Shaking up the Shakespearean Status Quo!

I'm fundraising for Island Shakespeare Festival, a company near and dear to my heart.

ISF fosters and empowers awesome art. I'm passionate and proud to work here for so many reasons. Topping the list: accessibility. We function on a Pay What You Will model so anyone and everyone has access to the empathy-building experience of really incredible theatre that's centered on inclusion. 

I also love that ISF is committed to making space in the classical canon for folks who've historically been excluded from it, onstage, offstage, and in the audience. At ISF, artists and audiences get to share in an experience of belonging. 

“ISF has the power to make amends - ISF has the power to create peace - ISF has the power to liberate - ISF is a place where you see yourself - and know that you, yourself, are enough - you, yourself, are great.” - Ada Karamanyan (she/her)

It’s my seventh year 😱 as artistic director here, and this summer I’m making my directorial debut with the play that started it all for me: Romeo and Juliet. I’m pumped to share this story about reconciliation with my community. 

I’m also stoked to launch a partnership with Hedgepig Ensemble Theatre’s Expand the Canon. Hedgpig is trying to bring classics by women to the stage, and I’m thrilled ISF is part of the movement. The play in question: Hannah Cowley’s 1783 feminist alternative to The Taming of the Shrew, entitled A Bold Stroke for a Husband. You can read more about the summer season here.

Please, can you chip in $5, $10, $50? Your choice to make a gift now will help me ignite the power of ISF to cultivate empathy and connection this summer. Let’s create a space together where everyone belongs.