On Monday morning, the regents of UC Santa Santa Cruz unexpectedly (and unceremoniously) announced that it was closing down Shakespeare Santa Cruz in December, ending a 32-year run as one of the nation's premiere Shakespeare festivals.
While the festival's financial troubles were well-known to anyone in the theatre world paying attention (the company's debt nearly shut it down in 2008), the abruptness of this announcement sent shockwaves throughout regional theatre circles. You can read more about the closure, including statements from the regents and representatives of SSC, by clicking HERE.
Whatever the reasons for the closure, it is an important reminder to all of us (patrons and artists alike) to never take the Arts for granted. This is an extremely challenging time for our industry, and it's our responsibility to do everything in our power to make sure that- above all else- the show goes on. More on this story as it develops out of Santa Cruz--- there are still many questions to be answered.
Have a great Thursday, everyone!
-Kevin
I'm astounded that there was no apparently no warning to Shakespeare Santa Cruz to increase fundraising, or else. I'm sure the festival is a tourism draw, so they probably could have gotten tourism funds. Plus there are a lot of wealthy people in and near Santa Cruz.... This reminds me of the sudden bankruptcy and closure a few years of the Pasadena Playhouse.
ReplyDelete32 years is a long time for a theatre company to be in operation. It's a really long time for a non-educational theatre to be subsidized by a university. It's going to be interesting to see what fills the void.
ReplyDeleteThere's a lesson here: you can't get away with pretending to be something you're not for much more than 3 decades.