A Turning Point for the Arts
Press Release: May 7, 2025
Staunton, VA — Last week, arts organizations around the country lost their federal funding, without warning, without time to prepare. Entire seasons unraveled overnight. Across the nation, public funding for the arts is shifting. Here in Staunton, one of the ASC’s own
federal grants, support that helps subsidize performances and workshops for students and teachers across the region, is now vulnerable. These funds allow us to bring Shakespeare to life in classrooms and communities that might not otherwise have access to live theatre.
When national priorities change, mission-driven work becomes harder to sustain. But that’s exactly when it matters most. At the ASC, we’re doing everything we can to protect what makes this work essential:
- Performances that ignite imagination.
- Workshops that invite curiosity.
- Access for every student and educator who deserves to see themselves in Shakespeare’s stories.
We’ve always believed theatre is more than entertainment.
It’s how we gather. How we understand. How we begin again.
Theatre is a radical act of community.
And right now, being here together makes all the difference.
— A Message from Vanessa Morosco, Executive Director of the American Shakespeare Center
About the American Shakespeare Center:
The American Shakespeare Center (ASC) in Staunton, Virginia is the home of the world’s
first-ever recreation of Shakespeare’s indoor theatre, the Blackfriars Playhouse. From this
one-of-a-kind stage, ASC brings bold Shakespeare productions, new works, and interactive
education programs to audiences of all ages. Every performance happens in shared
light—illuminating the connection between actor and audience, story and community.
Mission: At the American Shakespeare Center, our mission is to advance understanding, imagination,
and community by illuminating Shakespeare through performance, research, and education in
the Blackfriars Playhouse and beyond.
Learn more at americanshakespearecenter.com.