Garrett is leaving the Oregon Shakespeare Festival after four years at the helm of the organization.
Artistic Director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival Nataki Garrett
Christopher Briscoe/Oregon Shakespeare Festival
According to the festival, OSF board member Octavio Solis will step in to support the artistic direction team and find a replacement artistic director during the transition. Solis is a playwright and director from Medford.
OSF Board of Trustees President Paul Christy said Solis will help the organization continue without disruption to the current season.
“Having Octavio here is like the best possible situation because he’s been on stage, he’s been behind the scenes, he’s hired directors,” Christy said. “He knows all the logistics and the machinations that go into the performances.”
Garrett’s resignation comes during a fundraiser to save the ongoing theater season and the organization itself as they struggle amid a financial crisis.
In a prepared statement, Garrett gave no specific reason for leaving the organization.
“We are at a tipping point in our industry where outdated business models must evolve in order for our theaters to survive,” said Garrett. “But these challenges also present great opportunities — to enable a rebuild in a way that reflects where we are today and where we want to be in the future — with actors, staff, audiences and artistic directors that reflect the richness of our country’s diversity.” reflect. That’s what excites me. This is the work I came for.”
OSF is trying to raise $2.5 million to prevent layoffs and wrap up the 2023 season. The organization has already suspended planning for the 2024 season pending the fundraiser and is expected to present next steps for this season by the end of the month.
First reported this week by The Oregonian, the theater said it has already received over $1.4 million in gifts and hopes to raise the $2.5 million by mid-July.
OSF has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, and Garrett has guided the organization through layoffs, reorganizations and fundraisers to keep the 88-year-old theater afloat.
Garrett was the first black female director in the history of theater. She also revealed last year that she was the target of death threats and racist remarks while in Ashland. Because of the threats, she had to travel with a security detail.
The theater is a major cultural attraction in southern Oregon. In a statement, OSF executive director Diane Yu commended Garrett’s work in advocating for performance venues and promoting equity and diversity in the organization.
“The board is grateful for the contributions Nataki has made in promoting theater and expanding OSF’s leadership role within the theater community across the country,” Yu said.
Garrett’s departure gives the festival an opportunity to address its core offerings and values, according to Foundation Council President Christy.
“Nataki came up with a lot of ideas that we couldn’t realize but we want,” he said. “Should we have performances all year round? Shall we have holiday performances?”
Christy said Garrett is focused on attracting new and younger audiences to the theatre, something he believes they should continue to focus on.
Both Yu and Garrett declined requests for an interview.