Shantigar Foundation
in Western Massachusetts
Arts
Meditation
Nature
Jean-Claude van Itallie, Founder
1936 - 2021
Welcome to Shantigar
Joining meditative and artistic practices with the healing power of nature,
we can live more peacefully on our planet.
Harvest
Every month, Shantigar hosts theatre conversations online, led by Rosemary Quinn, theatre artist, director of NYU’s Experimental Theatre Wing, and Shantigar’s co-director. During these Saturday calls, we explore ideas that feed into our curiosities about theatre and the world.
September's call landed on Harvest as a theme. Tilling the fields and reaping what we’ve sown. The idea of being a seed for one another. How seeds scatter and who knows what will volunteer next? And moments when gratitude is our greatest harvest.
This summer at Shantigar was immensely fruitful—the bounty of tomatoes in our garden; actors growing a play-in-progress; students studying our bees, and indigenous groups deepening their connections. Feast on these stories below. If your group would like to rent Shantigar for a gathering, contact co-director Deb Katz: 413-834-3280.
This Fall, Shantigar is offering three extraordinary workshops, described here. Our workshops are celebrated as inspiring and inclusive experiences. Thanks to generous donors, a few partial scholarships are available. To learn more, contact Shantigar administrator Peter Columbus:
413-339-4332 or email@shantigar.org.
All the best for a glorious Fall season,
The Shantigar Team:
Board Members—Connie Childs, Rand Engel, Didi Goldenhar, Deb Katz, Rosemary Quinn
Advisory Board Members—Josh Adler, Michael Schreiber, Marisa Viola
Summer at Shantigar
The Language of Dolls—Actors Make a Play
The Language of Dolls, a play about relationships, communication, and history, will be performed in October 2024 at The Foundry Theatre in Yellow Springs, Ohio.
More information about the play here.
(from left to right) Louise, Peggy, and Lizzie
We came here to finish our play, the arc of the characters in the arc of their own histories and the collective. We mapped dreams and stories, weaving the pieces together. Buddhas watch over us, one on the roof outside playing the flute. Is that Jean-Claude—artist, trickster, bodhisattva?
—Louise Smith
Seeing Jean-Claude van Itallie's photos, posters, and writings was like being in a fabulous theater museum. To have this place become a part of my own work was thrilling. I hope many other theater artists can have a similar experience.
—Lizzie Olesker
There was a moment when I experienced a level of comfortability that I have never had before. Being well in my skin, with friends, in an environment that supported exploration. I will draw on those impressions as we go forward.
—Peggy Pettitt
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The Pollinator Project with UMass Amherst
Shantigar is partnering on a pollinator research project with the Environmental Science Department at UMass Amherst:
Shantigar supports a wide diversity of pollinators such as bees, wasps, flies, butterflies, and beetles. Our project this summer was to survey pollinator habitats with various plant compositions to determine how they affect transmission of Crithidia, a pathogen which infects bee and wasp species. We are now analyzing our summer data and hope to continue our partnership with Shantigar next summer.
—Kate Borchardt
Post Doctoral Researcher
A group hailing from the US, United Kingdom, Canada, Denmark, Brazil, Peru, and Ecuador
Indigenous Commons:
Gathering Creatives and Social Entrepreneurs
Shantigar was the perfect home for this intimate gathering. Nested in Nipmuck lands on Northeast Turtle Island, we nourished a new life—A Kinship System of Reciprocity and Exchange to repair indigenous and custodial ways of economy. We felt our whole human selves supported, nourished, and honored. The staff and land stewards arrived with love, patience, and kindness to our agenda.
—Suzanne Bowles
The atmosphere generated a sacred collective agency to move inquiry across the semi-permeable membrane of trust and design.
—Ňkwi Flores
This encounter under the beautiful August sunlight and green, reminded me that love is timeless, a never-ending source of creative imagination. A perfect shining spot for co-weaver folks, dreamers, and makers.
—Bruni Conte
New! Private Group Rentals at Shantigar
https://www.shantigar.org/rentals
Shantigar is ideal for professional convenings, creative work, and meditation gatherings. Get close to what matters while immersed in our natural splendors. We offer space and time to restore, recharge, and engage in essential conversations.
Group rentals are available for a minimum of 3 people staying at least 2 nights. Our farmhouse and cabins can accommodate up to twelve people. For more information, please contact Shantigar co-director Deb Katz at (413)-834-3280 or administrator Peter Columbus: email@shantigar.com.
Grow the Community
Last year, a generous friend helped us launch the Jean-Claude van Itallie Scholarship Fund with a $3000 matching opportunity. Since then, Shantigar has received an additional $1000. Many thanks to all!
Please consider a gift to meet the match. We want to grow a diverse, flourishing community. For the 2024 workshops, we’ve already provided $750 in scholarships. The more we receive, the more we’ll give away.
Share The Shantigar Effect—where creativity, meditation, and nature meet.
Jean-Claude van Itallie
Scholarship Fund
Shantigar's Mission
To engage with the world from a more profound place through transformative workshops, retreats and performances.
Joining meditative and artistic practices with the healing power of nature, we can live more peacefully on our planet.
Jean-Claude van Itallie
Scholarship Fund