ABOUT COLORADO SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL

OUR GOALS The Colorado Shakespeare Festival has a 43-year history of excellence, producing an aesthetically challenging mix of both traditional and innovative productions of Shakespeare's plays. We are committed to: * high professional standards of quality, diversity and safety in all departments * education through outreach, mentorship and advocacy * the development of new work and the nurturing of playwrights in our hope to contribute to the canon of future classics from our culture OUR COMPANY In addition to seeking out new sources of talent, CSF serves as an ideal pre-professional training ground for actors, designers, and artisans who are finishing theatre training programs across the country.  It is an integral part of our mission to maintain a talented base of professional actors, directors and designers in the company.  Their presence provides mentorship and an educational experience to the non-Equity actors, stage managers and the crafts people working with these seasoned professionals.  This theatre is an essential link between graduate training and professional careers for many young artists between the ages of 25-35. We believe strongly in non-traditional casting and cultural diversity among our 40-member acting company, and in all production and management departments.  It is gratifying to note that, in our 1991 through 2000 seasons, we substantially increased the racial diversity in the company. EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH A vital part of the educational mission is CSF's year-round commitment to supporting school outreach through the Living Shakespeare programs.  These highly acclaimed elementary and secondary school programs are performance-based workshops promoting effective, innovative, hands-on Shakespeare education for students and teachers throughout Colorado.  In addition, CSF produces Preview, an educational guide to Shakespeare designed as a classroom tool for teachers of English and Drama.  During the summer months, CSF offers nine different Living Shakespeare programs from a teen summer camp and an elementary school Shakespeare festival to a community open house and tickets for disadvantage youths. COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS CSF actively promotes partnerships with the corporate sector of our community to raise awareness of our programs and to hold ticket prices to a minimum.  We continue to seek collaborative relationships with numerous social service agencies to provide artistic and entertainment services to their constituencies.  We place a high priority on corporate ventures with the not-for-profit sector, particularly in helping arts organizations and individual artists to meet their goals. OUR AUDIENCE In addition to our goal of providing audiences with opportunities to see a mix of traditional and innovative productions, we are also committed to presenting productions and programs that stimulate a new perspective on Shakespeare’s plays.  The CSF audience consists of ages 5 to 85 and the Festival is promoted widely as an informal family experience.  Our accompanying educational programs of classes, tours, and free lectures attract a broad mix of serious scholars and casual viewers.  A major audience development goal is to broaden the ethnic diversity of our audience by attracting new segments of the population through the contacts made in our school tours and the greater racial diversity represented on stage by CSF.

ACHIEVEMENTS & MILESTONES

*With the production of Cymbeline in 1975, CSF became the seventh theatre in the world to complete the entire Shakespearean canon of 37 plays. * CSF draws over 40,000 audience members each season, 10% of whom come from outside the state of Colorado, with many sold out performances.  The 2000 season set the record for the most sold out performances in CSF’s history. * The annual budget for the CSF is over $1,000,000, 70% of which is raised through box office receipts and other related incomes.  The remainder of the budget is subsidized by corporate, university and government grants as well as individual contributions. * Each summer CSF hires 4 directors, over 40 actors, 9 designers, and more than 150 production personnel.  Including the administrative staff, apprentices, interns, and volunteers, the entire CSF company numbers well over 200. * CSF’s educational programs served more than 10,000 students, 639 teachers and 39 schools this year alone. * CSF also offers several other programs to accompany the Festival, such as Shakespeare in Production, a course that deals with all aspects of producing Shakespeare’s plays, greenshow activities including free music and dance performances, a free lecture/ series and backstage tours. * CSF produces four publications: Shakesperiodical, the subscriber newsletter sent two times a year; Preview, a teachers guide to the CSF season; Insights, a collection of strategies for teaching Shakespeare and The Guild Gazette, a newsletter published by the CS Guild, the Festival’s volunteer support organization.

RECOGNITION

* CSF was named as one of the top three Shakespeare Festivals in the nation by Time magazine. * CSF is the 2nd oldest Shakespeare Festival in the Country. * CSF was the recipient of The Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts. * CSF has won multiple "Best of Boulder" awards for "Best Theatre Production/Play" from the Daily Camera. * CSF was the recipient of numerous International Festivals and Events Association’s Pinnacle awards.  In 2000, we received four Pinnacle awards for excellence in marketing and media, including two world wide gold medals for the Season Brochure and Program Cover.  In 1999 CSF received awards for Best Season Brochure and Best Festival-Marked Clothing. * CSF was voted the Best Theatre Production of 1999 for the Boulder Gold Reader’s Choice Awards. * CSF received Westword’s "Best of Denver 1998" awards for Best Costume, Bruce McInroy for the Would-Be-Gentleman; Best Shakespearean Mini-series for CSF’s Troilus and Cressida. * CSF won the 1998 Denver Drama Critics’ Circle awards for Best Scenic Design, David Barber and Best Actor in a Play, Randy Howk, both for for Richard II. * CSF was nominated for ten 1998 Denver Drama Critics’ Circle Awards including Best Season for a Theatre Company, Best Play and four acting nominations. * CSF composer and musical director, David B. Wohl of Fort Collins received a special award from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) for his music and sound design for CSF’s 1997 production of The Bourgeois Gentleman.