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1999 OSF season sets attendance, revenue records By BILL VARBLE For the Oregon Shakespeare Festival's 1999 season, all's well that ends well. The festival set season records in both attendance and revenues. Attendance reached 374,246. Box office revenue was $9,943,254. The century's last season ended Sunday night with Shakespeare's "Othello" in the Angus Bowmer Theatre and Ellen McLaughlin's "Tongue of a Bird" in the Black Swan. The festival in 1999 sold 93 percent of the seats available for 762 performances of 11 plays in three theaters starting in February. OSF Executive Director Paul Nicholson credited Libby Appel, the festival's artistic director, with laying the groundwork for the record-breaking season. "Libby has focused on hiring the best directors and designers, and on building the strongest possible acting company," he said in a statement issued Monday. "I'm delighted that those efforts are paying off in greater audience confidence, which translates into attendance." Festival officials also attributed the banner season to attractive productions, marketing targeted to first-time patrons, increased national press coverage and word of mouth. The previous attendance record was 364,062 in 1997. The previous record box office gross was $8,653,599 in 1998. Leading the way in the ticket derby was "The Three Musketeers," with 101 percent of capacity sold (43,133 attendance for 26 performances in the Elizabethan). "Much Ado About Nothing," also in the Elizabethan, played to 100 percent of capacity (42,684 in 36 shows). "Othello" finished on top among five productions in the smaller Angus Bowmer Theatre, with 98 percent of its seats sold (67,703 for 107 shows). Weakest-performing plays for the season were "The Good Person of Szechuan" in the Bowmer, and "Henry IV, Part Two" in the Elizabethan. Bertolt Brecht's melodramatic parable played to 83 percent of capacity in the Bowmer. Shakespeare's drama hit 84 percent in the Elizabethan. Theater patrons have long been thought to be intimidated by Brecht. The festival mounted a controversial production of "Henry IV, Part One" last year. Maurine Watkins' "Chicago," August Wilson's "Seven Guitars," and Shakespeare's "Pericles" played to 92, 93 and 94 percent capacity, respectively, in the Bowmer. Octavio Solis' "El Paso Blue," Henrik Ibsen's "Rosmersholm" and "Tongue of a Bird" did 98, 97 and 98 percent in the smaller Black Swan. The festival also caught a wave this season with fallout from the mega-success of the hit movie "Shakespeare in Love," media relations manager Amy Richard said. Ticket sales for the 2000 season begin later this month to members and in January to the public. The season opens Feb. 25 with Shakespeare's "Henry V," directed by Appel, in the Bowmer. Also coming in February: Margaret Edson's "Wit," Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman's "The Man Who Came to Dinner" and Tennessee Williams' "The Night of the Iguana." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA