Guelph Now!

 

January 18, 2010 - Stratford Shakespeare Festival Board Chair Richard Rooney today announced that Ophelia and Mike Lazaridis have made a pledge of $5 million to the Festival. In an inventive move to maximize the impact of their contribution, Mr. and Mrs. Lazaridis have issued a challenge to individuals and government to match this pledge and will disburse the gift as incremental matching donations are committed, thereby ultimately garnering funds of $10 million.

 

“On behalf of the Board, I wish to express my sincere gratitude to Ophelia and Mike for this extraordinarily generous commitment and visionary matching-gift initiative,” said Mr. Rooney.

 

“Innovation and excellence have been hallmarks of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival over the last 56 years,” explained Ophelia Lazaradis. “We’re inspired by what the Festival has accomplished but even more energized about its potential for the future, particularly its efforts to connect with young audiences through its Shakespeare productions. We hope the matching gift scenario will encourage others to join us in supporting excellence and providing the spark to ignite the Festival’s next great phase of achievement.”

 

“I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Ophelia and Mike over the last several years,” said General Director Antoni Cimolino. “Since joining our Board in 2007, Ophelia has shown a keen interest in all facets of the theatre, from our educational outreach to our archival collection to our capital projects and, of course, our productions. I was particularly pleased to learn that it was our work on Shakespeare over the past couple of seasons that inspired Ophelia and Mike to make such a remarkable gift.”

 

“To quote from Shakespeare, ‘thanks, and thanks, and ever thanks,’” said Artistic Director Des McAnuff. “Investing in the imagination and creativity of our artists is critically important to the evolution of our society, and so often in history it is private individuals who lead the charge and inspire others to follow. I’m personally grateful to Ophelia and Mike for this ringing endorsement of our work at Stratford and for providing us with the resources to hold to the very highest standards as we continue to give our artists all of the tools they need to continue to surprise, delight and thrill our audiences.”

 

The $5-million pledge will be disbursed to the Festival as matching gifts are committed.The matching-gift challenge will be used by the Festival to encourage incremental donations beginning in the 2010 season.

 

The 2010 season, begins on April 10, and features: As You Like It; Kiss Me, Kate; The Tempest; Dangerous Liaisons; Evita; Peter Pan; The Winter’s Tale; Jacques Brel Is Alive and Well and Living in Paris; For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again; Do Not Go Gentle; The Two Gentlemen of Verona; and King of Thieves.