Tim McGraw and Faith Hill Take On Shakespeare to Raise Money for Youth Arts Programs

Tim McGraw and Faith Hill will soon be trading in their cowboy boots for a little Shakespeare. They are among the star-studded cast set to perform 'The Merry Wives of Windsor' on May 9 at UCLA's Royce Hall for the Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles. In celebrating the Shakespeare Center's 25th anniversary, founder and executive artistic director Ben Donenberg decided the readings will have "a kind of country-western theme" that will even include some Hank Williams songs in the performance.

William Shatner will also take part in the event, as will Martin Short, Tracey Ullman, Christina Applegate, Kenneth Branagh, Arte Johnson, Eugene Levy and co-chairs Rita Wilson and her husband, Tom Hanks. Eric Idle will also be on board. Some may remember Idle's connection to country music: He penned the Monty Python movie tune 'The Galaxy Song,' which Clint Black recorded for his 'D'lectrified' album in 1999.

Each artist will take part in the reading of the Shakespeare comedy, and they are encouraged to improvise their performance. All proceeds from the event will go to the Shakespeare Center's youth employment programs for inner-city kids and arts education at local schools. For more information, head to their official site.

The event takes place on Monday, May 9 at 8PM at UCLA's Royce Hall in Los Angeles. Tickets go on sale to the public on Friday, April 15 at all Ticketmaster outlets, with prices ranging from $95-175.