Nataki Garrett Resigns as Artistic Director of Oregon Shakespeare Festival

Oregon Live has reported that Nataki Garrett, artistic director of Oregon Shakespeare Festival, has resigned.

Garrett took over the festival in 2019, and was the festival's first Black female artistic director. During her tenure as artistic director, she faced the pandemic, racist harassment, and criticism over choice of plays and casting.

The announcement of Garrett's resignation comes in the midst of Oregon Shakespeare Festival's Save Our Season campaign, an emergency fundraising campaign with a goal of raising $2.5M to help complete the 2023 Season successfully. Her last official day will be May 31.

The festival announced that board member Octavio Solis would step in to oversee the artistic leadership team during the transition.

Board Chair Diane Yu stated:

"OSF has greatly benefitted from the incredible talent and passion that Nataki brought to her roles as Artistic Director and later, as Interim Executive Artistic Director... She joined OSF in 2019, just seven months before the pandemic closures and the Almeda fire. Under her leadership, OSF survived the pandemic as she successfully brought people in the industry together to obtain public funding to carry us through. The board appreciates Nataki for her willingness and ability to apply her unique skills during these past four years, and for bringing her vision for American theatre."

Read the full story HERE.

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