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Playhouse battles through financial squeeze
Ticket sales need to catch up with an improved product, says the board chief.
YOUNGSTOWN — Dave Wolfe, treasurer of the Youngstown Playhouse, painted a grim financial picture for the community theater.
“We’re paying for the current season’s expenses with next season’s ticket sales,” he said.
The Playhouse has a shortfall of about $3,000, and also owes more than $1,000 to musicians.
At Monday’s annual meeting of the Playhouse Board of Directors, Ed DeAngelo, a professional trumpet player, said he and five other musicians are owed a total of $1,100 for their orchestra work on “Titanic: The Musical” in May.
Playhouse Executive Director John Holt said the failure to pay the musicians was the result of a misunderstanding with Music Director Michael Moritz, and told The Vindicator they would be paid.
The building is also in need of a new roof, has a problem with water in the basement, and is also saddled with $26,000 in inherited debt.
The Playhouse was teetering on bankruptcy just five years ago. With a new board installed and tighter financial management, it was able to shed most of its debt, although some still remains.
Despite its bleak financial situation, both Holt and Rand Becker, president of the board, were upbeat. Both said the quality of performance has vastly improved and ticket sales need to catch up.
In an economic downturn, theaters are struggling as consumers slash their entertainment budget. “I talk to my peers in community theaters across the country, and all are facing the same trouble,” said Holt.
The key to turning it around is “time and consistency,” he said. “There are folks who want to give, but just want to make sure we’re not a one-hit wonder. The bottom line is, we can deliver the product. We have the ability to work through this.”
Becker echoed that sentiment.
“We have an upbeat feeling,” he said. “No one is throwing in the towel. We just have to make a commitment to marketing this place.”
The 2008-09 season did have its bright spots. Ticket sales totaled 19,402 for the seven main stage productions, a small improvement over the previous season, said Becker. Ticket sales accounted for 21 percent of the Playhouse’s revenue, he said.
“We need to get on our season ticket sales,” said Becker.
The board has also has taken steps to create an endowment fund that will be used for maintaining the building, he said.
Becker said landscaping and signage is high on the theater’s wish list. The building is in a depressed neighborhood and the exterior needs to be spruced up to improve its perception among people who have only seen it from the outside, he said.