A performance by Dance Kaleidoscope from last year's Dadalus show, a benefit for several AIDS/HIV charities.The Oregon Shakespeare Festival will host its 19th annual Daedalus Project, a benefit for AIDS/HIV groups, on Sunday and Monday, Aug. 20 and 21.
The event will again feature a Sunday morning run/walk, a Monday afternoon play reading and a big Monday night variety show.
One expert says a paucity of government money for AIDS groups underscores the importance of such events.
"Community organizations that serve people living with HIV and AIDS have historically received limited public funding," said On Track Director Rita Sullivan of Medford.
For example, On Track's Alan Collins AIDS Project has received no public money for several years, Sullivan said.
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The sale and silent auction includes items created by members of the OSF company, such as paintings, sculpture and other hand-crafted works of art as well as signed photographs and chances for coffee or a meal with a company member. The sale raised almost $4,500 last year. A benefit sale of T-shirts, baked goods, lemonade and more will take place on the bricks during the afternoon and early evening hours Monday.
Things kick off at 7:30 a.m. Sunday with the 10th Annual 5-K Run and Walk. Check-in begins at 6:45 a.m. on the bricks in front of the OSF Box Office. The run winds up Pioneer and Granite streets and cuts briefly into Lithia Park. Call 482-2111, ext. 422. The $20 fee includes a T-shirt.
A reading of Steven Dietz's play "Lonely Planet" will be held at 2 p.m. Monday in the Angus Bowmer Theatre, directed by OSF actor David Kelly. Richard Howard and Tony DeBruno will play Carl and Jody, with stage directions read by Kjerstine Anderson and Michelle Beck.
"Lonely Planet" (1992) was written for Seattle actors Michael Winters and Laurence Ballard, both OSF alumni, who performed the play at A Contemporary Theatre in Seattle.
The play takes place in a map store owned by Jody, who has become so fearful of the outside world that he refuses to venture beyond the walls of the store. Carl stops by often, bringing stories of his various jobs, news and a chair. The chairs are a mystery as Carl attempts to convince Jody that he must take responsibility for his life and venture outside.
Tickets to the reading cost $10. Call 482-4331 or buy at osfashland.org on the Web.
From 6:30 to 7:15 p.m. Monday, The Rhythm Kings will play a free concert on the courtyard deck. OSF actor Ray Porter will host this year's evening variety show at 7:30 p.m. Monday on the Elizabethan Stage. The show will feature music, dance, the Daedalus chorus, poetry and skits performed by actors and artists from the community, including chanteuse Beth Baker.
The finale of Act One will be the annual Underwear Parade, hosted by OSF actor G. Valmont Thomas. Audience members vote with their dollars for their favorite contestants at intermission. The parade has contributed as much as $4,000 to the benefit in past years. Variety show tickets cost $25 and $30 and are available at the OSF box office, by calling 482-4331 or at osfashland.org on the Web.
Returning after its debut last year is the New Belgium Brewery Bike Raffle. This year's model was commissioned by the New Belgium Brewing Company from the Felt Bike Company. It is the 2006 Limited Edition of the New Belgium's Fat Tire Bike Series. Tickets cost $2 at any of OSF's concession stands or bars.
The evening show will close with a special candlelight ceremony to remember those who have died of AIDS.
After last year's benefit, OSF distributed more than $40,000 to OnTrack's Alan F. Collins AIDS Project, AIDS Support and Prevention of Josephine County, the Siskiyou County HIV/AIDS Foundation and Africare.
"Without the generous assistance of the Daedalus Project, Alan's House and Fairfield Place would not exist," Sullivan said.
The late OSF Artistic Director Emeritus Jerry Turner named The Daedalus Project after the Greek myth of Daedalus and his son Icarus who were imprisoned in a labyrinth by King Minos. Father and son made wings from wax and feathers to fly to their freedom.
It is estimated around 40 million people are infected with HIV/AIDS including one million in the United States. Half of the 40,000 new HIV infections in the country each year are among people under the age of 25. Oregon's total number of AIDS cases was 5,886 as of Aug. 4, with 175 diagnosed in Jackson County.
