The Stratford Festival, located in picturesque Stratford, Ontario, is North America’s leading classical theatre, drawing half a million visitors a year. It presents a seven-month season of a dozen plays in four venues, along with a Forum of events to enrich the play-going experience. With the works of Shakespeare at its core, the Festival features classics, contemporary dramas, musical theatre and new plays. Founded by Tom Patterson, with Tyrone Guthrie as its first Artistic Director, it presented its first season in 1953, using an innovative thrust stage devised by Guthrie and designer Tanya Moiseiwitsch. That stage revolutionized Shakespearean performance in our time and inspired the design of several other major venues worldwide.