The Stratford Festival is a theatre festival which runs from April to October in the city of Stratford,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was formerly known as the Stratford Shakespearean Festival, the Shakespeare Festival and the Stratford Shakespeare Festival. The festival was one of the first arts festivals in Canada and continues to be one of its most prominent. It is recognized worldwide for its productions of

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

an plays. The festival's primary focus is to present productions of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's plays, but it has a range of theatre productions from Greek tragedy to Broadway musicals and contemporary works. In the early years of the festival, Shakespeare's works typically represented approximately one third of the offerings in the largest venue, the Festival Theatre. More recently, however, the festival's focus has shifted to encompass works by a more diverse range of playwrights. The success of the festival changed Stratford into a city where arts and

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...

play important roles in the economy. The festival attracts many tourists from outside Canada, most notably British and American visitors.

History

The Festival was founded as the Stratford Shakespearean Festival of Canada, by Tom Patterson, a Stratford-native

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalis ...

who wanted to revitalize his town's economy by creating a theatre festival dedicated to the works of

, as the town shares the name of Shakespeare's birthplace, Stratford-upon-Avon, England. Stratford was a

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a p ...

junction and major locomotive shop, and was facing a disastrous loss of employment with the imminent elimination of steam power. Patterson achieved his goal after gaining encouragement from

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

David Simpson and the local council, and the Stratford Shakespearean Festival became a legal entity on October 31, 1952. Already established in Canadian theatre,

Dora Mavor Moore Dora Mavor Moore, (April 8, 1888–May 15, 1979) was a Canadian actress, teacher and director who was a pioneer of Canadian theatre. Life and work Born Dora Mavor in Glasgow, Scotland, she moved with her family to Toronto, Ontario, Cana ...

helped put Patterson in touch with British actor and director

Tyrone Guthrie Sir William Tyrone Guthrie (2 July 1900 – 15 May 1971) was an English theatrical director instrumental in the founding of the Stratford Festival of Canada, the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the Tyrone Guthrie Centre at ...

, first with a transatlantic telephone call. On July 13, 1953, actor Alec Guinness spoke the first lines of the first play produced by the festival, a production of '' Richard III'': "Now is the winter of our discontent / Made glorious summer by this son of York." Guinness and Irene Worth were among the cast of Stratford's inaugural performance of '' Richard III'', working for expenses only. This first performances (like the entire first four seasons) took place in a concrete amphitheatre covered by giant canvas tent on the banks of the River Avon. The first of many years of Stratford Shakespeare Festival production history started with a six-week season opening on 13 July 1953 with ''Richard III'' and then '' All's Well That Ends Well'', both starring Alec Guinness. The 1954 season ran for nine weeks and included Sophocles’ '' Oedipus Rex'' and two Shakespeare plays, '' Measure for Measure'' and ''

The Taming of the Shrew ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunk ...

''. Young actors during the first four seasons included several who went on to great success in subsequent years, Douglas Campbell, Timothy Findley, Don Harron, William Hutt and Douglas Rain. Fundraising to build a permanent theatre was slow but was helped significantly by donations from Governor General Vincent Massey and the Perth Mutual Insurance Company. The new Festival Theatre was dedicated on 30 June 1957, with seating for over 1,800 people; no seats are more than 65 feet from the stage. The design was deliberately intended to resemble a huge tent. That season's productions included ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

,'' '' Twelfth Night'', the satirical ''

My Fur Lady ''My Fur Lady'' is a satirical musical theatre production, first staged in Canada in the 1950s. Directed by Brian Macdonald, it was premiered in Montreal on February 7, 1957, by McGill University students. A revue, it tells the story of Princess A ...

,'' '' The Turn of the Screw'' and Ibsen's '' Peer Gynt''. The Festival Theatre's thrust stage was designed by British designer Tanya Moiseiwitsch to resemble both a classic Greek amphitheatre and Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. It has since become a model for other stages in North America and Great Britain.

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...

-nominee Scott Wentworth has performed in the festival's stage productions on numerous occasions since 1985, beginning with '' The Glass Menagerie''; the festival has helped

Sara Topham Sara may refer to: Arts, media and entertainment Film and television * ''Sara'' (1992 film), 1992 Iranian film by Dariush Merhjui * ''Sara'' (1997 film), 1997 Polish film starring Bogusław Linda * ''Sara'' (2010 film), 2010 Sri Lankan Sinhal ...

launch her career in acting, performing from 2000 to 2011; and a young, unknown

Christopher Walken Christopher Walken (born Ronald Walken; March 31, 1943) is an American actor. Prolific in film, television and on stage, Walken is the recipient of numerous accolades including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Awa ...

appeared in Stratford's 1968 stage productions of '' Romeo and Juliet'' and ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict a ...

'', portraying Romeo and

Lysander Lysander (; grc-gre, Λύσανδρος ; died 395 BC) was a Spartan military and political leader. He destroyed the Athenian fleet at the Battle of Aegospotami in 405 BC, forcing Athens to capitulate and bringing the Peloponnesian War to an en ...

respectively. Long-serving Artistic Director

Richard Monette Richard Jean Monette CM, DHum, LLD (June 19, 1944 – September 9, 2008), was a Canadian actor and director, best known for his 14-season tenure as the longest-serving artistic director of the Stratford Festival of Canada from 1994 to 2007. Ear ...

retired in 2007 after holding the position for fourteen seasons. He was replaced with an artistic team consisting of General Director Antoni Cimolino and Artistic Directors

Marti Maraden Marti Maraden (born June 22, 1945 in El Centro, California) is a Canadian actor and director. She emigrated to Canada in 1968, and became a leading actor at the Stratford Festival in the 1970s. She was artistic director of the National Arts Cent ...

, Des McAnuff, and Don Shipley. On March 12, 2008, it was announced that Shipley and Maraden would be stepping down, leaving Des McAnuff as sole Artistic Director. In 2013, Des McAnuff was replaced by Antoni Cimolino as Artistic Director. In 2012, the Festival had a deficit of $3.4 million, but by 2015 had a surplus of $3.1 million under the control of Cimolino and executive director Anita Gaffney. The target of a half million ticket sales for the season (a previous record) had not yet been reached, but had achieved a significant increase in the number of new patrons to the theatres. On 17 February 2015, AP News reported that the Stratford Shakespeare Festival plans to film all of Shakespeare's plays. Actors who have participated in the festival include

Alan Bates Sir Alan Arthur Bates (17 February 1934 – 27 December 2003) was an English actor who came to prominence in the 1960s, when he appeared in films ranging from the popular children's story '' Whistle Down the Wind'' to the " kitchen sink" dram ...

Brian Bedford Brian Bedford (16 February 1935 – 13 January 2016) was an English actor. He appeared in film and on stage, and was an actor-director of Shakespeare productions. Bedford was nominated for seven Tony Awards for his theatrical work. He served ...

, Martha Burns, Jackie Burroughs, Zoe Caldwell, Douglas Campbell, Len Cariou, Brent Carver, Patricia Conolly,

Susan Coyne Susan Coyne (born 16 June 1958) is a Canadian writer and actress, best known as one of the co-creators and co-stars of the award-winning ''Slings & Arrows'', a TV series which ran 2003–06 about a Canadian Shakespearean theatre company. She ...

Jack Creley Jack Creley (March 6, 1926 – March 10, 2004) was an American-born Canadian actor."A 'great man of words and theatre'". '' The Globe and Mail'', March 19, 2004. Although most prominently a stage actor, he also had film and television roles. Back ...

, Jonathan Crombie,

Hume Cronyn Hume Blake Cronyn Jr. OC (July 18, 1911 – June 15, 2003) was a Canadian-American actor and writer. Early life Cronyn, one of five children, was born in London, Ontario, Canada. His father, Hume Blake Cronyn, Sr., was a businessman an ...

, Henry Czerny,

Cynthia Dale Cynthia Ciurluini, known professionally as Cynthia Dale, is a Canadian television actress and stage performer. She is best known for her role as lawyer Olivia Novak in the 1987–94, and re-booted in 2019, television drama '' Street Legal.' ...

Brian Dennehy Brian Manion Dennehy (; July 9, 1938 – April 15, 2020) was an American actor of stage, television, and film. He won two Tony Awards, an Olivier Award, and a Golden Globe, and received six Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Dennehy had roles i ...

Colm Feore Colm Joseph Feore (; born August 22, 1958) is a Canadian actor. A 15-year veteran of the Stratford Festival, he is known for his Gemini-winning turn as Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau in the CBC miniseries '' Trudeau'' (2002), his portrayal of Gl ...

Megan Follows Megan Elizabeth Laura Diana Follows (born March 14, 1968) is a Canadian-American actress and director. She is known for her role as Anne Shirley in the 1985 Canadian television miniseries ''Anne of Green Gables'' and its two sequels. From 2013 t ...

, Maureen Forrester, Lorne Greene,

Dawn Greenhalgh Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc has reached 18° below the observer's horizo ...

, Paul Gross, Alec Guinness, Amelia Hall, Uta Hagen, Julie Harris, Don Harron, Martha Henry, William Hutt, Frances Hyland,

Charmion King Charmion King (July 25, 1925 – January 6, 2007) was a Canadian actress. Born in Toronto, Ontario, she was part of the country's burgeoning theatre and television industry in the decade of the 1950s. Fresh out of the University of Toronto's ...

, Andrea Martin, Barbara March, James Mason,

Roberta Maxwell Roberta Farnham Maxwell (born June 17, 1941) is a Canadian stage, film, and television actress. Biography Maxwell began studying for the stage in her early teens. She joined John Clark for two years as the child co-host of his '' Junior Magaz ...

, Eric McCormack, Seana McKenna, Loreena McKennitt,

, John Neville, Stephen Ouimette, Lucy Peacock,

Nicholas Pennell Nicholas Pennell (19 November 1938 – 22 February 1995) was an English actor who appeared frequently on film and television in the 1960s. He emigrated to Stratford, Ontario, Canada, where he became a stalwart of the Stratford Festival. Pennel ...

, David J. Phillips, Amanda Plummer, Christopher Plummer, Sarah Polley, Douglas Rain, Kate Reid, Jason Robards, Alan Scarfe, Paul Scofield,

Goldie Semple Goldie Semple (11 December 1952 – 9 December 2009) was a Canadian actress. Semple was born Marigold Ann Semple in Richmond, British Columbia. She studied at the University of British Columbia where she graduated with a Bachelor of Fine ...

, William Shatner, Maggie Smith, Jessica Tandy, Peter Ustinov,

, Al Waxman, Irene Worth,

Geraint Wyn Davies Geraint Wyn Davies (, 20 April 1957) is a Welsh-American stage, film and television actor-director. Educated in Canada, he has worked in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States. His most famous role as the vampire-turned police dete ...

and Janet Wright.Canadian Encyclopedia - Stratford Festival
/ref> Female directors at Stratford have included Pam Brighton, Zoe Caldwell, Marigold Charlseworth, Donna Feore,

Jill Keiley Jill is an English feminine given name, a short form of the name Jillian ( Gillian), which in turn originates as a Middle English variant of Juliana, the feminine form of the name Julian. People with the given name * Jill Astbury, Australian r ...

Pamela Hawthorne Pamela may refer to: *''Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded'', a novel written by Samuel Richardson in 1740 *Pamela (name), a given name and, rarely, a surname *Pamela Spence, a Turkish pop-rock singer. Known as her stage name "Pamela" * MSC ''Pamela'', ...

, Martha Henry, Jeannette Lambermont,

Diana Leblanc Diana Leblanc (born 1943) is a Canadian television and film actress, best known to US audiences for her portrayal of Frannie Halcyon in the TV miniseries ''More Tales of the City'' (1998) and its follow-up ''Further Tales of the City'' (2001). ...

Weyni Mengesha Weyni Mengesha is a Canadian film and theatre director, based in Toronto, Ontario. She is known as the director of the plays ''da kink in my hair'', and Kim's Convenience (play), ''Kim's Convenience''. Mengesha married American actor Eion Bail ...

, Carey Perloff,

Lorraine Pintal Lorraine Pintal (born September 24, 1951) is a Canadian actor, director, producer and playwright. Biography The daughter of Jean Pintal and Anne-Marie Bélanger, she was born in Plessisville and studied at the and the Conservatoire d'art dramatiq ...

, Vanessa Porteous,

Susan H. Schulman Susan H. Schulman (born July 6, 1947) is an American theater director. Biography Intent on a career as an actress, Schulman studied drama at Hofstra University in Hempstead, Long Island, New York in the 1960s. She attended Yale University on a pl ...

Djanet Sears Djanet Sears is a Canadian playwright, actor and director, nationally recognized for her work in African-Canadian theatre. Sears has many credits in writing and editing highly acclaimed dramas such as ''Afrika Solo'', the first stage play to be wr ...

Kathryn Shaw Kathryn Shaw is a Canadian director, actor, and writer living in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. From 1985 to 2020 she was the Artistic Director of Studio 58, an acting and production training school at Langara College. History Shaw grad ...

, Jennifer Tarver. From 1956 to 1961 and 1971 to 1976, the Stratford Festival also staged the separate

Stratford Film Festival The Stratford Film Festival was an annual film festival in Stratford, Ontario, Canada, which was staged from 1956 to 1961 and from 1971 to 1975. One of the first film festivals in North America ever to present international films, it was the preemi ...

, which was credited as one of the first North American film festivals ever to schedule international films. That festival collapsed after the 1976 launch of the Festival of Festivals, now known as the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a perman ...

, impacted both the Stratford Film Festival's funding and its audience. In March 2020, as preparations for the upcoming season were underway, the Festival was forced to announce performance cancellations and layoffs due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. A month later, the entire 2020 season was put on hold and effectively cancelled. Just before the season's cancellation, Cimolino announced that all productions that had been filmed as part of the ''Stratford Festival On Film'' series would be streamed online for free, with a different production being shown each week. Throughout the summer of 2020, the Festival produced four web series which, along with all the filmed productions and other Stratford documentaries and interviews, were launched in October 2020 on the new Stratfest@Home web streaming service. In April 2021, the Festival announced a season of plays and cabarets, with most productions being held under large canopies at the Festival and Tom Patterson Theatres. Only one late-opening production was held indoors at the Studio Theatre with reduced capacity. The theme for the 2021 season was metamorphosis.

Today

The Festival traditionally runs from April to October, and has four permanent venues: the Festival Theatre, the Avon Theatre, the Tom Patterson Theatre, and the Studio Theatre. Although the Festival's primary mandate is to produce the works of Shakespeare, its season playbills include contemporary works and at least one musical, as well as the classic repertory. The Stratford Festival Forum runs during the season, and features music concerts, readings from major authors, lectures, and discussions with actors or management. The Stratford Festival is an industry partner of the

University of Waterloo Stratford Campus The Stratford School of Interaction Design and Business, also known as the University of Waterloo Stratford School and formerly the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus, is a satellite campus of the University of Waterloo located in Stratf ...

Directors

Artistic Directors

(1953–1955) * Michael Langham (1956–1967) * Jean Gascon (1968–1974) * Robin Phillips (1975–1980) *

John Hirsch John Stephen Hirsch, OC (; May 1, 1930 – August 1, 1989) was a Hungarian-Canadian theatre director. He was born in Siófok, Hungary to József and Ilona Hirsch, both of whom were murdered in the Holocaust along with his younger brothe ...

(1981–1985) * John Neville (1985–1989) * David William (1990–1993) *

(1994–2007) *

, Des McAnuff, Don Shipley (2007–2008) * Des McAnuff (2008–2012) * Antoni Cimolino (2013–)

Executive Directors/General Managers

* Victor Polley *William Wylie * Bruce Swerdfager—General Manager (1972–1976) * Gary Thomas * Mary Hofstetter—General Manager (1995–1997) * Antoni Cimolino—Executive Director (1998–2006); General Director (2007–2012) * Anita Gaffney—Executive Director (2013–)Galen Simmons, �
Festival Executive Director Named One of Canada’s 100 Most Powerful Women
” ''The Stratford Beacon Herald'' (2018-11-22).

Productions

2022 season

*''

'' – by William Shakespeare *''

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

'' – music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and book by Ebb and Bob Fosse *'' The Miser'' – by

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and world ...

, translated by

Ranjit Bolt Ranjit Bolt OBE (born 1959) is a British playwright and translator. He was born in Manchester of Anglo-Indian parents and is the nephew of playwright and screenwriter Robert Bolt.Programme notes for ''The Grouch'', West Yorkshire Playhouse Febru ...

*'' Richard III'' – by

*'' All's Well That Ends Well'' – by William Shakespeare *''

Death and the King's Horseman ''Death and the King's Horseman'' is a play by Wole Soyinka based on a real incident that took place in Nigeria during the colonial era: the horseman of a Yoruba King was prevented from committing ritual suicide by the colonial authorities. In ...

'' – by

Wole Soyinka Akinwande Oluwole Babatunde Soyinka (Yoruba: ''Akínwándé Olúwọlé Babátúndé Ṣóyíinká''; born 13 July 1934), known as Wole Soyinka (), is a Nigerian playwright, novelist, poet, and essayist in the English language. He was awarded t ...

*''

Little Women ''Little Women'' is a coming-of-age novel written by American novelist Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888). Alcott wrote the book, originally published in two volumes in 1868 and 1869, at the request of her publisher. The story follows the live ...

'' – by Louisa May Alcott, adapted by Jordi Mand *''

Every Little Nookie Every may refer to: People * Every (surname), including a list of people surnamed Every or Van Every * Every Maclean, New Zealand politician in sunda 19th century * Every baronets, a title in the Baronetage of England Other * Suzuki Every, a ...

'' – by Sunny Drake *'' Hamlet–911'' – by Ann-Marie MacDonald *'' 1939'' – by

Jani Lauzon Jani Lauzon (born September 29, 1959) is a Canadian puppeteer and musician of Métis heritage from East Kootenay, British Columbia. She is a three-time Juno Award Nominee with Muppet Show credits that include additional puppetry on ''Follow ...

and

Kaitlyn Riordan Caitlin () is a female given name of Irish origin. Historically, the Irish name Caitlín was anglicized as Cathleen or Kathleen. In the 1970s, however, non-Irish speakers began pronouncing the name according to English spelling rules as , which ...

2023 season (announced)

The 2023 season programmed by Artistic Director Antoni Cimolino has a theme of Duty vs. Desire. *''

King Lear ''King Lear'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his power and land between two of his daughters. He becomes destitute and insane a ...

'' – by William Shakespeare *''

Rent Rent may refer to: Economics *Renting, an agreement where a payment is made for the temporary use of a good, service or property *Economic rent, any payment in excess of the cost of production *Rent-seeking, attempting to increase one's share of e ...

'' – music, lyrics, and book by Jonathan Larson *'' Much Ado About Nothing'' – by William Shakespeare *'' Les Belles Soeurs'' – by

Michel Tremblay Michel Tremblay (born 25 June 1942) is a French-Canadian novelist and playwright. Tremblay was born in Montreal, Quebec, where he grew up in the French-speaking neighbourhood of Plateau Mont-Royal; at the time of his birth, a neighbourhood wi ...

*''

Monty Python's Spamalot ''Spamalot'' (also known as ''Monty Python's Spamalot'') is a musical comedy with music by John Du Prez and Eric Idle, and lyrics and book by Idle. It is adapted from the 1975 film ''Monty Python and the Holy Grail''. Like the motion pictu ...

'' – book and lyrics by Eric Idle, music by John Du Prez and Eric Idle *'' A Wrinkle in Time'' – by Madeleine L'Engle, adapted by Thomas Morgan Jones *'' Frankenstien Revived'' – by

Morris Panych Morris Stephen Panych (born 30 June 1952) is a Canadian playwright, director and actor. Early life Panych was born in Calgary, Alberta and grew up in Edmonton, Alberta. He studied at Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, and the Universit ...

, music by David Coulter *'' Richard II'' – by

*'' Grand Magic'' – by Eduardo De Filippo, translation by John Murrell *'' Wedding Band'' – by Alice Childress *'' Casey and Diana'' – by Nick Green *'' Women of the Fur Trade'' – by

Frances Koncan Frances Koncan (born 1986) is an Anishinaabe- Slovene journalist, theatre director, and playwright from Couchiching First Nation who lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Her play ''The Dance-off of Conscious Uncoupling'' received the 2015 Tom Hendry ...

*'' Love’s Labour’s Lost'' – by

References

External links

The Stratford Festival official website

Finding aid to the Raphael Bernstein Collection, 1956-2002, at Columbia University. Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

Stratford Festival fonds (R9812)
at

Library and Archives Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; french: Bibliothèque et Archives Canada) is the federal institution, tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is t ...

. Fonds consists of history interviews about the Festival between 1970 and 1982. {{authority control Theatre festivals in Ontario Theatre companies in Ontario Shakespearean theatre companies Barton Myers buildings Tourist attractions in Perth County, Ontario Festivals established in 1953 1953 establishments in Ontario Shakespeare festivals in Canada Festivals in Stratford, Ontario