On Monday, it will have been one week since the Merc announced Shakespeare Santa Cruz had one week to raise $300,000 or go dark. State budget cuts made it impossible for UC Santa Cruz to maintain its economic partnership with the theater whereby, as they had the last few years, UCSC made up SSC’s budget shortfalls. Currently, they are at $278,516 (as of Friday). On Monday, they’ll announce whether or not they made it.

To donate and help save the Shakespeare festival surrounded by the California redwoods, click here. I wish I had money to give them myself.

These times are hard. We are facing the very real danger of shutting our doors forever. But theatres have faced hard times before, and theatres will face hard times again. And I’ve always thought (perhaps perversely) that hard times are when we need theatre the most.
– SSC artistic director Marco Barricelli