is a great way to get to know a historical venue playing one of Shakespeare’s funniest (and raunchiest) comedies. Go watch the Fairy King and Queen duke it out in the Woodland woods from February 9 to March 4. Shop Tickets

Romeo and Juliet (Ballet) | New York, NY

Starting February 13

Romeo and Juliet is made for adaptation. The story is so familiar to us we basically have it etched in our DNA, and this performance by the New York City Ballet strives to stretch the way we imagine Shakespeare’s stories can be told. Fall in love with this beautiful clip from the show and go see this moving piece on February 13. It’s playing at the David H. Koch Theatre for two weeks only. Shop Tickets

King Lear | Brooklyn, NY

Starting April 7

The Brooklyn Academy of Music has been putting on some incredible Shakespeare lately. They did a version of Two Gentleman of Verona that was the best I’ve ever seen, and I’m expecting this version of Lear to knock it out of the park. If you are looking for an amazing performance, this is the show to see. Actors literally wait a lifetime to play the mad king, and it couldn’t be in better hands with Sir Antony Sher at the helm. Catch it at the Harvey Theatre from April 7 through 29. Shop Tickets

Coriolanus | Stratford, Canada

Starting June 9

WARNING: DEEP TRACK. Coriolanus is not the type of show that’s easy to put up. It’s one of the last plays that Shakespeare wrote, along with Antony and Cleopatra, and its built for a large production. Lucky for us, legendary director Robert Lepage’s Ex Machina theatre group is up to the challenge, and, in partnership with the Stratford Festival of Canada, they are going especially big for this show. André Sills plays Coriolanus in this play about a Roman general that becomes a politician before his contempt for government leads his enemies (and friends) to organize against him. See it all play out at the Avon Theatre this summer. Shop Tickets