More trouble for arts groups. Theater company may fold without sudden influx of money

Actor’s Theatre of Charlotte has emailed an urgent plea to supporters for donations, saying that the troupe “may not be able to continue without immediate financial assistance.”

The 31-year-old non-profit needs $150,000 to $200,000 by April or it will have to fold, executive director Chip Decker told the Observer Thursday.

It’s the latest blow to Charlotte’s arts and culture community. Earlier this week, Opera Carolina laid off its executive director in the midst of budget problems.

“There’s always talk when you’re in financial straits of ‘let’s keep it quiet and not talk about it,’ and it seems like every time that happens the company folds, and everybody goes, ‘why didn’t you say anything?’ ” Decker said. “Well, we’re saying something.

“We did not want to try and hang on, go into the red by several hundred thousand dollars, and then stiff people that have trusted us over the years,” he said. “I’ve seen that happen too many times and it leaves a bad taste in people’s mouths for other theater or other arts organizations.

“If we do go out, we’re going to go out gracefully and with everybody’s support and knowledge.”

Problems for arts groups intensified last November after county voters rejected a referendum to increase the local sales tax to benefits arts, parks and other groups. Had it passed, the quarter-cent increase in the tax would have meant an annual influx of $22.5 million for arts groups.

Arts leaders warned that big cuts across the arts and culture sector were likely if the referendum failed.

That message came closer to reality last month when the Arts and Science Council, said it needed to raise $5 million by June to avoid cutting in half the operating grant money it gives to 33 arts organizations.

The ASC is a pass-through agency which helps fund local arts and culture groups, and its grants make up an average of 10% of the budget for the groups it funds.

The Actor’s Theater received $45,000 in operating support from ASC for the 2020 fiscal year, which Actor’s Theatre general manager Laura Rice said makes up about 5% of the organization’s budget.

The $22,500 the theater stands to lose in ASC money isn’t the main reason for the financial woes, but “it’s another thing to add to the problem,” Rice said.

Future shows

Actor’s Theatre had sent an email blast Wednesday to its 15,000 subscribers, single-ticket buyers and others with its dire funding message, stating, “We are at a critical point.”

The group isn’t running a deficit and has paid all of its bills, Decker and Rice said. But its reserves have been exhausted, making it impossible to plan and create new shows, they said.

There also is a chance that Actor’s Theatre won’t be able to put on its final shows of the season, which are scheduled for April and June.

Decker and Rice said the company’s move in 2016 out of its longtime location on Stonewall Street, and the 16 months of having roving locations for their productions that followed, caused attendance and financial support to drop.

Now, they’re hopeful that their permanent location on the campus of Queens University of Charlotte will lead to more stable footing and that a one-time infusion of up to $200,000 will get them back on track.

Actor’s Theatre employs six full-time workers, most of whom hold multiple roles in the organization, Decker said.

Its artists and behind-the-scenes technicians also work in other local theater companies, such as Children’s Theatre of Charlotte, Decker said.

“If we go away, it not only leaves a void for where we are, it will create a void down the road because these other companies will continue to struggle,” he said. “It seems like one little company with six employees. But the impact we have on this city is just immense.”

Staff writer Adam Bell contributed

This story was originally published February 6, 2020 at 12:10 PM.