Woodward Shakespeare Festival

The tradition & historical record

Woodward Park is a public park located in Fresno, California, abutting the San Joaquin River, opened in 1968. It is named after the late Ralph Woodward who bequeathed a portion of his estate to provide a regional park and bird sanctuary in Fresno. The park has a multi-use amphitheatre, an authentic Japanese Garden, disc golf course, BMX course, three children's playgrounds, a lake and trails that connect to the Lewis S. Eaton Trail. ¹

Ralph W. Woodward was a longtime businessman and property owner in the Fresno area. His father, Oscar James (O.J.) Woodward, was an early Fresno civic leader and banker who donated the large Memorial Fountain in Fresno's downtown Courthouse Park in 1921. Ralph Woodward created a will which included the requirement that, upon his death, one-fifth of his estate would go to the purchase of a site for a public park and bird refuge. The site was to be "selected solely by said trustees and conveyed to the City of Fresno as soon as purchased" and that the site shall be purchased "within a reasonable time." Woodward was an outdoorsman and frequently went trap shooting on the San Joaquin River. Woodward died on March 6, 1961, and his will was filed for probate. One of the executors and trustees of the estate estimated the value at $1 million. Various options were considered for the site, but the estate trustees settled on land next to State Highway 41 and Shepherd Avenue with Friant Road skirting the eastern boundary in September 1964. The trustees purchased 185 acres (75 ha) of land for $296,000 and the city added 50 acres (20 ha) at a cost of $80,000 and the entire site was transferred to the city for the development of a park and bird refuge, now named Woodward Park. ¹

As Woodward was being planted and constructed, a group of Japanese-Americans, headed by local accountant Ben Nakamura, approached the city to set aside two acres of the park for a Japanese garden. A meeting between the Japanese-American group, Fresno parks department director and the son of the late Ralph Woodward produced a plan for the project and they sought to raise $250,000 in donations for it. The city had formed a sister city relationship with Kochi, Japan a few years earlier, in 1965, and looked to them to donate authentic Japanese buildings. Landscape architect Paul Saito was hired for design services in 1972 and construction began in 1975. Construction involved the addition of 30,000 cubic yards (23,000 m3) of earth and 600 tonnes (1,300,000 lb) of granite boulders. On May 18, 1981, the garden was officially dedicated and a large delegation from Kochi attended the opening. The Shinzen Friendship Garden, also known as the Shinzen Japanese Garden, is a 5-acre Japanese stroll garden. The Garden was planned around the four seasons, with distinctive plantings in each area. The spring section features Azaleas, Camellias, crabapples, irises, flowering cherries and plums. A paved pathway connects visitors to the summer section, in which a Koi Pond is the centerpiece. Tulip trees, Chinese pistache and tallow trees are planted in the Autumn Section, where they display bright colors in the fall. A large waterfall, pines and evergreens anchor the Winter Section. ¹

In 1989, the garden received a thatched-roofed teahouse that was built in Japan and re-assembled by Japanese carpenters on the shore of the pond. Allowing the construction of a Japanese-themed restaurant incorporated into the garden was much discussed. ¹

The park houses a shaded outdoor pavilion, named Rotary Amphitheater, which seats 4,000 people. The amphitheatre was renovated in 2010, and has hosted performances by acts such as Deftones, Tech N9ne, and Sevendust as well as numerous others. ¹

BMX riders had used the park for recreation since the sport gained popularity. However, in 2007 the city constructed an official course in the Woodward's southwest corner. The 160,000 ft (49,000 m) S-shaped course includes timing equipment, barriers, hills, and a staging area. ¹

The first permanent disc golf course in Fresno was installed in Woodward Park, named "Woodward Legacy Disc Golf Course," and it opened in November 2003. The course includes eighteen holes on 57 acres (23 ha) acres of rolling hills, trees and bluffs. The hole distances range from 200 feet to more than 600 feet in length. Installation of the course was the work of city officials and parks department head at the time, Ron Primavera. In the first year of operation, the course earned a spot as part of the "Central Valley Series," an annual circuit of approximately 10 tournaments throughout the Central Valley. Since 2014, the disc golf tournament in Fresno has branded itself the "Hard Pan Classic," named after the cementitious substratum frequently found in San Joaquin valley soil. In 2019, the Hard Pan Classic moved to the course in Kearney Park, just west of Fresno. ¹

The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Woodward Park (Fresno)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. ¹

Woodward Shakespeare Festival is recorded in open cultural data. The structured record cited below does not describe the practice, and this entry has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition. ²

The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation. ²