Are you trying to track down the hidden photo for a chance to win two free tickets to this year's show? Follow this link to the gallery and look for a picture of anguish.

“This season’s Festival will be truly remarkable, fusing some phenomenal local talent into the production while also bringing international flair with our guest director from England,” said Catherine Atack, executive director of the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival.

“We’ve been working for several months to create a new look and feel for the Festival that will envelop the Shakespeare story in the one-of-a-kind venue that the Festival stage offers. The new enhancements we’re making for our 2008 season provide our guests with a truly one-of-a-kind theatre experience, captivating the audience in the plays’ action and emotion.”

Before you go, find out "who's who" in this year's Festival

Jan Powell
Artistic Director Jan Powell leads the Festival’s new production team managing, casting and directing each of the three seasonal plays. A critically acclaimed Shakespearean director, Powell joined the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival in October 2007.

In addition to managing the Festival’s production, she is directing Richard III and CAMBIO, which she also co-wrote. Powell joined the Festival from Portland, Ore., where she has been pursuing a ph.D. while also working as a freelance stage director and theatrical coach.

With more than 25 years of experience, Powell was the founding artistic director for Portland’s Tygres Heart Shakespeare Company and has directed 23 Shakespearean productions along with 27 other productions ranging from contemporary drama to children’s theater. She has also served as president of the Shakespeare Association of America. Her goals with the Festival include seeking out new talent, fostering local talent, developing new resources and building strong local collaborations.

Michael Walling
Joining the Festival as guest director for A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Michael Walling has extensive theatre experience and is internationally renowned. An Oxford University graduate, Walling trained at Trinity College in Dublin before founding London’s Border Crossings Theatre and Combined Arts in 1995.

The aptly named theatre was founded as a way to literally cross geographic borders and unite cultures through theatre arts. Serving as the theatre’s artistic director, he has directed the bulk of Border Crossings productions and provided overall direction for the company.

In addition, he has crossed four continents directing award-winning plays including Two Gentlemen of Verona in the U.S., Paul & Virginie in Mauritius, Die Zauberflote in Spain and The Tempest in India to name a few. Walling also teaches regularly at London’s Rose Bruford College and Central School of Speech and Drama at the University of London.

Suzanne Childers
Creating the Festival’s costuming and choreography, Soozi Childers has more than 40 years of dance and choreography experience in shows throughout the world including Les Folies Bergere in Buenos Aires, Argentina and Las Vegas, Nev., and numerous Cirque du Soleil productions.

She’s lent her talents to shows throughout the world, visit locales including Paris, Bangkok, London and Barcelona, just to name a few. Her costuming credits include the 2006-2007 national tour of Aida, Sandcastle Theater in Saipan and Guam, Club Majik Dinner Theater in Steamboat and Vail, Colo., and independent projects for major companies in the U.S.

Rand Sisk
Set designer Rand Sisk, an architectural designer at Worthgroup Architects in Reno, Nev., brings a love of the outdoors to his designs -- a perfect complement for the plays’ themes. With experience in designing custom homes as well as installations and displays, Sisk’s design for the Festival stage will reflect an intimacy while also creating the opportunity to customize the set piece through a unique modular design.

Matthew McKinney
The Festival’s technical direction is helmed by University of Nevada, Reno Technical Director Matthew McKinney. Raised in South Lake Tahoe, Calif., McKinney recently returned to Reno after earning a Master of Fine Arts from San Diego State University along with theatre work, including the well known Old Globe Theater in San Diego. McKinney also worked as technical director for numerous theatrical and film productions in Southern California.

Omar Alexander
CAMBIO Musical Director Omar Alexander is a new generation U.S. Latin music artist - a singer, songwriter, composer and musician with a Latin gypsy funk rock musical style. Born to a Colombian mother and Indian father, Alexander’s fierce Bohemian warrior-poet musings represent the bilingual, multicultural U.S. Latino generation. These influences contribute to the salsa and rock-inspired soundtrack of the Festival’s first original musical, CAMBIO, helping to create a taste of Havana along the shores of Lake Tahoe.

Wishelle Banks
A passion for film and theatre arts is the driving force behind Company Manager Wishelle Banks. The second-generation producer, writer and editor has degrees in TV/theater/film studies and journalism. As a graduate of the University of Nevada, Reno’s Reynolds School of Journalism, Banks has earned awards for both journalistic feature writing and poetry.

In a steadfast pursuit to become an independent filmmaker, her work has appeared in national publications and productions, including the American Indian Film Festival. With her first dramatic feature film screenplay under consideration, Banks is also working to attain membership in the Writers Guild of America and the Producers Guild of America.

Elicia Cardenas
As Stage Manager, Elicia Cardenas brings more than a decade experience to the Festival. She graduated in 1996 from Botson University School of Theatre Arts with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Stage Management and has since been involved with more than 30 productions ranging from symphony and opera programs to musical and children’s theatre. Cardenas’ most recently managed the Portland Sympony’s Yuletide Christmas programs as well as 2006’s Too Much Coffee Man, The Opera in Portland, Ore.

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Tickets for the 2008 season are now available online at www.LakeTahoeShakespeare.com with reduced handling fees for all online purchases, or by calling 888-32-SHOWS (888-327-4697). Tickets start at $22 for open seating tiers and range in options up to the premier reserved seating section from $67. Information about the 2008 season, membership, volunteer opportunities and sponsorships is available online.


The Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established for the cultural benefit and enjoyment of all residents and visitors to Lake Tahoe and Reno. Annually drawing more than 30,000 attendees from across the country to the specially built Warren Edward Trepp Stage along the north shore of Lake Tahoe, the Festival is a regional advocate for producing the finest cultural events in the region. Through its in-house artistic direction, the Festival produces three plays each summer, creating original costuming, set design and choreography, and attracting a team of national and international stage talent. The Festival’s community outreach includes an annual program, InterACT, designed to educate future generations on the importance of the arts, theatre and music.