Shakespeare in Delaware Park

::Shakespeare in Delaware Park is an outdoor FREE Shakespeare festival that takes place during the summer months in Delaware Park located in the city of Buffalo, NY. It is the second most successful free outdoor Shakespeare festival in the United States, topped only by New York City, and brings about 55,000 audience members each year.

HISTORY

::Shakespeare in Delaware Park was first founded in 1976 by Saul Elkin, as a part of the University at Buffalo’s theater department. In 1991 Shakespeare in Delaware Park became a fully independent, non-profit organization whose only funding comes from donations made by the public, audience members, the City of Buffalo, Erie County, and outside companies such as M&T Bank, the local NBC network, NYSCA (New York State Council for the Arts) and the Buffalo News. Shakespeare productions are preformed for the public at no cost, between the summer months of June, July and August in Delaware Park, designed by the famous architect and designer Frederick Law Olmsted. Saul Elkin began the project for Shakespeare in Delaware Park by asking the Mayor of the city of Buffalo to help in developing a free Shakespeare theater festival to resemble the one in New York City, Shakespeare in the Park. Mayor Stanley Makowski gave permission for the performances to take place in Delaware Park, as well as pledge to fund the electricity costs for all performances. The city continues to fund the electricity cost for their location in the park. Shakespeare in Delaware Park’s Tudor style stage was first built and designed by Gary Casarella, and was constructed on the Main street or “South” campus of the University at Buffalo. The Dean of the school provided the funding for the stage to be built, and as the pieces were constructed they were taken apart and transported to the site on the popularly known “Shakespeare Hill” in Delaware Park. The seating is the hill itself, and audience members watch the productions on blankets, lawn chairs, and various other self-provided seating. Over 68 plays have been performed in the 32 years Shakespeare in Delaware Park has been running, with play’s ranging from tragedies; such as Romeo & Juliet, Comedies; Taming of the Shrew, to Histories; Henry IV (part 1 and 2) and many more. The majority of actors come from the Buffalo area, and performances run Tuesday through Sunday from June – August, with dates varying each year. The shows are always done in the evening, and normally begin between the hours of 7– 7:30pm.

PAST PERFORMANCES

*1976
The Winter's Tale

*1977
Hamlet

As You Like It

*1978
The Tempest

The Merry Wives of Windsor

*1979
The Comedy of Errors

Much Ado About Nothing

*1980
A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Richard II

*1981
Macbeth

Twelfth Night

*1982
The Taming of the Shrew

Henry IV, Part 1

*1983
King Lear

Americles

Richard III
*1984
Hamlet

Measure for Measure

Two Gentlemen of Verona

*1985
Romeo & Juliet

The Tempest

Twelfth Night

*1986

Love's Labour's Lost

The Merchant of Venice

*1987
Henry V

All's Well That Ends Well

*1988
The Winter's Tale

Julius Caesar

*1989
King Lear

Much Ado About Nothing

*1990
The Merry Wives of Windsor

Othello

*1991
Henry IV, Part 1

As You Like It

*1992
The Comedy of Errors

Richard III

*1993
A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Romeo & Juliet

*1994
Macbeth

The Taming of the Shrew

*1995
Love's Labour's Lost

Hamlet

*1996
The Merchant of Venice

Twelfth Night

*1997
Much Ado About Nothing

Richard II

*1998
The Merry Wives of Windsor

The Tempest

*1999
Henry IV, Part 2

Measure for Measure

*2000
Hamlet

The Winter's Tale

As You Like It

The Dresser

*2001
Romeo & Juliet

Julius Caesar

*2002
Macbeth

The Comedy of Errors

*2003
A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Much Ado About Nothing

*2004
Henry IV, Part 1

The Taming of the Shrew

*2005
Romeo & Juliet

Hamlet

*2006
Love's Labour's Lost

Twelfth Night

*2007
All's Well That Ends Well

Othello

*2008
The Merry Wives of Windsor

King Lear

EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES

::The majority of roles for the productions in Shakespeare in Delaware Park are done through an audition process held at the Shakespeare in Delaware Park’s offices, the Pfeifer theater, before the summer season. Most actors are from the local area of Buffalo, NY and are hired seasonally, with the exception of a small group of troupe members that work year long with the company, performing in high schools throughout the Buffalo area. The play “Where There’s a Will, There’s a Play!” written by the troupe members, is an hour long show they perform for high school students that teaches parts of Shakespeare’s life, times, and Theater, by incorporating different parts of Shakespeare’s work such as his plays; “Comedy of Errors”, “Midsummer Night’s Dream”, and “Hamlet”, and some of his sonnets. The actors will then stay after the performance to answer questions students might have about Shakespeare and his work. This small troupe of actors from Shakespeare in Delaware Park also offer 3 day workshops for students where they can work alongside the actors to learn different elements such as; iambic pentameter, sound, meaning, and image, and can arrange these workshops to work around a specific Shakespearean play students may be working on. The company also offers an intense 6 day workshop that includes the performance of “Where There’s a Will, There’s a Play”, the three day workshop, and a joint performance that includes both students and troupe members from Shakespeare in Delaware Park. For more information on these workshops and performances, see the official website for Shakespeare in Delaware Park; [http://www.shakespeareindelawarepark.org/education.html]

TAFF/BOARD OF DIRECTORS

"Staff"

:Saul Elkin:"Founder/Artistic Director"

:Lisa Ludwig-Kramer:"Managing Director"

:Susan Drozd:"Office Manager"

"Board of Directors"

:Lisa Zolnowski:"President"

:Tod A. Kniazuk:"Vice-President"

:Cary Anderson:"Treasurer"

:Virginia Schmidt:"Secretary"

AUL ELKIN:

::Saul Elkin began acting as a child in New York City. Coming from Jewish immigrant parents, Saul Elkin spoke both Yiddish and English and began his acting education in a small children’s theater school for Jewish children. His first show was at the age of seven, casted as the lead in a play by the founder of the Yiddish Art Theater, Maurice Schwartz. Elkin continued to work as both an actor and director for the Stage as well as Television as he grew up in New York City. His acting and directing credits include over 250 Broadway performances (off and on), film, “Edge of Night”( a soap opera in which he played a doctor), and several regional and seasonal theater companies. He also continued his education in Theater and has a B.A. and M.F.A in Theater, and a Ph. D from Carnegie-Mellon University. He came to Buffalo, NY in 1969 and began teaching Theater at the University at Buffalo, where he soon became Chairman of the Theater Department in 1967- 1985. In 1979 he founded Shakespeare in Delaware Park, finding the initial funding for electricity from the Mayor of the city, Mayor Stanley Makowski and further funding from the University at Buffalo’s Theater Department. Elkin has received several different recognitions such as the “Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching”, “Distinguished Service Professor”, and in 1998 he was given the “Outstanding Individual Artist of the Year award” for his performances in several Theater companies in the Buffalo area, as well as for his continued work and direction with Shakespeare in Delaware Park. In 2003 he co-founded the Jewish Repertory Theater with David Bunis and is now the artistic director of the company. Elkin is now married and had two children. His daughter Becca is currently studying acting and has been in productions of Shakespeare in Delaware Park both in shows Elkin has directed and acted in, such as the 2008 production of King Lear, where he acted alongside his daughter as to the roles of King Lear and Cordelia. Elkin continues to work as a professor at the University at Buffalo in Theater Department, as well as continuing to act and direct performances in both Shakespeare in Delaware Park, The Jewish Repertory Theater, and several theater companies throughout the Buffalo area. Recently, in 2008 he has been working on the film production called Nicholas of Myra: The Story of Saint Nicholas. Both Elkin and Vincent O’Neil, founder and director of Irish Classical Theater Company and a fellow Professor in the Theater Department of the University at Buffalo, were chosen to play lead roles in the film based on the life and history of Saint Nicholas.

REFERENCES:

[http://www.theatredance.buffalo.edu/faculty_staff/faculty/elkin.shtml] http://www.theatredance.buffalo.edu/faculty_staff/faculty/elkin.shtml

[http://www.buffalorising.com/story/shakespeare_in_delaware_park_b] http://www.buffalorising.com/story/shakespeare_in_delaware_park_b

[http://www.nicholasofmyra-movie.com/wny/index.htm] http://www.nicholasofmyra-movie.com/wny/index.htm

[http://www.buffalonews.com/entertainment/arttheater/story/377915.html] http://www.buffalonews.com/entertainment/arttheater/story/377915.html

[http://www.theatredance.buffalo.edu/] http://www.theatredance.buffalo.edu/

[http://www.shakespeareindelawarepark.org/about.html] http://www.shakespeareindelawarepark.org/about.html