Town Crier Train Tours returns to Ashland for its third-annual visit June 28 to July 3. After a day in the Oregon pine forest, the group will travel to Ashland for three days of Shakespeare festival activities.

The group is scheduled to take in two matinees and two evening performances in an order that alternates serious drama with lighter fare. The plays include:

• “The Importance of Being Earnest.” The story, by Oscar Wilde, involves a pair of young Victorian swells, Algernon Moncrieff and Jack Worthing, best friends who lead double lives. The resolution is less important than the repartee that brings it about.

• “Cyrano de Bergerac.” The strength of this enduring classic by Edmond Rostand lies in the beauty of the poetry that describes an impossible situation. The story follows an erudite guardsman with a gargantuan nose who yearns for the beautiful Roxane.

• “The Winter’s Tale.” Though the story has too many implausibilities for modern tastes, the play endures because of its universal themes and stock characters - exactly the elements that would have appealed to audiences of Shakespeare’s time.

• “The Diary of Anne Frank.” This adaptation by Wendy Kesselman includes material from the original diary not previously published. The result is a presentation that gives the characters new depth.

In addition to four performances, Town Crier travelers will have a private meeting with a resident actor and examine mementos from Elizabethan theater. The group will also take a backstage tour led by festival staff.

For more information and reservations, call 941-6381 or email ann.duwe@sbcglobal.net.