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The American Shakespeare Center has awarded Shakespeare & Company artistic director Tina Packer the second annual Burbage Award, given for lifetime service to the international Shakespearean theatre community.

Packer oversees more than 150 artists performing Shakespeare and contemporary plays in multiple venues in the Berkshire Mountains of Western Massachusetts, along with one of the largest theatre-in-education programs in the Northeast and one of the most extensive actor training programs of any regional theatre in the United States.

The award is named after the famous theatrical family consisting of James (1531-1597), Richard (1568-1619) and Cuthbert (1566-1636). The first Burbage Award was given in 2008 to Bill Patton, longtime executive director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.

For more information, visit www.ASCstaunton.com.