I suggest that this is because of the cost. While, in general, Shakespeare’s audience is not confined to old white folks, old white folks probably represent the largest single component of OSF’s audience, and a large majority of those who travel from other places to see the plays. Let me advance this discussion now by returning to the issue of demographics. The definitive answer will take the form of attendance numbers and income from ticket sales. Its current leadership seems determined to find the answer to that question by staging fewer and fewer of his plays- three this season, only two next year.
The question, then, is not whether Shakespeare needs OSF but whether OSF needs Shakespeare. In an interview on the Seattle Shakespeare Festival website, Joshi recalls falling in love with Shakespeare at age 14 when she was a schoolgirl in Kuwait. As I write, they are being staged in parks across the United States, including New York City, Nashville, Dallas, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Chicago and three locations in Montana, to name but some.Īnd contrary to those who believe that Shakespeare attracts only old white folks and thus - after four centuries of popularity - will fall into oblivion when people my age die off, I cite the experience of Rosa Joshi, a middle-aged woman of South Asian descent who has produced Shakespeare’s plays at various theaters, including OSF, and currently teaches theater at Seattle University. As long as there is theater in the English-speaking world, his plays will be staged.
The gist of that column was the extraordinarily provocative assertion that the Oregon Shakespeare Festival should stage the plays of Shakespeare.
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