Ashland Oregon Lodging

America's Own Stratford-Upon-Avon can be found in Oregon

The new, the old and the bold

For 76 years, the company has been earning Tony awards for its stunning mix of Shakespeare , classics, contemporary and new plays in transformative productions.

For six weeks beginning with a Tuesday, Aug. 9, matinee, it will debut “Willful,” a unique theatrical experience in which small groups of theatergoers follow individual actors around the festival campus, reuniting periodically with the rest of the audience. Though its writer/director insists “Willful” shouldn‘t be categorized as improv, said Amy E. Richard , OSF's media and communications manager, “You could see this play five times, and each time have a totally different experience.”

Curious about how such an enormous variety of theatrical experiences are mounted? Take a backstage tour with one of the actors. You'll discover how they play their parts on the open-air Elizabethan stage despite challenging weather conditions (during a heat wave they often pack themselves in ice; wear street clothes to protect the costumes during a heavy rainstorm, and maintain their composure despite biting insects attracted by the stage lights).

“Live theater always presents the unexpected,” says Richard.

Learn more about the 11-play season through lectures, post-matinee discussions, play readings and other cultural events.

3 mediums, 1 venue

If you time your visit to Ashland right, you could catch some hard-hitting cinema by independent filmmakers that will probably never play at your local Cineplex. For five days in early April, the Ashland Independent Film Festival (AIFF) coincides with some productions in OSF's February to November season. Particularly riveting is the “Talk Back” series in which filmmakers discuss the challenges in putting together documentaries that confront serious social issues.

In making a documentary about dying, a filmmaker explained, “One of the challenges I faced was deciding whether or not to walk out of the room during private moments or to keep on filming. My main character's husband and kids were ambivalent about participating in the documentary, but how could they say ‘No' to their Mom when she was dying of cancer?

Ashland, Oregon: Offbeat sleeps | VIA Road Journals - The Stories ...

Thanks to the press of visitors who arrive every year for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Ashland has plenty of hotel rooms. But overpriced Tudor-themed lodges can all start to seem the same after a while, so this year my daughters and I went in search of lodgings with a bit more personality.

First up was the Peerless Hotel on Fourth Street. Once a boarding house for railroad workers, the historic brick building is now a boutique hotel that offers elegance without feeling frou-frou. No doilies, but Italian linens on dramatic beds like a wrought iron model from New Orleans or a hand-carved four-poster from the West Indies. Located on hip little Fourth Street just blocks from the rail line, it’s convenient to Noble Coffee Roasters, the Ashland Coop, and other popular local businesses, yet is surrounded by very private gardens with lots of little nooks for idling away a few hours. The lively, modern restaurant and bar earn rave reviews, and dessert and drinks are available late into the night in the case of post-theater munchies.

Funky Blue Moon Bed and Breakfast , a restored 1890s farmhouse and cottage, is also in the Fourth Street neighborhood, and though a little rough around the edges it’s long on charm. A newly completed sauna and steam room, available to all guests, open onto the garden, where you’re welcome to take your morning coffee. A full breakfast is served in the dining room or on the deck in the shade of a spreading English walnut tree.

Six miles from downtown, 5,500 feet up rugged Mt. Ashland sits a rustic cedar-shingle dwelling that looks more like an Aspen ski lodge than a Shakespearean manor. A great place to get away from the tourist throngs in high season, the Mt. Ashland Inn is also a great winter getaway, complete with free snowshoes for exploring the surrounding piney woods.

If you don’t mind close quarters and sometimes-loud camaraderie, you’ll love the Ashland Hostel , a cozy home-like rooming house that’s significantly more affordable than most lodging with similar proximity to the Shakespeare festival just a few blocks away. Guests have kitchen privileges, so you can whip up quick, healthy meals using your farmers’ market and co-op provisions.

If you’re on a tight budget or simply prefer to sleep under the stars, a lesser-known option is to camp out at Emigrant Lake . Depending on the water level, the lakeside sites can either be gorgeous or just so-so. But the stars reflected in the lake are spectacular, and the park’s water slides are always a great way to cool down and let off steam after sitting still through an afternoon matinee. There are also several good hiking trails that skirt the lakeshore.

Frommer's Oregon

Moon Spotlight Ashland & Southern Oregon

Highway engineer and contractor

Oregon and the Orient, a work designed to show the great natural and industrial advantages of Oregon and its unequaled position relative to trade with the Orient ...

50 Best Girlfriends Getaways in North America