To be or not to be the question for Shakespeare in schools festival

A decision by funding agencies not to continue their cash support could jeopardise the country's annual Shakespeare in schools festival, which has seen 50,000 New Zealand students quote the words of the Bard.

The Sheila Winn Festival has run since 1992 but is now $45,000 short for next year after the Government arts funding agency Creative New Zealand rejected its application for help and other bodies ended their contributions.

Creative New Zealand has provided annual grants of $10,000 to $15,000 for the past few years but it has now declined to help fund fees for adjudicators at the festival.

An agency spokeswoman said it had provided $66,470 since 2000 but decisions were "taken in a highly competitive environment and sometimes Creative New Zealand is unable to fund all the projects it would like to".

Dawn Sanders, the festival's organiser, said the event fitted into the arts curriculum and students could earn NCEA credits for taking part, but the Ministry of Education had also said it would not help fund it.

A spokesman said the ministry did not give grants to private enterprises.

A one-off $10,000 grant was given last year while the festival was looking for commercial sponsorship but it was told at the time that it was simply to tide it over and there was no capacity for ongoing help.

He said schools could buy in to the festival if they wished.

However, Ms Sanders is reluctant to increase the $100 entry fee for each school or impose fees per student because doing so may mean schools in poorer areas would miss out.

She said the event had grown from 750 participants in 1992 to 5000 now.

It cost $90,000 a year to run, as well as $45,000 for the separate National Shakespeare Schools' Production.

Although the festival raised about $50,000 from fees, ticket sales and contributions of goods or services, it was still $45,000 short. "We had enough in reserves to pay for it this year, but that won't happen next year because there are no reserves left."

The Sheila Winn Festival is named after a late benefactor of the new Globe Theatre in London.