OSF is a major theatre arts organization, OSF offers a diversity of plays as well as events and activities to enhance your overall experience. The Oregon Shakespeare Festival is a not-for-profit professional theatre founded in 1935. Our eight-month season runs through the month of October, and we have three theatres: our two indoor stages—the Angus Bowmer Theatre and the Thomas Theatre—and our flagship outdoor Allen Elizabethan Theatre, which opens in early June and runs through mid-October. We offer up to 11 different plays that include works by Shakespeare as well as a mix of classics, musicals and world-premiere plays. When you visit you can see one or two plays or up to nine plays in one week! Share this FacebookTwitterE-mail Our Mission Our mission statement helps guide us in all of our endeavors here at OSF: Inspired by Shakespeare's work and the cultural richness of the United States, we reveal our collective humanity through illuminating interpretations of new and classic plays, deepened by the kaleidoscope of rotating repertory. Our Name Why are we called the Oregon Shakespeare Festival? Oregon: We are located in Southern Oregon, in Ashland to be precise, and we are proud to be a part of the Oregon theatre community. Shakespeare: For many years we performed only Shakespearean productions. In fact, we had only one theatre, the Elizabethan Stage (three different buildings: 1935, 1947, 1959). With the opening of the Angus Bowmer Theatre in 1970 and the Black Swan in 1977 we were able to extend the length of our season into the spring and fall, and also expand our repertoire to include other classic playwrights, as well as contemporary and new work. The Thomas Theatre (formerly New Theatre) opened in 2002 to replace the Black Swan. Festival: OSF prides itself on offering a diversity of experiences that we hope feels like a Festival event. Once you’re on campus, particularly in the summer, you can experience not only a number of plays, but also backstage tours, park talks, lectures, classes, workshops, pre- and post-show conversations, a free Green Show before the evening shows from June through October. These are all offered to enhance your play-going experience. Our Values Excellence: We bring the best possible version of ourselves to our work onstage and to the organization, holding ourselves to high artistic, professional and personal standards. Inclusion: We include a diversity of people, ideas and cultures in our work, enriching our art, our relationships with each other, our audiences and our community. Company: We sustain a safe and supportive workplace where we rely on our fellow company members to work toward excellence with trust, respect, compassion and accountability. Stewardship: We make wise, efficient and responsible use of all the resources entrusted to us, sustaining our long-standing financial stability, the legacy of our organization's 80-year history, and the health of our planet. Facts and Figures Established in 1935, OSF is among the oldest and largest professional regional repertory theatre companies in the United States. Has the oldest existing full-scale Elizabethan stage in the Western Hemisphere, built on the site of the old Chautauqua theatre established in 1893. Presents an eight-month season of up to 11 plays—a mix of Shakespeare, classic and contemporary playwrights—rotating repertory in three theatres: the outdoor Allen Elizabethan Theatre (seats 1,190), the Angus Bowmer Theatre (seats 601), and the Thomas Theatre (seats 270-360). In 2019, Oregon Shakespeare Festival reached a total attendance of 360,199 and 83% of capacity in all three theatres. Patrons see an average of three shows, making the total number of visitors to the Festival each year approximately 120,000. Eighty percent of audience members travel more than 125 miles to attend the Festival. Presented more than 800 performances in 2019. Operated in 2019 on a budget of over $40 million, 60% of which is realized through earned income. In 2019, the Festival had a state economic impact of over $120 million. 2019 Oregon History Maker’s Medal recipient for organization making history through innovation in the arts and community service. In 2014, All the Way, commissioned through OSF’s American Revolutions: The United States History Cycle program, won the Tony Award for Best Play. Lynn Nottage’s Sweat, also an American Revolutions OSF co-commission with Arena Stage, won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize in Drama. Received 1990 American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Commendation and 1990 Open Book Award for First Amendment Courage by American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA), New York. Received the 1983 Antoinette Perry (“Tony”) Award for outstanding achievement in regional theatre and the 1983 national Governors’ Association Award for distinguished service to the arts. Offers over 20 lifelong learning education and engagement programs that annual intersect with more than 130,000 participants. Employs approximately 600 theatre professionals. Has an active volunteer staff over 700. OSF’s audience is drawn from every U.S. state and has also recently welcomed visitors from 37 other countries What Else Should I Know about OSF? OSF invites and welcomes everyone. We believe the inclusion of diverse people, ideas, cultures and traditions enriches both our insights into the work we present on stage and our relationships with each other. Social justice is central to our mission, and we are committed to diversity in all areas of our work and in our audiences. To learn more about some of our programs designed to reach out to diverse audiences check out our Cultural Connections section. You can learn more about what to expect when you visit Ashland and OSF below. You’ll find information about the theatres, attire, parking, and weather.