Tennessee Shakespeare Company Awarded First-Time Grant From Theatre League, Inc.

Patrick Flick, Executive Director of the Shakespeare Theatre Association (STA), and Mark Edelman, founder and president of Theater League, Inc., a Kansas City, MO-based contributor to the performing arts, announced that the League will be gifting Tennessee Shakespeare Company and 34 other Shakespeare theatres across the United States and internationally with general operating support grants.

These non-restricted gifts of either $5,000 or $10,000, each based on budget size, will be awarded this year to STA-member producing theaters with budgets between $100,000 and $1,400,000.

TSC received a $10,000 grant out of the total of $255,000 to be disbursed.

"As regular contributors to the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival in Kansas City-a long-time STA member--- we were looking to expand our support of non-profit organizations with similar goals and objectives," explained Edelman. "That led us to STA and Patrick, who helped us identify the mid-level Shakespeare producing organizations we wanted to fund."

"We are honored to be a long-time member of STA and to have earned this first-time grant for our upcoming Free Shout-Out Shakespeare Series in the autumn," said Dan McCleary, TSC's founder and Producing Artistic Director. "Our mission is to bring live performances of Shakespeare's plays to everyone in our community, and these funds will allow us to expand our reach this year with a fun Shakespeare play that we hope will introduce hundreds of people to our namesake and keep them returning for more."

"STA is always looking for ways to assist our membership," said Flick. "whether it be in the form of our annual conference, or by seeking out financial assistance for our hard-working member theatres. At a time when audience sizes are just beginning to rebound from the pandemic, support for Shakespeare and the classics in the communities we serve is such an important thing. STA is grateful to Theater League for that support."

Kansas City-based Theater League is a not-for-profit performing arts organization dedicated to enhancing the quality of life in the communities it serves with the thrill of live theater. Founded in 1976, the group supports theatre companies in its hometown and across the country, including subsidizing tickets for student groups through its Theater ROcKs (Reach Out to Kids) program.

"What appealed to us is the far-flung nature of the organizations we'll be supporting with this grant program," continued Edelman. "Shakespeare companies in 26 states, plus the Czech Republic, will get a little help from Theater League."

STA is a 32-year-old theatre service organization founded in 1991 at a convening in Washington DC, hosted by the Shakespeare Theatre and the Kennedy Center. The organization continues to convene annually to provide support and mentorship, as well as share best practices, with colleagues from within the United States and internationally. Membership includes over 130 organizational theatres and dozens of Associate Members representing indoor, outdoor, Equity and non-Equity, year-round, seasonal, university-affiliated, and free Shakespeare productions with budgets ranging from $25,000 to $60,000,000.

STA's member organizations engage a diverse array of audiences and staff members representing a wide variety of ethnicities, genders, ages, and abilities. A resource network that bridges the gap between scholarship and production and promotes the teaching of Shakespeare in schools, STA has helped its member organizations explore Shakespeare in the context of colonialism, anti-racism, gender diversity, best practices in hiring, and a host of other topics designed to keep Shakespeare relevant in the modern world.

To post a comment, you must register and login.