California Community Theatre - 1 Year Mark Coronavirus (COVID-19) Impact
This is a follow-up survey (conducted in Spring 2021) to the March 16, 2020 original.
The first California Community Theatre (CACT) Preliminary Coronavirus (COVID-19) Impact survey was sent out in the first half of March 2020, when recommendations began to require the reduction or ceasing of gatherings of 50 more people in order to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Since the time the survey was originally distributed, vast and rapid regulations and guidance have further impacted the operations and productions of many California community theatres. It was important to allow theatres to 're-connect' via a second survey at a six-month point of the pandemic to document what, how and why organizations were proceeding in their respective directions. Please note that responses here are as of April 6, 2021.
In the past 1 year, has your theatre postponed a production, event or program due to COVID- 19?
"...Lasting a year was easy, lasting the next 9 months will be very difficult. As far as having the facility sanitized and ready for opening, that is simple "stuff"."
In the past 1 year, has your theatre cancelled a production, event, or program due to COVID-19?
In the past 1 year, if you have had to postpone or cancel a production, event or program due to COVID- 19, have you been in contact with relevant licensing companies to discuss royalty impact?
"We are working on maintenance, repair and reorganizing of our scene shop, costume, props and inventory and maintenance, cleaning and rewiring of our lighting system. All with volunteer hours and donations of time and material from the community."
In the past 1 year, if you have had to cancel a production, event or program due to COVID- 19, how have you handled ticketing? Please check all that apply.
Offering Refunds
87.5%
Offering exchanges
50%
Offering patrons to donate purchased tickets
62.5%
"We do not sell ticket packages and so no refunds were needed. We do have memberships and have collected basically zilch."
"Not many tickets had been purchased."
In the past 1 year, has your theatre ceased volunteer activities due to COVID-19?
If you answered yes to the above question about volunteers, please describe what restrictions you have made:
We offer classes only and have strict Covid guidelines in doing so. We have stopped all volunteer activities as they are mainly show related.
Well, since we ceased we haven't had to impose restrictions.
As live productions ceased, we have not needed many volunteers. They have been used for the production of streamed performances.
We cancelled all workshops, our annual awards and our gala fundraiser.
No shows..No volunteers.
In the past 1 year, has your theatre limited or closed office hours or activities due to COVD- 19?
In the past 1 year, has your theatre limited or closed box office hours or activities due to COVID-19?
In the last 1 year (since March 2020), if you have cancelled or postponed productions and also if you have paid staff, how are you managing time and tasks with the unknown timeline of resuming productions? In other words, what are you focusing on without a production in session?
Virtual shows and remodels.
We are focussed on fundraising and running classes through our school of performing arts both online and in person.
All staff were laid off immediately. One staff person eventually came back and is handling building and managerial duties.
We have been creating small covid-safe streamed plays in a green screen studio and streamed them for free to our patrons, requesting optional donations.
We have done an online production and a small outdoor production in Oct. (These were replacements to productions in our original season.) They made only a small amount of money which we used to pay for insurance, storage and other ongoing expenses so we could survive through this. We sell tickets through a third party and don't have an office.
We have been very busy rewriting our bylaws, policies and procedures and searching for a new rehearsal space, but we ultimately will not move out of that space. The storage space was reorganized and the facilities manager is working on repaint and other small detail work at (our home theatre).
Maintenance.
We are working on maintenance, repair and reorganizing of our scene shop, costume, props and inventory and maintenance, cleaning and rewiring of our lighting system. All with volunteer hours and donations of time and material from the community.
"We are a young theatre and we only just beginning to grow a base of people who wanted to be a part of it and/or attend productions. Hoping we won't lose what we had grown."
What is your current main concern for your theatre related to COVID- 19?
How and when we will reopen.
Audience size, restrictions for audiences (bar/concessions, cast participation, testing, checking for vaccine proof
When we will be able to resume and what onerous restrictions will be in place.
Financial.
We are a young theatre and we only just beginning to grow a base of people who wanted to be a part of it and/or attend productions. Hoping we won't lose what we had grown.
By far- Lack of income. Lasting a year was easy, lasting the next 9 months will be very difficult. As far as having the facility sanitized and ready for opening, that is simple "stuff".
Being able to resume operations.
We are a small 100-seat house and wonder if it will be financially viable to mount a production with a 25% capacity audience and all other COVID measures we will have to employ.
"There has been an opportunity for people to rest and recharge but that has (to a degree) been counter balanced by some stress about how we are going to survive."
In the past 1 year, if you have cancelled or postponed productions, is there any positive point or outcome of this ceasing of productions?
Lots of work repairing and remodeling.
Nothing positive from cancelling although most patrons donated their ticket value.
We have grown our skills in green screens, filming, editing and streaming plays while Covid compliant.
There has been an opportunity for people to rest and recharge but that has (to a degree) been counter balanced by some stress about how we are going to survive.
The opportunity to rewrite bylaws, and address policies etc.
Nothing positive.
Not really other than the incredible generosity of our season ticket patrons stepping up to support us with donating their canceled 2020 season tickets back to us.
One year later, does this experience of addressing COVID-19 help motivate you to create procedures or plans for future emergencies?
Last Thoughts...
It is a miracle we are still alive. Fundraising and grants have kept us going plus reinventing ourselves with classes for students grades K-12.
I fear that large crowds in theaters will be years away...
Hoping to have live performance begin in Sept/Oct.
It's been rough ... but not as rough as we had thought it might be.
For us the financial impact is starting to have a big impact. Fundraising ideas that we dragged our feet on on now being put into real action.
Concerned about re-motivating our Volunteer and patron base.
"Having survived the devastation of the Camp Fire in November 2018 and losing 60% of our audience base, we were just beginning to get our bearings and getting back to "normal" when the pandemic hit. This was a double whammy for us, but we are survivors and we will get through this challenge, too. In 2020, Theatre on the Ridge celebrated its 45th anniversary and the ghost light still burns for our return."
