Stratford Theatre Festival Case Study: The "Arts" As Lucrative Enterprises

"July 13, 1953, was...'the most exciting night in the history of Canadian theatre.'...the atmosphere was electrifying." Originally the idea of Thomas Patterson, a man who had seen plays in Europe as a soldier in WWII, he found that the in a comparison between theatre in Canada and theatre in Europe, there was none. There were no permanent theatres in Canada, and he determined to do something about it. Partly to boost his hometown's economy, and partly the efforts to bring artistic culture there, Patterson began the efforts of transforming the town into a cultural centre. …