A loyal Cal Shakes supporter recently came to us with a challenge: She told us that if we can attract 250 new donors this season, she will donate an additional $10,000 to Cal Shakes!

California Shakespeare Theater (Cal Shakes) today announced that it is one of 36 nonprofit, professional theater companies that will receive a grant of $25,000 to participate in Shakespeare for a New Generation from June 1, 2011 through May 31, 2012.  The National Endowment for the Arts, in cooperation with Arts Midwest, presents Shakespeare for a New Generation, bringing the finest productions of Shakespeare to middle- and high-school students in communities across the United States. This is the ninth year of the program, the largest tour of Shakespeare in American history.

“We are thrilled and grateful to have been chosen as recipients of this grant for the sixth year in a row,” says Cal Shakes Managing Director Susie Falk. “The NEA’s financial support is in and of itself extremely important to us, as it makes a substantial difference in our ability to bring Shakespeare to thousands of low-income students each year; but we also feel very heartened by the NEA’s repeated support, which we see as an endorsement of the value and impact of our program on children.”

Cal Shakes will present Student Discovery matinee productions of The Taming of the Shrew, directed by Shana Cooper, attracting at least 2,000 middle and high school students from 40 Bay Area schools. Accompanying pre- and post-performance workshops and residencies will serve up to 500 of those students, primarily from low-income communities. Cal Shakes’ annual fall Educator’s Night will combine complimentary tickets to a performance with a two-hour professional development workshop for teachers.

To date, more than 80 of the nation’s theater companies have taken part in the NEA’s Shakespeare program since its inception and participating theater companies have presented performances at 5,500 schools in 2,600 communities in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Click here for more information about Cal Shakes’ education programs.

For more information about Cal Shakes’ 2011 season, click here.

Popular Teen Night pre-show events return to our beautiful outdoor Bruns Amphitheater.

Participants in the Titus Andronicus Teen Night; photo by Jamie Buschbaum.

The pre-show events begin at 6:30pm and include:

• Pizza and soda in the Upper Grove
• Interactive, fun, pre-show engagement with a Cal Shakes teaching artist
• A 7:30pm performance of the current production

Full details are below; please pass this information onto any educators or teens you know!

WHAT: Teen Night

WHEN: The Tempest Wednesday, June 6 and Thursday, June 14; Spunk Friday, July 13; Blithe Spirit Thursday, August 16 and Friday, August 24; Hamlet Friday, September 28 and Thursday, October 4

WHO: Students ages 13-18.

COST: $20 each.

TO PURCHASE: Contact Marilyn Langbehn, Marketing and PR Manager, at 510.809.3290 or groups@calshakes.org

SPECIAL INFO FOR STUDENT GROUPS OF 10 OR MORE:
We require that student groups be accompanied by adult chaperones at a ratio of one chaperone for every 10 students. Chaperones will be admitted at no charge; all other adults attending the event with the group may purchase tickets at a special discount rate of $33 each. To reserve tickets or for more information, contact Marilyn Langbehn, Marketing and PR Manager, at 510.809.3290 or groups@calshakes.org.

Our 16th annual gala fundraiser, ONE GREAT PARTY, was a mind-blowing success—not only did we raise more than $460,000 to support our artistic and educational programming, but people had a tremendous amount of fun. One of the most phenomenal things about throwing a party of this scale is how everyone plays their part: The committee plans, the volunteers and staff execute, the bidders bid, and so on.

If you’d like to help us replicate—even top—this year’s success, we’d like to invite you to an informational event happening Wednesday, April 20 in our rehearsal hall (701 Heinz Ave, Berkeley) where you’ll find out about serving on the gala committee responsible for the planning and execution of this fabulous party. There will be a presentation on what kinds of volunteer roles are available, and why the party is so important; a Q&A session; opportunities to sign up in your area of interest; and, of course, snacks.

Please join us on April 20 from 5:30–7pm—we need your help to make next year’s event an even bigger success. If you’re interested, RSVP to events@calshakes.org or 510.809.3291.

San Francisco’s elegant Four Seasons Hotel, its foyer lined with exquisite costumes and larger-than-life photos of some of the Bay Area’s finest actors, provided the dramatic setting for California Shakespeare Theater’s One Great Party on Saturday, March 19, 2011.

With extraordinary assistance from event- and lighting-design firms Blueprint Studios and Got Light?, Cal Shakes transformed the Four Seasons’ elegantly understated ballroom into a theatrically glowing hall filled with mirror-topped dining tables reflecting the room’s continuously-shifting colored lighting.

“That we were able to raise record funds for arts education in this economic climate is a testament to the incredible generosity and responsiveness of our donors,” commented Cal Shakes Managing Director Susie Falk. ”It truly was One Great Party, but only because we’re a part of One Great Community.”

Following a lively cocktail hour with spirits courtesy of Stockholm Krystal Vodka, 350-plus party-goers joined Cal Shakes Artistic Director Jonathan Moscone and Falk, and honorary co-chairs Nicola Miner, Robert Mailer Anderson, Carole Shorenstein Hays, and Dr. Jeffrey P. Hays in the ballroom to dine on delectable spring risotto, truffled potatoes gratin, and filet mignon, with wines generously provided by Alpha Omega Winery, Goosecross Cellars, Honig Vineyard and Winery, The PlumpJack Group, and Trinchero Family Estates.

After being entertained—and moved—by a video detailing the broad and deep impact of artistic education on Bay Area youth, the party kicked into high gear with an energetic live auction helmed by auctioneer extraordinaire Greg Quiroga. The elated guests bid enthusiastically and generously on one-of-a-kind packages: trips to France, Italy, New York, and San Francisco; private behind-the-scenes tours of Pixar, the fabled Getty Mansion, and Disney’s newest hit, Shake It Up!, starring Cal Shakes alumnus, Zendaya; and exclusive access to some of the finest wineries and golf courses in the country. Finally, guests packed the dance floor and boogied into the night to the sounds of the CoolTones big band.

Guests at the spectacular evening included The Hon. Willie Brown, Wilkes Bashford, Gina Moscone, Sharon and Barclay Simpson, John Adams and Deborah O’Grady, Ellen and Joffa Dale, Frank and Carey Starn, Harvey and Gail Glasser, Bronwyn and Kevin Brunner, Nita and Jim Roethe, and Francesca Vietor. Also there to celebrate Cal Shakes: William Taggert, Carey Perloff, Phil and Chris Chernin, Ed and Denise Del Beccaro, Kate Stechschulte and David Cost, Octavio Solis and Jeanne Sexton, Susie Medak, Nina and David Bond, Joe Di Prisco and Patti James, Mike and Ginny Ross, Jeff and Janie Green, Arline Klatte and Jon Ennis, Phillipa Kelly, and David and Diane Goldsmith.

The evening’s auctions, ticket sales, and donations raised more than $465,000 to support Cal Shakes’ artistic and educational programming, with the Fund-a-Need appeal single-handedly garnering more than $150,000 to bring Shakespeare to underserved youth throughout the Bay Area.

The evening was made possible in part through the generosity of Blueprint Studios, City National Bank, Got Light?, Mechanics Bank, Meyer Sound, Peet’s Coffee & Tea, San Francisco Magazine, Safeway, Simpson Strong-Tie, and Stockholm Krystal Vodka.

Read more about the party—and view pictures—in Kathryn Bigelow’s Social City and Willie Brown’s column, both in the San Francisco Chronicle.