This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Happy New Year from SPO!

Friends:

Happy New Year!  As we leap from 2013 to 2014, I hope you have been fortified and revitalized by time with family and friends, recovered from the trials of the past year and excited by the prospect of what 2014 may bring.

As you know, January is named after the Roman god Janus, who was the god of transitions and doorways.  He is depicted as a two-faced god, with one face turned toward the past and the other facing the future.  He is also the god of new beginnings.  And so, in many ways, Janus is the perfect symbol for Shakespeare Play On.

Find out what's happening in Santa Cruzwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

We have been hard at work, operating in that liminal space between the rich history of Shakespeare Santa Cruz and the rebirth of the Festival.  As of December 31, 2013, Shakespeare Santa Cruz is no more.  We look back on the laughter and tears that have been evoked in The Glen and on The Mainstage, and the days and nights when the bright, inquisitive people of Santa Cruz have come together to share in stories that are bigger than any individual, stories whose magnitude are best enjoyed with friends and neighbors in a redwood cathedral under the glittering stars.  We look back on how fragile a thing live theatre is, how only the prodigious effort of a fully invested community can keep it alive.

And, more importantly, we look forward.

Find out what's happening in Santa Cruzwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

We look forward to producing more of the work of Shakespeare and other great playwrights for the people of Santa Cruz and beyond.  We look forward to a Festival that belongs to the community, a Festival that reflects the spirited, inquisitive and intelligent qualities of its people.  We look forward to bringing many of the nation’s best artist and artisans to Santa Cruz, to celebrating the talent and commitment of the artists and artisans who live here and to playing our part in making Santa Cruz such a rich and vibrant artistic city.

If you’ll allow me to belabor the two-faced analogy a bit more, we look back with gratitude on everyone who has contributed to save the Festival.  We also look forward with eager anticipation to receiving help from those who have not yet given.  To date we have received donations from just over 250 people and families.  To put things in perspective, each summer over 15,000 people come to the Glen to enjoy Shakespeare.    So many of these people expressed dismay at the closure of Shakespeare Santa Cruz and asked why they were not given the chance by the University to help the festival out before the axe fell.  Every day, I get emails from friends who have met someone on the street or at a party who still do not know how to donate, or even that the effort to save the Festival is underway.  Despite of articles in The Sentinel, The Chronicle and The Examiner, despite a major social media push on Facebook and Twitter, we are still having trouble getting the word out.

Because we will not hire a staff until we know we can pay them, we are a group of volunteers, less than ten in number, who are spending our free time on this rescue effort.  We need your help.  The challenge is great, but we are undaunted because of your support and passion.  So, I challenge each of you to have two mouths like Janus.  Spread the word!  We can still save the Festival, but only if, for each of you who has given a donation, you can find two other people to donate.  Bring it up in conversation!  Talk about us on your Facebook page!  Tweet!  Call someone you’ve been to the Festival with to see a play.  All of the information they will need can be found on shakespeareplayon.net.  And never fear: shakespeareplayon.com and shakespeareplayon.org lead to the same page.  If you have an idea (or two!) about how we can get the word out, don’t hesitate to let me know.  I can be reached at mike@shakespeareplayon.org.

Shakespeare Play On has a New Year’s resolution: we are resolved to bring you world class Shakespeare in the incomparable natural beauty that only Santa Cruz can offer.  I invite you to share this resolution with us.

 

May your 2014 be filled with joy, prosperity and auspicious new beginnings.  And Shakespeare, Play On!

 

Mike Ryan

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?