Let's Put On A Show!

Just spotted an interesting question over on Yahoo! Answers, and I think that my crowd over here could generate some interesting content on the subject.

Say that you've got no real acting experience - you're not part of a group, never done this sort of thing before.  You and a bunch of friends get together and say "Hey, let's perform some Shakespeare."

What happens next? What's the checklist?  I'm curious now, since I think there's people in the crowd that may have done exactly this.

What sort of permissions do you need to get?  Even if you just wanted to head on into the town common and start reciting, who has to ok that?  What limits and rules are there?  Is it usually standardized, i.e. you'd be able to find the person at town hall who knows what to tell you, rather than scratching their head at the crazy person asking things no one has ever asked?

What about choosing a text?  If I own, say, the Norton version - can I just head to the photocopier and make a dozen copies of Midsummer to pass out?  (I know the answer to that one, but I want somebody to give me the "right" answer.)

What else?  What details would somebody doing this for the first time miss, that from experience you can tell us?