Shaking the Tree melds the boundaries of theatre and visual art by presenting audiences with unconventional theatrical experiences in our non-traditional warehouse space. Founded in 2003, Shaking the Tree uses innovative ways to inhabit space, and positions itself at the intersection of innovation, activism and groundbreaking theatricality to allow audiences to experience a deeper, more active connection to the work. 

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How did the name Shaking the Tree originate?

​Shaking the Tree's name comes from a mishmash of mythology and fairytale: The Bodhi Tree, The flowering Apple Tree, the Silver Pear Tree, but mostly the Golden Apple Tree from the Grimm Brothers’ fairy tale, Mother Holly. In this tale the young heroin comes up to a tree laden with apples. The Tree says "Shake me. Shake me. We apples are all ripe." So she shakes the tree until the apples fall as though it were raining golden apples. When there are none left in the tree, she gathers them into a pile, and then continues on her way.

"I love this idea of the young heroine doing her soul work in the underworld of Mother Holly. The important and necessary work of imagining and creating." ~Samantha Van Der Merwe

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Shaking the Tree Theatre Makers

Founder & Artistic Director: Samantha Van Der Merwe
Associate Artistic Director: Rebby Yuer Foster
Development Associate and Patron Relationships: Bridge Donnelly
Artistic Associate: Pancho Savery

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Shaking The Tree Board of Directors

Samantha Van Der Merwe (President)
Scott Wiggers (Treasurer)
Jessie Jonas (Secretary)
Dorothy Davis
​Gokul Suryadevara
Kerry Erdenberger
Rebecca Harrison
Belinda Green
Pancho Savery

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General Press & Articles of Interest

(Specific show reviews and interviews can be found on our archive pages)

​"Among Portland's best theatre companies, putting on a wonderful mix of classic and contemporary with an emphasis on the visual." ~DeAnn Welker, the Oregonian

The Low-tech Solution: Dracula and Grusha- Stephen Legawiec

5 Portland Performances you shouldn't miss this Spring -R.Mitchell Miller, Willamette Week

​Shaking the Scene: Their New Season Proves that Shaking The Tree is Portland’s Most Daring Theater Company -Robert Ham, Portland Mercury

Spotlight on: Samantha Van Der Merwe and'Caucasian Chalk Circle'
-Bobby Bermea, Oregon Artswatch

​Theater Director Samantha Van Der Merwe
A theatrical worldbuilder with equal tastes for the sinister and the fanciful.
​-Rebecca Jacobsen, Willamette Week