ShakeSpeare TheaTre Company 2010|2011 annual report MK Photo Cover: photo of Ted van Griethuysen in Cymbeline by Scott Suchman. photo of michael kahn by kevin allen. Dear Friend, What a remarkable year in the Shakespeare Theatre Company’s 2010-2011 Season. In this season, we further pursued our vision that the We produced exciting adaptations of both classic and Shakespeare Theatre Company be a home for innovative, modern theatre, established a series for renowned superlative work of international importance with the pilot programming, received tremendous honors and sought of our international presenting series at Sidney Harman new ways to reach fresh and diverse audiences. In Hall. Our first presentation was the London Tricycle keeping with our artistic focus, we selected plays in a Theatre’s acclaimed production of The Great Game: range of styles and genres, and welcomed talented STC Afghanistan. This immersive, 12–play series encouraged veteran artists and newcomers alike to our stage. audiences to explore Afghanistan’s history, culture and people through a variety of perspectives. The second We opened our season with the return of Free For All international play we presented was the National Theatre in Sidney Harman Hall, allowing greater access to what of Scotland’s production of Black Watch. The play is one of Washington’s favorite events. We remounted explored modern warfare, military service, camaraderie our popular 2008 production of Twelfth Night, originally and culture in Iraq. directed by Rebecca Bayla Taichman, under the refreshing new direction of Alan Paul. We also offered The Company celebrated the fourth Harman Center for a second season of NT Live screenings, broadcasting the Arts Annual Gala and honored the incomparable performances from a diverse selection of plays produced Annette Bening with the William Shakespeare Award for by London’s National Theatre. The series included a Classical Theatre. “Gala Shakespearissimo!”, highlighting special encore screening of Phèdre starring Dame Helen Shakespeare’s plays set in Italy, proved a huge success Mirren, Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the Broadway hit FELA! and featured a variety of talented performers, followed and Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard. by dinner and dancing at the National Building Museum. We began our mainstage season with my production of The tremendous work of the Shakespeare Theatre a Shakespeare classic, All’s Well That Ends Well. Next, Company is only possible with the generous support of Mary Zimmerman, in a co-production with Chicago’s our donors and the Washington area community. Your Goodman Theatre, directed the wildly successful Candide, support makes it possible for us to honor our mission as a record-breaking bestseller and winner of six Helen classical theatre and serve our community as a cultural Hayes Awards. Rebecca Bayla Taichman returned to STC institution. Through your dedication, we continue to realize with her bold fairy-tale interpretation of Shakespeare’s our vision to serve as the nation’s premier destination for Cymbeline. Next, Keith Baxter directed Oscar Wilde’s classic theatre while offering expert training and high- great comedy, An Ideal Husband, while highlighting quality education for people of all ages. On behalf of the the play’s darker undertones. I was pleased to continue staff and board of the Shakespeare Theatre Company, I our mainstage season by introducing Old Times, would like to sincerely thank the individuals, corporations, our first play by Nobel Laureate Harold Pinter. We foundations and government entities that continue to concluded our season by welcoming back director support us, our mission and our vision. Ethan McSweeny for his production of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. Warmly, Michael Kahn Artistic Director 3 REMEMBERING Sidney Harman 1918-2011 This year the Shakespeare Theatre Company lost one of its most ardent supporters, Sidney Harman. His generous investment in the Shakespeare Theatre Company’s mission lives on in the world-class Sidney Harman Hall, which has facilitated the continuing growth of STC and allowed for diverse performances by local, national and international performance groups to be brought to Washington, D.C. Sidney was truly a Renaissance man, and will be remembered not only for his philanthropy and passionate support of the arts, but as a scientist, former cabinet member, entrepreneur and businessman, a pioneer in the high-fidelity business and the revolutionary founder of Harman/Kardon International. Sidney often quoted Maxwell Anderson’s editorial: “If we are to be remembered as more than a mass of people who lived and fought wars and died, it is for our arts that we will be remembered.” Sidney Harman will always be remembered as a loyal advocate and supporter of the Shakespeare Theatre Company and the arts. 4 photo of Sidney harman by kevin allen. TaBLe oF CONTENTS 8 Our mission, our Vision and our Values 11 Board of Trustees 12 The Season 26 Renters 28 Figures and Statistics 30 Community 38 Education programs 54 Special events 62 Financial report 66 Support 74 Staff photo of the cast of All’s Well That Ends Well by Scott Suchman. Our Mission The mission of the Shakespeare Theatre Company is to present classic theatre of scope and size in an imaginative, skillful and accessible American style that honors the playwrights’ language and intentions while viewing their work through a 21st-century lens. Our Vision The Shakespeare Theatre Company endeavors to be an important resource to an expanded national and international community—as the nation’s premier destination for classic theatre, as a training ground for the next generation of theatre artists and as a model provider of high-quality educational content for students and scholars. Our Values We believe: • that through the power of their language and the timelessness of their themes, classic plays reflect on the human experience in ways that transcend the period in which they were conceived and remain relevant in our time. • that the timelessness of classic plays provides infinite opportunities for contemporary theatre artists to re-interpret them. • in staging classic plays with world-class production values. • in discovering and re-introducing great plays into the classic repertory and commissioning new translations or adaptations. • in building a more diverse audience for our theatre. • in fostering an appreciation for classic theatre through our education programs. • in using cutting-edge technology to share our work with people around the world. • in supporting and developing actors, directors, designers and artisans who will make major contributions to the world of theatre for years to come. • in encouraging a synergy of arts and ideas by developing collaborative programming with other institutions. • in bringing the best of the performing arts to our audience by hosting a broad spectrum of local, national and international arts companies. • in being responsible stewards of our resources. photo of Chair michael r. klein by kevin allen. The BOARD oF TrUSTEES (as of June 21, 2011) officers Trustees ex-officio Trustee michael r. klein, nicholas W. allard Stephen a. hopkins Chris Jennings, Chair ashley allen Lawrence a. hough m anaging Director robert e. Falb, Stephen e. allis W. mike house Vice Chair anita m. antenucci Jeffrey m. kaplan emeritus Trustees John hill, kathy Bailey Scott kaufmann Treasurer Jeffrey D. Bauman abbe D. Lowell r. robert Linowes*, pauline Schneider, afsaneh Beschloss kathleen matthews Founding Chairman Secretary Landon Butler eleanor merrill James B. adler michael kahn, Dr. paul Carter howard p. milstein heidi L. Berry* a rtistic Director ralph p. Davidson melissa a. moss David a. Brody* Dr. mark epstein robert S. osborne melvin S. Cohen* Steven B. epstein Dr. harris pastides James F. Fitzpatrick James a. Feldman Stephen m. ryan Dr. Sidney harman* peter Finn Lady Sheinwald Lady manning andrew C. Florance Chris Simmons William F. mcSweeny miles Gilburne Dr. Stanton Sloane V. Sue molina kingdon Gould III George p. Stamas Walter pincus Barbara harman Suzanne S. youngkin eden rafshoon John r. hauge emily malino Scheuer* mrs. Louis Sullivan Daniel W. Toohey Sarah Valente Lady Wright *Deceased Artistry We CREATe AND PERFORM Artistry is at the core of all of our productions. The 2010-2011 Season’s selection of plays ranged from classic revivals to stunning adaptations, including a breadth of genres and the inclusion of international programming. STC continues to advance the boundaries of classic theatre while introducing audiences to modern work influenced by the classics. Thanks to generous contributions, the Shakespeare Theatre Company ensures that each mainstage production maintains the highest artistic standards possible. opposite page: photo of Derek Smith, Liz Wisan, Drew Cortese, Julia Coffey and aubrey Deeker in The Merchant of Venice by Scott Suchman. PRESENTED BY Twelfth night by William Shakespeare directed by alan paul original direction by rebecca Bayla Taichman august 19–September 5, 2010 Sidney harman hall 2010 marked the second year that the Shakespeare Theatre Company held Free For All, a beloved Washington tradition, in Sidney Harman Hall. The Free For All production of Twelfth Night, directed by Alan Paul, revived the hilarious 2008 production, originally directed by Rebecca Bayla Taichman. Twelfth Night is a lyrical and complex comedy about love that features memorable characters, stunning language and an ingenious plot. Many original cast members returned to be a part of the