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--> --> Festival flexes its muscle again with successful season There's no denying it - the Oregon Shakespeare Festival is an Ashland economic powerhouse. Despite an anticipated dip in attendance during 2001, the Festival racked up its third-best season in 66 years with revenues topping $11.5 million. That number beat 2000 revenue figures by more than $600,000. In a season that drew 368,776 people - that's like the entire population of Minneapolis stopping by to see a play - the loss of 10,900 patrons over the previous year is about as acceptable as it comes. The Festival's three theaters averaged 91 percent capacity: 89 percent in the Black Swan, 98 percent in the Angus Bowmer Theatre and 92 percent in the outdoor Elizabethan Theatre. The attendance dip this season occurred during performances of Shakespeare's "Troilus and Cressida" in the Elizabethan, when the outdoor seating only filled to 75 percent capacity. Festival Executive Director Paul Nicholson was realistic enough to concede that not all of the Bard's works are going to pack the house. "If we only do the Top 10, we would be cycling through the Shakespeare canon every couple of years. It would get pretty boring for us and the audience," he said. Next season could shape up to be a record year if all goes as planned with the new Festival theater being constructed along Hargadine Street, which will replace the aging and somewhat cramped Black Swan. Eleven plays will be presented in 2002, with Shakespeare's strong classics "Julius Caesar" and "Macbeth" on the playbill. In addition, OSF will present Edward Albee's "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf," and "Idiot's Delight" by Robert Sherwood, among other plays. At a time when Americans are becoming increasingly concerned about the state of our slumping economy, it's nice to see a success story like the Festival's just-finished season. Whether you support the arts in Ashland or not, there's no getting around the fact that OSF has again shown itself as a key element contributing to the economic health of the city. Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing