The union of Shakespeare groups is far from a marriage of star-crossed lovers

Now that it's done, the union seemed obvious. They were about the same age, accumulated many of the same friends, they had the same interests, looked at things the same way. But at the time, Stephanie Shine was anxious about popping the question to George Mount. As nervous as a bride.

"I felt like I was asking him to marry me," said Shine, artistic director of Seattle Shakespeare Co. "I was all ready to be rejected."

Fortunately, Mount was receptive to the idea of merging Wooden O, his Mercer Island-based company that stages summertime plays by the Bard in area parks, with Shine's larger entity.

"Wooden O had plateaued in its growth," Mount said. "It was resting on the shoulders of me and two part-time people."

OK, so it's not the passion of Romeo and Juliet. But it is good business, and ultimately good for spreading an appreciation of Shakespeare through the region.

Shine recently completed her 10th year leading the company that was launched in 1991 as the Seattle Shakespeare Festival, and she has taken an active part as director and actor in many of its productions. Mount is the founder of Wooden O, which he has been steering steadily for 15 years.

	Stephanie Shine and George Mount

Audiences are unlikely to notice any immediate change. Wooden O has embarked on its summer program of outdoor performances in King County parks, carrying forward its premerger plans. (Another unaffiliated company, Greenstage, performs Shakespeare plays in Seattle parks.)

But it will lead to greater opportunities for both. Seattle Shakespeare Company is by far the larger entity, with a current annual budget of more than $900,000. Wooden O operates on about $80,000 per year, largely from grants (its park shows are pass-the-hat affairs), and has become a program within the larger organization. Both companies are debt-free, and Shine expects next year's budget to expand by as much as 30 percent to fuel broader plans.

Despite their shared devotion to Shakespeare, the pair had only peripherally known each other for most of that time, mutually aware of the other's work and crossing paths as actors.

It wasn't until Shine cast Mount in her all-male production of "The Taming of the Shrew" in 2004 that they really connected. In that acclaimed production, Mount played the role of strong-willed Kate, who ferociously resists the courtship of her gold-digging suitor.

"We really got on each other's radars artistically," Shine said of that moment, and Mount's relationship with the company grew. He was featured in subsequent roles, such as Antipholus of Ephesus in "Comedy of Errors," and joined the troupe as its education director.

Things might have stayed that way but for a key matchmaker. It was Jim Tune, the president and CEO of ArtsFund, who noted the natural overlap between the two groups and began nudging them together.

Tune acknowledged his role, which is one result of his initiative to interview and advise all grant applicants.

"There were obvious synergies," he said. "Both groups use the same actors and directors and have a similar philosophy in how to do shows."

While Tune could only suggest, he was quietly persistent. Shine said the idea kept bouncing around the office, usually with the phrase, "You know, Jim Tune thinks we should merge."

Once Shine and Mount began talking about the details, all nervousness vanished. "Suddenly I was talking to George about everything," Shine said. "It's been a very nice benefit to talk to someone else about casting and the shows we should choose."

Mount agrees, noting that in the collaborative world of theater, "it's great to have a couple of artistic heads to bat ideas around."

Mount will expand his role to begin touring shows to other parts of the state. He begins by taking the summer's five-person outdoor edition of "Romeo and Juliet" to Walla Walla for a week.

It's the many things that the companies share that will make the partnership work. With Shakespeare requiring specialized skills, they have increasingly been drawing from the same pool of talent. Shine and Mount also share a common aesthetic, preferring to focus on the text and a direct relationship with an audience.

But Shine notes one difference between the indoor and outdoor productions. "Your audience," she teases Mount, "is eating."