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written by ERIC SIMONSON

�������ý��Ƶ nine years ago I had one of those lightbulb moments. I was in Door County, hanging out at ����ö������ܲԻ��� and thinking, “What an absolutely beautiful place!” By profession, I am a writer and director of television, film and theatre. Over the past couple of decades I have written plays and screenplays that have been produced in various forms and at different venues, and I owe much of my productivity to Door County, and in particular, ����ö������ܲԻ���, which has become my muse. 

The lightbulb that went off said, “����ö������ܲԻ��� should be shared with other artists far and wide. It should be a place where all kinds of creators can come to be inspired and show off their work to the community.” And that was how was born. My brother-in-law, Alan Kopischke, a talented actor/producer, and I went to Mark Breseman, then the Director of ����ö������ܲԻ���. We proposed the idea of DKAF (as it has come to be known), and Mark, who had been looking for new ways to exploit the magic of ����ö������ܲԻ���, thought it was a great idea. He signed on immediately. He gave us leave to plan and raise money, and we were on our way.

I have contacts with artists around the country. I reached out to talent I knew in Chicago, Minneapolis, New York and LA. In the first few years we developed playwright Lydia Diamond's play, Toni Stone, which eventually ran Off-Broadway, and has since had dozens of productions across the country. In later years, we hosted favorites including Lucky Plush Dance Company of Chicago, and Hollywood actors Rainn Wilson, Harry Lennix and Dan Lauria. We have also hosted writers, filmmakers, artists, dancers, poets and circus acts. You name it. If it’s evocative and entertaining, we develop it, and we present it. 

And, in the ����ö������ܲԻ��� tradition, DKAF now offers a seminar attached to the festival, another lightbulb moment! Our participants rub elbows with the artists, sharing meals and the lodge. They get a worm’s eye view of the creative process and a full festival, immersive experience. If you’re around September 22nd-27th, come check us out. Better yet, join the seminar. Part of that lightbulb moment years ago was to make DKAF a ����ö������ܲԻ��� tradition. So far, so good.