American playwright Ken Ludwig makes £1m donation to Stratford’s Shakespeare Birthplace Trust
AN American playwright has left the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust (SBT) its largest-ever private donation – £1 million.
Multi award-winning Ken Ludwig, who has written plays, musicals, screenplays and films, made the donation to help fund conservation works at Hall’s Croft, Stratford.
SBT said the contribution is the largest private donation in the trust’s 177-year history and will significantly support the ongoing work at what was once the of home William Shakespeare’s daughter, Susanna.
Mr Ludwig, whose works include the West End musical Crazy for You, The Game’s Afoot and Lend Me a Tenor, which was produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber, said: “Shakespeare is the great foundation for all of us who work in the theatre, and it’s an honour to support the preservation of Shakespeare’s legacy in Stratford.
“As a playwright, restoring Hall’s Croft is a way of giving back for the lifetime of joy and inspiration I’ve derived from the British theatre.”
Mr Ludwig, whose work also includes a play entitled Shakespeare In Hollywood , as well as a bestselling book How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare, added: “Hall’s Croft, once the home of Shakespeare’s daughter, Susanna, has stood since 1613 – for over 400 years – and I can’t think of any project more worthwhile than partnering with the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust to ensure that it stands for the next 400.”
Tim Cooke, CEO of SBT said the donation was a fabulous act of generosity which secures the future of a key element of genuine Shakespearian history and Shakespeare’s own family story for both the UK and for visitors from across the globe.
“Our conservation work is a central part of our work as a charity and it enables our visitors and audiences to place Shakespeare in time and space as they explore his life story and his work, which continues to speak with profound meaning and relevance today,” he said.
The Grade I-listed listed building, one of the last complete examples of Jacobean architecture, is in need of conservation work after years of wear and tear caused by visitors.
SBT recently appointed archaeologists from the University of Staffordshire to create a 3D photographic model of the building to help target repair work.
Mr Ludwig, who studied music with Leonard Bernstein at Harvard University, is in the UK for the launch of a new touring production of his adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express, opening at the Lowry in Salford on 6th September.
For more information about Hall’s Croft, visit www. shakespeare.org.uk.
