The San Francisco theater scene can become stronger and more vigorous, appealing to community members who do not currently benefit from the contribution theater arts make to one’s life through activities like the Theater Festival. Director Peter Sellars has noted that bringing people together for a shared theatrical experience does more than create good art; it creates and nurtures a sense of community and an interest in the common good.
The Festival creates access and expands the theater audience. Working together to put on the Festival, the theater community conducts a large-scale event that gains the attention of the broader community. The Festival induces cross-pollination of audiences as attendees interested in one performing group stay to see others. As the Festival grows, we will see theater audiences expanding, leading to more performances, more productions, and more theater jobs, as well as a richer cultural experience for all community members.
While there are festivals for film, dance, jazz, blue grass, beer, and wine, there is no comparable festival for theater. The San Francisco Theater Festival is unique. This is the only showcase for Bay Area live theater, presenting the full spectrum of theater groups. This is the only festival that takes place on one day or a single weekend, providing the audience with an opportunity to sample conveniently the many theaters available here. This is the only FREE festival, thereby providing open access to all.
Click here for an original article about the festival on SFGate.com.
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“Thanks for all your efforts and for having me be a part of the second successful incarnation of your festival! …I really enjoyed the whole spirit of the day. Everyone who was a part of it and who attended seemed to be enjoying themselves. and beautiful weather to boot!”
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“Many thanks for creating such an eclectic array of offerings. My friends and I had such fun yesterday -- and learned of new-to-us performers that we will connect with again, I am sure.”
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“My experience was great. The house was full, responsive and wonderful. The staging and sound were terrific. It was a good time.
Thanks for including me.”
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“The festival is … a great opportunity to establish a connection between theatre groups and the community. It is a great labor …to celebrate the theater arts in the Bay Area.”
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“…the tables are the best EVER. We got an awesome location… and a whole lot of emails!”
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“I’m sure that people learned of us for the first time and that we benefited from our association with the Festival’s professionalism and credibility.”
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“The fact that it’s free is so important to draw folks who feel unsure about how to pick a live show to go to, given there’s usually substantial expense involved. The festival’s atmosphere can inspire folks to want to go more to the theater. Plus we all get names for our mailing lists.”
