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Although the festival is named for Shakespeare, he is not the only playwright produced. The current playbill includes classical, contemporary and musical performances.
The Festival was founded by Tom Patterson, a Canadian journalist who wanted to revitalize his town's economy.Stratford had originally been a major railway junction and had fallen into decline when the railway yards were moved. Mr. Patterson achieved his goal, and the Shakespeare Festival of Canada became a legal entity on October 31, 1952. On July 13, 1953, actor Alec Guinness spoke the first lines of the first play produced by the festival: "Now is the winter of our discontent / Made glorious summer by this sun of York."
This first performances took place in a giant canvas tent on the banks of the River Avon, and the season comprised just two plays: Richard III and All's Well That Ends Well. In the second year the playbill expanded, and included the first non-Shakespeare play, Oedipus Rex. The Festival Theatre was opened in 1957, and was deliberately designed to resemble a tent, in memory of those first performances.The stage of the festival Theatre,designed by Tanya Moiseiwitsch resembles the thrust stage of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. As of 2004 there are four permanent festival venues: The Festival,The Avon, the Tom Patterson theatre and the Studio.