BC Theatre Students Attend Oregon Shakespeare Festival

Monday, June 16, 2025

Recently, Professor Cody Ganger and 18 Bakersfield College Theatre students traveled to Ashland, Oregon, to attend the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF). This unique educational opportunity was made possible through the support of the Renegade Innovation Fund. Nestled in the tiny town near the California/Oregon border, the OSF is in its 91st year of operation, making it one of the oldest and largest professional non-profit theaters in the nation. The festival is home to the oldest existing full-scale Elizabethan stage in the Western Hemisphere, and in 1983, it received the Tony Award for Outstanding Achievement in Regional Theatre.

Professor Ganger and her students spent 5 days immersed in all things OSF, taking in six plays throughout the week, in addition to participating in tours of all three performance spaces, behind-the-scenes workshops, and deeply engaging production discussions. Seeing this level of professional, innovative theatre showed our young artists what is possible, both artistically and for their future careers. The interaction and engagement with high-quality theatre proved to be an invaluable educational experience for our students. Through the support of our campus community, the Bakersfield College Foundation, and the Renegade Innovation Fund, our students were able to access a transformational milestone that they can take with them through the rest of their careers and lives.

The entire Performing Arts department would like to thank all involved in making this incredible opportunity happen for our students. The BC Theatre Program hopes to be able to fund more travel like this in the future, and this trip was a huge first step in making this a regular part of our students’ academic journeys. The support of our colleagues, the Foundation, and the Renegade Innovation Fund is unmatched. Thank you!