Something almost everyone asks me is some variation of, “How’s the theatre doing during all this?” Despite the frequency of the question I still always pause before answering. What do they want to hear? Is this the new “how’s it going?” question that we should just automatically respond to with, “Fine, and you?” Hopefully they ask because they actually care and genuinely want to know. But do they really want to know how it’s going - the good, the bad, and the ugly of it all?

That doesn’t mean we stopped finding ways to connect with the community. Our “Hold Please” initiative brought videos of past and new shows, podcast interviews with CP people from around the country, online social events like the Friday Film Club, and there was even a pop-up community mural on the side of our building. This was combined with ramped up social media and other things that kept us in people’s minds during what was supposed to be just a couple of weeks, maybe a month’s pause in our work. I’m very proud of the efforts of the CP staff and the Board of Directors during this time.

The overriding cloud hanging over all our recent efforts, however, has been making sure CP is still here when the pandemic is over. Remember it’s called “show business” and like most small businesses CP has been greatly impacted by the pandemic. In these five months we should have had four productions including some we had planned to be the financial “bread and butter” of our fiscal year. In fact we will have missed out on over 22% of our annual income by the end of July.

Fortunately we have had several breaks in the clouds. We received Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds which enabled us to keep the staff fully employed up to this point. Funding came from the National Endowment for the Arts thanks to a grant from the Nebraska Arts Council. We also received an Economic Injury Disaster Loan from the Small Business Administration which is helping to make up for some of the lost income (that loan does have to eventually be repaid).

The most meaningful rays of light have come from the community and people like you. When the pandemic hit we saw a surge in donations, this was followed by many of you renewing and/or upgrading your season ticket or First Nighter memberships for the 2020-2021 Season. That not only gave us a funding boost, but showed how much you care about the future of the theatre.

Effectively running an organization like CP involves a lot of advanced planning – sometimes as much as a year and a half of planning before the general public sees a show or new bit of programming. That’s been one of the biggest struggles for me personally – the uncertainty about when we can do things. We’re currently working on version seven of our return to in person programming. This is the longest stretch of time that I have personally gone without working on a show since I was in high school (which is more than a couple of years ago).

Virtual programming like Zoom classes and play readings are fine and can be a fun creative alternative, as is watching a recording of a certain mega-hit musical at home on your TV. You and I both know nothing is the same as experiencing those things in the same room where it happens, though.

So how is the theatre doing during all this? The theatre building is doing fine, there’s a new roof (!), lots of things have been cleaned and organized, and there are literally gallons of hand sanitizer at the ready along with safety plans and procedures. The soul of the theatre is not doing as well. It longs to be creative and active again sharing moments of discovery, beautiful music, roars of laughter, and in-person community connections. We will get there again together with your continued support.

Hope to see you again soon!

Jamie Ulmer

Managing Artistic Director