Oregon Shakespeare Festival

State Lottery Funds Upgrades to Theaters

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival, currently celebrating 80 years, received $2 million from the State Lottery Fund to improve the aging infrastructure of its two oldest and largest theaters and its landmark public courtyard. OSF is one of four arts organizations to receive funding, thanks to the efforts of the Cultural Advocacy Coalition. Other recipients are the Portland Japanese Garden ($1.5 million), Oregon Public Broadcasting ($600,000), and Aurora Colony Museum ($400,000).

The grant will enable OSF to modernize and improve access to the Angus Bowmer and Allen Elizabethan theaters, as well as the courtyard entry area to the two theaters which is used for the festival's Green Show performances before the plays.

“We are thrilled to receive this grant from the state and see its commitment to the investment in statewide infrastructure in arts and cultural organizations,” OSF Executive Director Cynthia Rider said in a press release. “We are grateful for the efforts of Representative Peter Buckley and the state legislators, as well as the Cultural Advocacy Coalition for its work to increase public investment in arts, heritage, and the humanities, which supports economic development throughout Oregon.”

The Cultural Advocacy Coalition is a nonpartisan advocacy group formed to lobby policy makers in Salem to ensure that all Oregonians have the opportunity to access arts and culture in their communities.

Founded by Angus Bowmer in 1935 and winner of a 1983 Tony Award for outstanding achievement in regional theatre, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival presents an eight-month season of 11 plays that include works by Shakespeare as well as a mix of classics, musicals, and new works. The Festival draws attendance of more than 400,000 to almost 800 performances every year and employs approximately 575 theater professionals.

July 9, 2015

If you have Shakespearean news to share, e-mail [email protected]