Near-Life Experience

Dear Friends,

In 2008, we had a near-death experience – UCSC told us, raise $300,000 in a week or die.  A mere 168 hours later, 2,050 of us had responded and raised $417,000.

We now have a near-life experience – and it is up to each one of us to help Shakespeare Play On at http://www.shakespeareplayon.org/.
We can do it – click on https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/shakespeareplayon and keep on reading.

The independent theater we have always dreamed of is ours for the making, it awaits us, tantalizingly, but it could easily slip away.  It is time for the community to take ownership of this Festival.  We have not come through crises, victories, tears and joy, now to let it evaporate due to inaction.

Our theater is one that will pride itself on:

-          Actor-driven artistic leadership committed to giving actors what they need to do their very best work – for 2014, that’s Marco Barricelli and Mike Ryan!

-          An aesthetic borne of 32 years of artistic vision from Audrey, Michael, Danny, Paul, Risa and Marco

-          A multi-generational audience beloved by actors for its curiosity, engagement and openness

-          Collaboration with the arts organizations that make Santa Cruz so vibrant

-          Fiscal responsibility exercised by a true Board of Directors

All of us were devastated by the abrupt termination of the Festival, but we now collectively have the opportunity to create a resilient, robust self-governing organization.  You have it in your power to make the challenges we face much less daunting.  Here is how.   We have a major donor event scheduled for Sunday, December 15, 7PM.  Donors and sponsors will rightfully ask the Board:  where is your mass support?  How do we know this won’t be a one-season wonder?

By donating at https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/shakespeareplayon now, you, the Play On nation, can empower us to make the strongest possible case to these donors.  By donating here and now, you can give us the leverage we need to finalize a lease for the Glen.  By donating here and now, you can help us boost our appeal to foundations and season sponsors.   We would love to be able to demonstrate mass support to these constituencies and we want to ask these major donors to match what you, the Play On nation, have donated by this Sunday at 6:59PM.  The more you can give and get others to give, the more we can legitimately and passionately press for.  [As was true in 2008, if the Board determines that funds received are insufficient to launch the 2014 season, all funds will be returned, minus a small processing fee].

There is nothing that we will despise more than coming to January 15 and discovering that the window for the 2014 season is closed (directors, designers, actors and artisans, as well as artistic directors can only wait so long before moving on).

Let’s all give ourselves the gift of theater for 2014, by wrapping up fundraising for the budget this weekend.  That means concluding the mass community phase of this campaign of $300,000 by 6:59PM Sunday evening.  We did this together in 2008, wouldn’t it be wonderful if the next e-mail you get is from Marco and Mike with a season announcement?!  Shakespeare Play On!

With immense gratitude for your continuing love and support.
Sincerely,

The Board of Directors, Shakespeare Play On