Dear BSF Family,

   Before I took on the role of Co-Artistic Director and then Interim Artistic Director, some of our company members referred to my un-named role with the company as “The Heart of BSF.”  When not performing onstage, I could often be found selling tickets, costuming actors and just scurrying around backstage and in the office.  I joined Tom Delise in the winter of 2007-2008 for my first role with, what was then, The Distracted Globe Players.  I was twenty-two and had just graduated college. I wanted to be an actor and was taking any acting job that would have me.  After that first show, Tom and I spent many nights talking about the dream of a semi- professional company devoted to the study of performance of Shakespeare’s works.  We wanted it to be a place where artists could make work they were proud of, and where we could experiment with ways to stay true to the plays’ origins while remaining relevant and timeless. Tom brought a tremendous wealth of Shakespeare scholarship, I provided practical theater knowledge and together we tried to get the little company up on its feet. With the help of many people along the way, the company grew from a few people in t-shirts, rehearsing in school cafeterias and performing in parking lots to full casts of talented professionals on our beautiful Kestrel stage. During these last fourteen years, I have moved through multiple jobs, gotten my masters degree, met and married my husband, and had my son.  All the while, Baltimore Shakespeare Factory has been my family and my home.  I may be the heart of the Baltimore Shakespeare Factory, but that is only because the Baltimore Shakespeare Factory makes up such a large part of MY heart.   Stepping down as Interim Artistic Director is bittersweet.  While it was never meant to be permanent, it has been an honor to serve as the artistic leadership of this company during such a trying time.  I am excited to introduce you to our new artistic director who I believe will move the company forward, while staying true to the company’s origins in education, community and performance, all in a way that is rooted in text and the staging conditions of Shakespeare’s time.

   Bethany Mayo is a familiar face within the BSF family.  In addition to being a member of our company and acting in several productions on stage, she also has taken a lead in transforming the work we do with students as the Education Director of the company. She is a mid-west native who is now comfortably at home on the East Coast. She is a multi-hyphenate artist. In her work as an actor, she has worked on stages in Kansas City, Annapolis and all across Baltimore. As a teacher she has worked with students in Baltimore City, and  Baltimore, Howard, Prince George and Anne Arundel counties. Her Masters Degree is in Theater Education from The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC. She's a navy wife, and is invigorated by learning new things. She sews, dances, quilts, is an amature jewelry designer and a curling hobbyist. 

   We can’t wait to share the exciting things Baltimore Shakespeare Factory has to offer in 2022.  See you at the Kestrel!

 

With art and heart,

Jess Behar