2023 Season Moments We're Thankful For
With Thanksgiving right around the corner, the Utah Shakespeare Festival staff have been reflecting on moments from the season that left a lasting impression. Read below to hear from our administration, alongside members of our development, education, properties, and communication departments.
Most importantly, we are thankful for you, our wonderful patrons that fill our theaters. There would not be shows without audience members, and without our patrons we would not be able to produce world-class theatre year after year.
We hope to see you for our 2024 season, and it’s not too early to plan for our 63rd season. Cyber Monday, our biggest sale of the year, is just around the corner and is the perfect time to purchase tickets.
Take advantage of the deal and receive $10 off every ticket by visiting bard.org/cyber or by calling the Festival ticket office. The sale will go live at midnight and is only available on Monday, November 27.
Artistic Director John DiAntonio
“Before moving to Cedar City in late October, my family was able to attend the closing weekend of the Festival. I’m thankful for the Utah Shakes childcare program which watched our three children (4, 3, and 10 months old) and enabled my wife Caitlin and me to see all four shows. The kids had such a good time, as did we,” DiAntonio said. “We took away wonderful memories from those performances: the dynamic and transformative ensemble of Coriolanus and Timon of Athens, seeing Jane Austen’s Emma The Musical with a sold out house of students in town for the Shakespeare Competition, and then the final performance of The Play That Goes Wrong, a show which is always wild, but then add in that closing night energy––it was a night to be remembered.”
Director of New Play Development and Artistic Associate Derek Charles Livingston
“I’m grateful to have had a chance to bring A Raisin in the Sun to our audiences and for the tremendous response by those who got a chance to see it,” Livingston said.
Education Director Katherine Norman
“I’m thankful for the moment at the end of Actor Training Camp when all the student actors bowed and then immediately hugged each other,” Norman said. “I am also thankful for the many folks in the Grove who welcomed me to the Festival family this season, and the rich, challenging, and always generous conversations in the Grove, especially those about Timon and Coriolanus. These plays were new to many of us, and it was such a gift and joy to discuss them with the brilliant Festival community.”
Properties Director Ben Hohman
“I am thankful that we had a successful run of The Play That Goes Wrong,” Hohman said. “We knew from the start that it was going to be tough to get through so many performances and keep everyone safe and the show in good shape, but with a lot of pre-planning and diligent work by the cast, crew, and staff, we pulled off one of the most technically complicated shows we have done in a really long time, and the audience really enjoyed it. That made it all worthwhile.”
Development Associate Emily Cacho
“This year I was so grateful to get to experience A Raisin in the Sun. It was one of my favorite plays that I read during my time as an undergraduate at Southern Utah University,” Cacho said. “Seeing it be performed live was such an outstanding experience. Corey Jones in the role of Walter Jr. had me in tears at the end of the play; he was simply amazing. I love this amazing work that the Festival puts on every year.”
MFA Communications Assistant James Whatcott
“I’m thankful for the ability to learn and grow each day. No matter how challenging the day was, I can always take it as an opportunity to learn more from it,” Whatcott said.
Have a happy Thanksgiving!
