Summer Fun

So You Wanna…Get a Little Culture

GO WILL WATCHING
Now in its 15th year, Shakespeare on the Common has always battled through skin-tight budgets to stage top-end productions under the stars – for free. This year’s program by the Commonwealth Shakespeare Company is particularly apropos, with 18 performances of Othello, a hothouse drama of love and jealousy that should simmer nicely on a warm summer night. 7/28-8/15, 8 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 7 p.m. Sundays; Parkman Bandstand on Boston Common, commshakes.org.

STAY CLASSY
When it comes to concerts at the Hatch Shell, the Boston Pops rightfully hogs the limelight with its Independence Day celebration. But those with a continuing jones for orchestral music on the Esplanade can go on Wednesday evenings throughout the summer to catch the Boston Landmarks Orchestra. They kick off their riverside season in riotous fashion on July 14 with the E.U.’s official anthem, Beethoven’s Ninth, performed with the New World Chorale. 7/14-9/1, 7 p.m. Wednesdays; Hatch Shell on the Esplanade, landmarksorchestra.org.

DRINK WITH ISABELLA
Looking for cocktails and conversation surrounded by some of the best art in the city? How about live music and a courtyard bar? Every third Thursday throughout the year, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum hosts its monthly soiree, “After Hours,” where the drinks are artful, the “courtside bites” are just $1, and the decor is literally priceless. Admission, $12, 7/15 and 8/19; 280 The Fenway, 617-566-1401, gardnermuseum.org.