 They operate under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Actors' Equity Association, hiring only professional actors, and have memberships with many professional organizations including the Professional Association of Canadian Theatres, the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts and Theatre Ontario.Shakespeare in Action was founded in 1988 by Michael Kelly, a classically trained actor who has worked in Canada and the United States teaching Shakespeare.In 1991, the company performed for young offenders in prison, and from 1993-1996 toured productions of Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar, Macbeth and A Midsummer Night’s Dream to schools in the Greater Toronto Area.