Stratford Shakespeare Festival
 |
 |  |  |  |
| Country and Region | Canada — Canada |
|---|---|
| Type of Festival | Drama |
| Location of Festival | Stratford, Ontario Canada |
| Festival Address Information | Mailing address: |
| Festival Description | In the years since its first season in 1953, the Stratford Shakespeare Festival (formerly known as Stratford Festival of Canada) has set benchmarks for the production not only of Shakespeare, Molière, the ancient Greeks and other great dramatists of the past but also of such 20th-century masters as Samuel Beckett, Bertolt Brecht, Anton Chekhov, Henrik Ibsen, Eugene O’Neill and Tennessee Williams. In addition to acclaimed productions of the best in operetta and musical theatre, it has also showcased and in many cases premired works by outstanding Canadian and other contemporary playwrights. Drawing audiences of more than 600,000 each year, the Festival season now runs from April to November and includes a full programme of Fringe activities, including concert recitals,discussion sessions and readings by celebrated authors. It offers an extensive programme of educational and enrichment activities for students, teachers and other patrons, and operates its own in-house school of professional artist development: the Stratford Festival Conservatory for Classical Theatre Training. The Festival is currently building a $50-million Endowment Foundation to ensure that its founders dream remains a reality for all time. |
| Festival Dates | April 23 - November 9, 2008 |
| Festival Links |
Festival Events:
2008 Plays:
- Romeo and Juliet, directed by Tony Award winner Des McAnuff
- Hamlet, directed by the Adrian Noble, formerly of the Royal Shakespeare Company
- The Taming of the Shrew, directed by the National Arts Centre’s Peter Hinton
- All’s Well That Ends Well, directed by festival co-artistic director Marti Maraden and starring Brian Dennehy and Martha Henry
- Shaw’s Caesar and Cleopatra, directed by McAnuff and starring Christopher Plummer and Anika Noni Rose
Other Sources:
Articles and Reviews:
- Stratford Festival opens with Bedford playing King Lear (CBC Arts, May 28, 2007)
http://www.cbc.ca/arts/theatre/story/2007/05/28/stratford-open.html?ref=rss
Practical Info:
Discounted Tickets 2008:
- Tickets to all five productions this season will be offered at the discounted price of $20. This program offers balcony seats at the theatre with the caviat that the ticketholders will not have a choice where they will be seated. Tickets MUST be booked online. Ticketholders will find out where their seat is located after they have paid. The discounted seats are a way to make theatre more accessible financially.
- 2008 Seats will be released in three blocks—March 1, June 1 and Aug. 1 (with at least 60 seats available for each performance).
Start or join a conversation about this festival in the Forum.
