NEWS ITEM: 30 Jan'10

Fresh Start for Shaw

JOHN COULBOURN - QMI Agency
30 Jan'10

Management at Niagara-On-The-Lake's Shaw Festival were no doubt in the mood to paint the town red yesterday with the news that, despite a grim start to their last season, they still finished the 2009 season in the black — with a little help from their friends.

At the end of the season, the Festival had not completely worked its way out of the hole into which the economic collapse had thrown it, having raised enough money through ticket sales and other sources that they would post a $1.4 million deficit on expenses of $24.10 million for the season. That loss would have brought the company's accumulated deficit to $3.1 million.

But thanks to a bequest of $3.1 million from a long time Shaw patron, the late Mona Campbell, both the season's deficit and the accumulated deficit have been wiped out, leaving The Shaw Festival to launch its 2010 season not only with a clean slates financially, but with with an endowment foundation that manages investments in the neighbourhood of $18 million.