Thank you for your support and attendance this past year. Many of you have enjoyed our current hit show, Incident at Vichy, as well as the critically acclaimed shows Red, The American Clock, Good People, and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Just last week, we received an unsolicited comment from an audience member who said that Incident at Vichy "was an experience of a lifetime." Know that we are committed to continue producing intimate shows with stories that stay with you long after you leave the theatre.
We are often asked about how we manage with so few seats. Frankly, ticket sales alone cannot sustain us. We rely on foundation support as well as individual donations for general operations. It continues to be a challenge to manage a full season of shows, host and mentor guest theatre companies, rehearse, build sets, and conduct business in our tiny space. If we just had a little more room...
OPPORTUNITY IS KNOCKING (and it's right next door)
You might have noticed the vacant space next door...and next door to that. So we put our thinking caps on. Hmmm, there is no true storefront theatre multiplex anywhere in the city. And Redtwist's performance space could use a little breathing room.
A Redtwist Theatre Arts Center would be a really cool thing on Bryn Mawr Avenue. It would be perfect for what we've already been doing...
- producing great plays as part of our regular Redtwist season
- collaborating with exciting young companies to produce their plays
- creating an artistic home for many fine theatre artists
- serving the vibrant Edgewater community
Plus we can do so much more--hold classes, rent rehearsal space, host more events--the opportunities are endless.
So we're going to try to do something about this vacant space--right next door. Can you help? We need...
- an architect or creative space planner to design the space for the main floor and the basement.
- an added arts management staff member to administer the project and space
- a broader fundraising campaign to launch the project
- ideas, donations (monetary and in-kind), volunteers (administrative, construction, electrical, and computer networking assistance)
Our initial fundraising goal was $60,000 before the end of 2015 so we could commit to the space. So far we've managed to raise several thousand dollars and have extended the timeline into the early part 2016. We're temporarily using the space at a deep discount for dressing rooms for our large cast for
Incident at Vichy and for rehearsals. We don't know if this will all come together before another business rents the space at full market value, but we have to try--because opportunity is indeed knocking.
We'd be thrilled if you want to help. Thank you and Happy New Year!
