Great River Shakespeare Festival

Your gift creates vibrant topical art from 400-year-old texts by William Shakespeare and impacts more than 13,000 adults and youth every year.

GRSF has now moved to its new home at The ARC: Home of the Historic Masonic Theatre. As the lessor of this property, owned by the City of Winona, GRSF is responsible for making the facility a vibrant arts destination, not only for the festival, but also for other arts organizations, artists, and other businesses to use. Vital funds are needed to create audience seating, establish a lobby (including an updated elevator), outfit dressing rooms, and other exciting projects. You can give to support the festival in general or to support the renovation projects at The ARC (arcwinona.org).

"Before GRSF came to town I admit I liked theater well enough, but viewed Shakespeare productions as something theater majors went to see. I just didn’t think I would get it – the language seemed tricky to follow, and it sounded, well, a little dry. I was a big fan of the idea of the festival – loved the idea – but I wasn’t really sure Shakespeare was for me."

Sound familiar?

Yeah, well let me tell you something… the first time I bucked up and went to a play I felt like an idiot, not because I didn’t understand it, but because I was mad at myself for the plays I missed. It was beautiful and mesmerizing, and I totally got the story. I laughed. I cried. I’m not joking. Since then I’ve made my friends go, and my kids, and my mom, and after every play I’d shake their arm and say, 'Can you believe how freaking good that was?' "

What does it mean when a community comes together through art? At Great River Shakespeare Festival the lights go down, the actors speak, and together we begin a conversation about love, war, jealousy, truth, honor, grace. Together.

Because of your donation, together means all of us. Commercial theaters charge $100 or more per ticket, and that’s about what GRSF would have to charge to pay for the theater you see with only ticket revenue. $100 tickets would mean this conversation is only for the elite.

We don’t know where the next generation of leaders will come from; we don’t know who among us will conceive the next great idea, but we do know that we are stronger together. We know that our community depends on our ability to talk to each other about what is most important.

Please make a donation to Great River Shakespeare Festival. Your gift helps keep tickets for professional theater as low as $10 for students and $12 for the general public (on select days). Your donation makes art possible.