Tudor Guild will lead OSF tours

TUDOR GUILD MEMBERS TO LEAD OREGON SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL TOURS

New Collaboration Marks the Evolution of a Synergistic Relationship, Spanning More Than 70 Years, Between OSF and the Guild

(April 19, 2022) The Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) today announces that the Tudor Guild, an indispensable part of OSF since 1948, will take on a vital new role during the Festival’s 2022 repertory season. Starting in June, its members will lead tours of the institution’s campus, giving frequent and first-time OSF visitors alike intimate access to one of the world’s leading theatrical destinations and foremost sources of theatrical innovation. OSF celebrates the Tudor Guild’s new responsibility as an exciting next chapter in a cherished, decades-long partnership, over the course of which the Guild has raised over $5 million for OSF and served the organization’s artists, staff, and audiences in a wide variety of ways.

The Tudor Guild was formed by a group of ultra-dedicated local volunteers who were determined to provide material assistance to the nascent OSF. Guild members banded together to offer food, furnishings, and housing to actors who came to town in the years before the Festival had sustaining financial support to provide these essentials on its own. They found countless ways to help OSF, including by transporting actors and hosting company events. In time, the Guild operated the OSF gift shop, which began as a temporary outdoor kiosk and grew to be a permanent part of the campus.

OSF Executive Director David Schmitz said, “We are thrilled to kick off this new collaboration with the Tudor Guild, whose invaluable service to OSF dates back almost to the Festival’s founding. Tudor Guild members have an unparalleled connection to our theatres and our work. We can’t wait for audiences to get a fresh look behind the scenes of OSF from this group of passionate ambassadors.”

Tudor Guild President Lola Egan said, “Tudor Guild’s members are excited to have this new opportunity to become more closely involved in the life of OSF, and to share our love and commitment to the Festival with visitors.”

For more information about 2022 campus tours, and to make reservations, please visit osfashland.org/tours.

For more information, please contact Blake Zidell of Blake Zidell & Associates at blake@blakezidell.com or 917.572.2943.