OSF to Commemorate 400th Anniversary of Shakespeare's Death This Weekend

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival will join the world in commemorating the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare's death on April 23 with a party titled "Death Becomes Him: Celebrating Shakespeare's Legacy."

Hosted by resident artists Dawn Monique Williams and Lydia G. Garcia, the party will take place at noon in Carpenter Hall and will feature cake, games and a discussion of the Bard's legacy and relevancy in the 21st century. Tickets for the party, which is part of OSF's Festival Noons engagement programming, are $12.00 for adults, $10.00 for OSF members and $8.00 for youths 6-17.

People visiting the OSF campus on April 23, which is also Shakespeare's birthday, should expect to find some festive offerings on the Bricks-perhaps including an appearance by the Bard of Avon himself-following the Festival Noon party and before the 1:30 matinee of Twelfth Night.

Oregon Governor Kate Brown has joined in the celebration by proclaiming April 23, 2016 as "The 400th Anniversary of the Life and Works of William Shakespeare in Oregon." The proclamation encourages "all Oregonians to join in this observance."

Elsewhere in Oregon, OSF and its Play on! program will participate in "Shakespeare at 400: A Celebration of the Man, the Myth and His Work" on April 23 in Portland. A day-long event hosted by the Portland Shakespeare Project at Lincoln Hall on the Portland State University campus, "Shakespeare at 400" will include lectures, readings, a Sonnet Slam, performances of Shakespeare's monologues and scenes, and a Q&A with Ian Doescher, author of William Shakespeare's Star Wars. All events are free, but an RSVP is requested.

OSF is also partnering with the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., on their Celebrate the Wonder of Will festivities, including a collection of Your Shakespeare Stories and an international live streaming event on April 23 from the historic Paster Reading Room in Washington, D.C. A diverse array of actors, community leaders, artists and scholars will share their connections to Shakespeare through compelling performances and personal stories. Watch the broadcast LIVE on C-SPAN2 Book TV on Saturday, April 23, 9:00-10:00 a.m. Pacific. A national call-in show with Book TV's Peter Slen follows.

Founded by Angus Bowmer in 1935 and winner of a 1983 Tony Award for outstanding achievement in regional theatre, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival presents an eight-month season of 11 plays that include works by Shakespeare as well as a mix of classics, musicals, and new works. The Festival draws attendance of more than 400,000 to almost 800 performances every year and employs approximately 575 theatre professionals. In 2008, OSF launched American Revolutions: the United States History Cycle, a 10-year cycle of commissioning new plays that has already resulted in several OSF commissions finding success nationwide.

Test and expand your Broadway knowledge with our new game - The Broadway Match-Up! How well do you know your Broadway casting trivia?	Play the Daily Game, explore current shows, and delve into past decades like the 2000s, 80s, and the Golden Age. Challenge your friends and see where you rank!
How well do you know your Tony Awards history? Take our never-ending quiz of nominations and winner history and challenge your friends.	Can you beat your friends? Play today’s daily Broadway word game, featuring a new theatrically inspired word or phrase every day!