| Community Steps up to the Plate for Lakeland Theatre Company |
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| Written by Christina Gordon |
| Thursday, 16 February 2012 19:57 |
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At the start of 2012, a decision was made by the Lakeland Theatre Company Board of Directors to cut staff and to be fiscally responsible, so that Lakeland would survive the current economic times. Now less than two months later, the message is one of excitement and rejuvenation. Starting last October, Lakeland Theatre Company in Littleton, NC has been telling everyone who would listen, “Now is the time to pull together and to make sure that Lakeland remains a part of the community. It has been here, supporting arts in the area, for 34 years. If it is going to stay, the community is going to need to step up to help.” Chairman of the Board, Gavin Guttersen reports that not only has the community heard the request for help, but they are acting on it daily. The support started pouring in as a group of 60 volunteers started working on the exterior of the building. Then as the weather turned colder, the efforts moved inside. “Thousands of hours of cleaning, painting, decluttering and general maintenance has been done in the past few months,” Guttersen says. “There are still many projects left to be done but we are seeing more and more help every week.” In January, the Board passed resolutions to maintain a balanced budget that included funds to cover the 2012 operations as well as some basic repairs and debt service. Lakeland reports that four years of double digit losses, left them with a sizable debt service. But as of this date, they a making headway on paying down that debt, for the first time since 2006. “Thanks to the efforts of Bill Hand, ads in our program are at their highest level in history. Memberships sales are strong and for the first time in at least a decade, the season is nearly completely sponsored, and it is only February,” continues Lakeland’s self-proclaimed cheerleader. “The work is far from done. The building is getting older and the repairs have been piling up. We plan to replace the stage curtains next month and paint the inside of the theatre in the late spring. We are working on securing a new roof for the old Littleton School building and have additional renovations planned for the public areas of the theatre. All of this takes money above and beyond the funds set aside for operations," said Guttersen. "We are just taking it one project at a time. So far the community is right there with us. Over ½ of the approximately $11,000 needed for the new curtains has already been raised. It is just so exciting to see so many old friends and new faces joining the efforts. This is largely due to all of the help from our newspaper and radio partners.” Lakeland opens the 2012 season with the Broadway smash hit musical All Shook Up. This event will run for three weekends before being replaced on stage with Harrigan’s Pub, just in time for St. Patrick’s Day. An unfortunate casualty of the radical changes going on at Lakeland was the discontinuation of all of the full time positions at the theatre. As a result, local residents Wally and Maria Hurst found themselves in the ever growing ranks of the unemployed. The Hursts are in the middle of a seven month sabbatical from the theatre as Wally pursues his master’s degree at Brunel University in London. Since learning of the changes, the Hursts have been exploring their options. Some of those options are local and some are as far away as New York, Texas, California and London. Lakeland representatives report that Maria will be directing A Soldier's Look Back, which has open auditions on Mach 11th and 12th. Wally is planning to direct The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) due on the Lakeland stage in June. Beyond that they are not able to made any plans or commitments. Wally says in a letter to the press, “We want to be involved at Lakeland and still love it there, we just don't know how employment opportunities/prospects are going to work out at this point.” Board Chairman Guttersen stated, “I want to be very clear here. The theatre moved to a volunteer model that is used in most small theatres around the country. We have been very fortunate that we were able to solicit, employ and keep talented theatre veterans for fifteen years. Now the reality is that we no longer have that ability. In a time when many theatres are closing, Lakeland had the ability to adjust their operating model to remain viable. We appreciate all the Hurst’s have done for Lakeland and our community. We love them and wish them the highest level of success. If their path allows them to stay in the area, we certainly want them involved with Lakeland at whatever level they are able. If not, we will just have to make theatre trips to go visit them, as we are sure they will be involved with a great theatre program, wherever they are.”
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