Giving Tuesday And
The Winter Of Our Discontent
Today is Giving Tuesday, and we hope you'll take a few moments to read this message, because Ithaca Shakespeare needs your help!
"Now is the winter of our discontent
Made glorious summer by this sun of York..."
Artistically, 2016 was a great year for ISC:
- We mounted four full mainstage productions for the first time in our history:
- Two spectacular indoor productions making use of all the technical magic of the Hangar Theatre
- Two thrilling outdoor productions at our beautiful new site on the shores of Cayuga Lake, including an epic, once-in-a-lifetime production that combined all three parts of Shakespeare's Henry VI into a single show
- We introduced a new Ithaca Renaissance Festival in conjunction with our outdoor shows, highlighted by two amazing days of mounted medieval jousting!
- We expanded our education program with new acting Shakespeare classes and more school groups coming to see our fall production of Macbeth.
Financially, though, 2016 was NOT a great year for ISC:
- Attendance at our 2016 summer shows was much lower than the last several years. Since ticket sales at these shows provide the single biggest piece of our total annual income, this was a major financial setback from which we are still trying to recover.
- Grant income in 2016 dropped by almost half compared to previous years. Grants form the second biggest piece of our total annual income.
- Individual donations in 2016, the third largest component of our total annual income, also dropped significantly compared to previous years.
As every one of our top three sources of income has fallen, our expenses have risen across the board — from the costs of staffing and mounting our productions to space rental and insurance costs.
As a small organization that has always stretched our budgets to the limit just to get our shows up on the stage, we simply cannot continue operating under this perfect storm of rising costs and falling income.
That's why we need your help to turn the winter of our discontent into glorious summer! Help us enter 2017 on solid financial footing, and ensure that we are able to complete the grand finale of our history series, Richard III.
Simply click on the link below to visit our year-end fundraising campaign page, choose a donation amount, and make your contribution now to keep Ithaca Shakespeare going and growing in 2017!
If you give today, November 29, your donation will go 5% further, since all processing fees are waived for Giving Tuesday. But the campaign will continue through December 15 if you can't give a gift today.
Make a donation now
If you prefer to donate by check, please make it payable to "Ithaca Shakespeare Company" and mail to: Ithaca Shakespeare Company, 828 Dryden Rd, Ithaca, NY 14850.
All donations are tax-deductible.
Here's a quick look back at our shows from this past year...
Make a donation now
Thank you for helping to keep Shakespeare alive and well in Ithaca!
The Ithaca Shakespeare Company · Ithaca, NY 14850 · info@ithacashakespeare.org