“One of America’s top five regional theaters”
- TIME magazine.

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s vision is to create theatre of extraordinary quality in which we proceed with daring to fulfill our artistic dreams. The 1959 Elizabethan Stage was designed by OSF Principal Scenic and Theatre Designer Richard L. Hay and patterned on London’s 1599 Fortune Theatre. The Allen Pavilion encircling the seating area and providing improved acoustics was completed in 1992.

The OSF season runs from late February through the end of October; you’ll find more to do mid-June through September, but tickets are less expensive from February through June and in October.

2012 Playbill
Angus Bowmer Theatre

Romeo and Juliet  Feb. 17 – Nov. 4

Animal Crackers Feb. 19 – Nov. 4

The White Snake Feb. 18 – Jul. 8

Medea/Macbeth/Cinderella Apr. 18 – Nov. 3

All the Way Jul. 25 – Nov. 3

New Theatre
Seagull Feb. 23 – Jun. 22
Troilus and Cressida Mar. 28 – Nov. 4
Party People Jun. 3 – Nov. 3

Elizabethan Stage/Allen Pavilion
Henry V  Jun. 5 – Oct. 12
The Very Merry Wives of Windsor, Iowa Jun. 6 – Oct. 13
As You Like It  Jun. 7 – Oct. 14

Extra Activities

Backstage Tours
Feb. 29 – Nov. 3 10:00 am, reservations required.

Festival Noons
Lectures, concerts and other events. These ticketed events are held at noon, mid-June through September.

Park Talks
Informal Q and A sessions with OSF performers. Held at noon, mid-June through September, most Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays in the Bill Patton Garden, outside Elizabethan Theatre Gate I. Admission is free and no ticket is required
Shakespeare’s First Folio
One of the world’s finest copies is on loan Microsoft executive Paul Allen’s collection. Viewable Thursdays, 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., mid-June through September. Tickets are required

OSF Information
Box Office Ticket Sales
541-482-4331 Group Sales (15 or more)
Phone: 541-488-5406
FAX: 541-482-8045

Request Brochure
Phone: 541-482-2111

We are preparing the 541Live Best Pizza in the Rogue Valley article! But we need your help! Is it Kaleidoscope Pizza, Jackson Creek Pizza, Bobbios Pizza, Wild River Pizza or is there another place even better? You our readers tell us your favorite pizza restaurant and we will send our team out to try them!  After visiting the recommended restaurants and our stomaches are full of pizza we will take a vote and give you our take!

This is what we would like to know:

1. Favorite Pizza Restaurant
2. Favorite Pizza
3. Why you like it

Feel free to leave comments, email us, call us, tweet us or Facebook us your favorites!

We will have an upcoming article with our results and give you the chance to tell us what you think!  Now get typing!

“You Deserve to be Comfortable” is our core belief at Spring Air Inc.  Our goal is to continue setting the home comfort standard in Southern Oregon. Our service provides a whole home approach that goes beyond your HVAC equipment to make your home healthier and more comfortable!

Our highly trained service technicians work hard to take care of your homes heating and air needs by providing best-in-class workmanship. Our technicians even wear booties when entering your home!  Spring Air Inc. works hard to do the right thing for our clients because we believe that you Deserve to be Comfortable.

Spring Air Inc. Serves southern Oregon! Serving: Medford, Ashland, Jacksonville and Grants Pass

Contact Spring Air today for all of your home comfort needs!
Spring Air Inc.
810 N. 5th Street
Jacksonville, Oregon
97530

Phone: 877-899-HVAC

Web: http://www.springairinc.com

Where to Begin:
Generally speaking, most people do not own snowshoes or cross-country skis, but have no fear; there is a solution! Ashland, Oregon is home to two great stores for either renting or purchasing cross-country skis and poles as well as snowshoes and any other equipment you may need.

Ashland Mountain Supply rents both snowshoes and cross-country skiing equipment for very affordable prices.
Snowshoes are just $10 for 24 hours
Cross-country Skis $12 for 24 hours

Ashland Mountain Supply also offers a Mid-week Special, due to the closing of the store on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, if equipment is rented Monday evening, the renter my keep the equipment until Thursday for the price of only 24 hours!
(541) 488-5402

Ashland Outdoor Store is also a great place for renting or purchasing your gear.
Snowshoe rental prices are $10 for the first day and $5 each day after.
Rental prices for cross-country ski equipment are $15 dollars for the first day and just $10 dollars each day after.
(541) 488-1202

Combining music, dancing, drinking, costume contests, prizes, photo booths, body painting, and more with some of the best lighting, special effects and props you have ever seen, Ashland’s Wicked Fantasy is an experience you won’t want to miss.

Tickets are available now for $22 YOU MUST BE 21 YEARS OR OLDER TO ATTEND!

Get your tickets  http://www.wickedashland.com

“…mixes Devendra Banhart-influenced art-folk with hazy femme vocals and traditional Mexican sounds to weirdly entrancing effect.” – LA Weekly

“The band continues to build up steam, maintaining its core strength in the voice and posturing of Mendoza. Her vocal lines swim out from a haze of guitars and dreamy percussion, often looping back into a cacophony that is eerie in effect but still somehow comforting, like the song that comes floating through in a fairy tale when the children are lost in the woods and just about to despair.” – Portland Mercury

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“I saw [Typhoon] live for the first time mere weeks after buying that first CD. The show was held in the basement of Bubble Tea purveyor in downtown Salem with Boy Gorilla label mates Eskimo & Sons, who were themselves in their infancy then. I don’t think I was fully prepared for how many people made up Typhoon’s live lineup. They rarely perform with fewer than nine people on stage, and I’ve personally seen Typhoon field as many as 13 or 14. This may seem ostentatious, but let me assure you they need all three drum kits to really do things right.” -Brad Grenz

Add Typhoon on Myspace Music
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ScienceWorks Hands-On Museum was founded in 2001 with the mission to inspire wonder among children and adults, and stimulate creative exploration through interactive science and the arts. The year round curriculum is packed with education programs for students & teachers, public workshops, lectures, summer festivals and science camps during school breaks.

With ever changing activities, there is something new each visit… thankfully,  my favorite exhibits are there each time! The bubble room and the shadow wall are examples of interactive exhibits perfect for all ages!

Other exhibits include topics around energy, anatomy, chemistry, perception, motion, engineering, art and much more.

You can find ScienceWorks Hands-on-Museum at 1500 E. Main St. in Ashland
Hours: 10am-5pm Wednesday-Saturday and 12-5pm Sunday

541Live Tip: A family membership is just $60 and gives you unlimited access for 2 adults + all children in your household under 18. Best part of membership – free or reduced fee access to Museums like OMSI in Portland and other youth museums in the Northwest.

Connect with China promises to a glimpse into Chinese art, language, culture, science and music with hands-on exhibits to teach and demonstrate each component. This new exhibit is said to mirror the world-renowned Exploratorium exhibit at the Hanban Headquarters in Beijing, China.

The Grand Opening will be Saturday, February 20 from 10am-4pm. Schedule of events include 10am ribbon cutting ceremony, 10am-1pm paper cutting demo, 10:30am—1pm make your own abacus, sundial & Chinese lantern, 1pm traditional Chinese dance and music performance, 2pm-4pm face painting.

Admission: $5.00 for kids ages 2-12, $7.50 for teens and adults,  $5.00 for seniors 65+

Friday, 6:30pm – Enjoy a flavorsome four-course meal at the Chocolate Makers’ Dinner, presented by Damon Jones, Executive Chef of Larks Restaurant. Guest speakers Sarah Leoni, from Cocoa & Co., and Jared Rennie, from Noble Coffee Roasting Co., will be giving some “sweet talk” as well. Entry to this delectable evening is $47 (including tax and gratuity).

Saturday and Sunday, 11:00am to 4:00pm – Use this time to sample everything your palate can handle, from unusual spicy chocolate combinations to truffles, local fudge, and sauces. Be sure to try Lillie Belle Farm’s award-winning chocolates, or indulge in that special piece of dark chocolate with a glass of red wine.

Friday and Saturday, 4:30pm – Pamper yourself to the max at the Chocolate Facial Spa Party. Come on, who wouldn’t want a Waterstone Spa esthetician to give you a chocolate facial while you sip away at a chocolate martini from the martini bar…? $25/person.

Other festival events include an art walk, a messy, yet educational, hands-on event at the Science Works Museum, various yummy seminars, classes, and demonstrations, and Beyond Chocolates Gift Market. Cost for a one-day pass is $15. Tickets can be purchased at the Ashland Springs Hotel.

More events are being added every day, so click here for the full schedule!

Tip: The Oregon Shakespeare Festival will give a 50% discount to all tickets for plays being staged between March 5th – 7th, 2010. Just say the magical word, “chocolate”!

The park offers tennis courts, a Japanese garden, two duck ponds, buildings for community events, and, in the winter time, a tented ice skating rink. During the warmer days, two level lawn areas provide an excellent location for playing frisbee or reading in the sun. Be sure to pay a visit to the historic water fountains and formal rose garden to experience a relaxing atmosphere. Picnic sites are also available throughout the park.

A suggestion – if you’re out with friends, try a light lunch at Hana Sushi, located conveniently at 29 North Main Street. Have the kids? Treat them to something special from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory at 33 East Main Street, or pop into the Mix Sweet Shop at 57 North Main Street, all just minutes away from the park. Then head to Lithia Park’s large playground to let the kiddos run off all that extra energy, or make it a complete day of adventure and choose between the miles of family-friendly natural trails. Stroller-friendly paved paths are also available.

During the summer months, the Butler Band Shell offers a place to enjoy free local performances from bands such as the Ashland City Band, which holds concerts every Thursday evening at 7:30pm from late June to early August, or Ballet Rogue, which performs every Monday evening at 7:30pm throughout the month of July. Click here for a full schedule of 2010 events.

Tip: The Lithia Park Woodland Trail Guide to Trees and Shrubs can be purchased for $2 at the City of Ashland Parks and Recreation Department at 340 South Pioneer Street, or from the Ashland Chamber of Commerce at 110 East Main Street in the nearby Plaza area.