Asolo Rep and the FSU/Asolo Conservatory to Partner for 2016 Community Foundation of Sarasota Giving Challenge

Asolo Rep and the FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training proudly announce their partnership and participation in the 2016 Community Foundation of Sarasota County Giving Challenge from Tuesday, September 20 at noonthrough Wednesday, September 21 at noon. The Giving Challenge is a community-wide initiative that strives to spotlight Sarasota's nonprofit organizations and demonstrate the importance and impact of any gift, no matter its size.

Donations toward Asolo Rep during the Challenge will support the theatre's award-winning Education and Outreach programs and its ongoing initiative to ensure the powerful experience of Live Theatre is part of students' education today and part of their livestomorrow through student matinees and the annual fall Shakespeare tour. Donations given to the FSU/Asolo Conservatory during the challenge will support its innovative spring 2017 production of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream at Sarasota landmark Marie Selby Botanical Gardens.

Asolo Rep and the FSU/Asolo Conservatory will host a free Giving Challenge kick-off event at 11:30am on Tuesday, September 20 at Asolo Rep. There will be costume displays, interactive activities, backstage tours, and a screening of the movie Born Yesterday, based on Garson Kanin's play of the same name. Asolo Rep's production of Born Yesterday, which runs February 8 through April 15, 2017, will have two student matinee performances. Reservations are required for this event. Please RSVP toSpecialEvents@asolo.org or 941-351-9010 ext. 4702 by September 15. Free parking and light refreshments will be available.

The 2016 Giving Challenge is presented by the Community Foundation of Sarasota County with giving strengthened by The Patterson Foundation, as well as support from Manatee Community Foundation, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, William G. and Marie Selby Foundation, and the Herald-Tribune Media Group. This year The Patterson Foundation is matching all contributions to the Giving Challenge, either dollar-for-dollar or two-to-one depending on the donor's participation in last year's Giving Challenge.

At noon on September 20 contributors can go to www.givingpartnerchallenge.org and search for Asolo Rep and the FSU/Asolo Conservatory to give their donations, or visitwww.asolorep.org at any time during the challenge to find a direct link to Asolo Rep and the Conservatory's giving pages. All donations must be made online, and the minimum contribution is $25.

"Contributing to both Asolo Rep and to the FSU/Asolo Conservatory during the Giving Challenge is an opportunity for you to be the one to create a moment and inspire a lifelong love of theatre for a child. Our outstanding Education and Outreach programs are dedicated to making theatre accessible to kids and families both in our community and across the state," said Asolo Rep Development Associate Scott Guinn. "It's a chance to enrich a child's education today and to build the audience of tomorrow."

"Presenting Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream in an outdoor production in Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, using the talents of the entire second-year company of Conservatory actors, is a huge undertaking for the FSU/Asolo Conservatory," said Greg Leaming, Director of the FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training. "This year's Giving Challenge will help us meet the extraordinary demands of this very exciting event."

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