Sitting at a table in a restaurant, Grant Turner has the air of a scholar, not an actor, but the unassuming man is one of the most experienced actors in Eastern Oregon.

With July’s Summer Shakespeare Festival production of “Coriolanus,” Turner has now completed Shakespeare’s canon — acting in all 38 of the Bard’s established plays. Of all the Shakespearean roles Turner has taken on he said his favorites are the two Richards he has played: Richard II and Richard III, even decades apart.

“I really liked playing Richard III, which is a scenery chewing, wild eccentric personality. I worked with a world-class director, and he really inspired me to push it as far as I could go, and it was such an eye-opening experience and such a rewarding experience. I did really enjoy playing Richard II last year. I still carry him with me because I think that play is so great,” he said.

In total, Turner estimates he has done 77 Shakespeare productions, including six runs of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and five each of “Romeo and Juliet” and “Twelfth Night.”

“If I had to choose a favorite, I would say, ‘Troilus & Cressida.’ It’s ostensibly based on the Trojan war; it’s ostensibly Romeo and Juliet — boy and girl divided by their parents fighting for love, but unlike Romeo and Juliet, Cressida is really practical. It’s kind of brilliant in that way.”

Turner did not plan on becoming a Shakespearean expert.

“I got into this because I felt like no one was doing Shakespeare the way I wanted them to,” he said. “I don’t like setting Shakespeare in space, for example, and trying to figure out what all that would mean when really you’re just watching the sets and the costumes and the language doesn’t really matter.”

In Portland, Turner created and ran the Northwest Classical Theatre Company for more than a decade. He was honored with the Special Achievement “Drammy” Award in 2014 for his contributions to theater in Portland.

Once a student at Eastern Oregon University, Turner returned to La Grande when his wife, Nicole, accepted a job.

Turner then started a new theater troupe from scratch. Originally the La Grande Shakespeare Company, Union County’s “Theater in the Ronde” marks its 10th year in 2024. One of the company’s keystones is the Summer Shakespeare Festival, which just finished multiple shows at Eastern Oregon University.

Working with College Community Theatre in Pendleton, Turner will direct Shakespeare in the Park performances of “Twelfth Night” on Aug. 10.

“I just feel like there’s no better author at interpreting the human condition and spirit than Shakespeare,” he said.

For Turner, Shakespeare is like the Beatles, his favorite band.

“I truly believe that the Beatles created rock and roll music the way we know it, based on music that existed in their past, and they filtered it through their experiences and transformed it into a new thing, and no one will ever exceed the Beatles,” he said. “They are the greatest at what they have done, and I see Shakespeare the same way. He has shown us the human experience in a way that 500 years later, we still identify with it.”

With his in-depth knowledge of Shakespeare, Turner has become involved with teaching classes and working with area high school and university students.

Although his Shakespearean work is legendary, Turner has directed a plethora of other shows, including musicals at the Elgin Opera House and performances of his favorite works by Dickens, John Millington Synge and Agatha Christie. Turner has created his own stage adaptations of literary works, such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s “Sherlock Holmes,” and Turner is a playwright of his own material as well with acclaimed works like “Brothers Booth.”

The actors in Turner’s shows say he gives them a new understanding of theater, no matter the type of performance.

“Grant Turner is one of the smartest people I have ever met when it comes to interpreting a script,” said Carly Walker, who has worked with Turner on several plays. “For him, a single line can yield a dozen open-ended questions about the characters, their backgrounds, and their desires. It makes an atmosphere where actors really feel they are creating something brand new, even with a 100-year-old play.”

Karen Taylor, another actor, agreed.

“I have a huge amount of respect for him,” she said. “He is an incredible resource to have in our region.”

In addition to theater, Turner loves his family, Disney and Marvel comics.

“As a young boy, the greatest joy in my life was going down to the corner store with a dollar in my pocket and getting three comic books and penny candy, 25 of those, and I would go home and sit on the porch, I’d read my comics, and I’d eat my Laffy Taffy, and it was truly the greatest way to spend a morning that I can possibly imagine,” he said.

Turner now collects original comic art and has amassed a collection focused on the silver age and first appearances. Despite his long list of accomplishments, Turner remains humble.

“I’m just trying to navigate my way through this world like everyone else,” he said.

‘Twelfth Night’

Grant Turner directs “Twelfth Night” as part of College Community Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park on Saturday, Aug. 10, 5:30 p.m. at Roy Raley Park in Pendleton

Admission is free, although donations are welcome.