the festival was responsible for supporting itself, but had recently run deficits which were paid by the university of california. in 2008, with california's budget crisis having resulted in reduced funding, the university could no longer afford to cover these debts. an agreement was reached that if the theater could raise $300,000, it could continue operation. within 10 days of the agreement's announcement, over $400,000 was raised. claiming continuing financial problems, however, the ucsc arts division dean announced several years later that shakespeare santa cruz would end after its 2013 holiday production.