Theater Pocket book: S.D. Theatre Month debuts at essential time for theaters, dance and live performance organizations
Many issues have modified in San Diego since March 17, 2020 — the day stay-at-home orders had been introduced as the results of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Within the practically three years since then, many issues about how San Diegans stay, work, eat and play have modified, in some circumstances completely. Consequently, arts ticket gross sales are down industrywide and theater corporations are producing shorter seasons as they regulate to lowered demand.
However the San Diego Performing Arts League hopes to reset some outdated habits with the return of its annual discounted-ticket promotion subsequent month.
Beforehand referred to as San Diego Theatre Week, the occasion has expanded this 12 months to turn into San Diego Theatre Month, and practically 40 reveals are featured in this system, which is an all-time excessive. Amongst this 12 months’s members are San Diego Opera, the San Diego Symphony, two ballet corporations, some choruses and nearly each theater firm in San Diego.
The San Diego Performing Arts League’s ArtsTix ticket workplace in Horton Plaza and on-line is providing tickets from March 1-31 priced at $15, $30 and $45. Some tickets supplied throughout Theatre Month can be for performances going down in April. To search out out what’s obtainable, go to sandiegotheatremonth.com.
Lamb’s Gamers Theatre’s “R-E-S-P-E-C-T” musical revue will provide reduced-price tickets throughout San Diego Theatre Month.
(Courtesy of Lamb’s Gamers Theatre)
Tickets obtainable on the $15 degree in March embrace San Diego Ballet’s “Viva Vivaldi”; OnStage Playhouse’s “Slowgirl”; and Loud Fridge Theatre Group and Scripps Ranch Theatre’s co-production of “Neat,” amongst others. Tickets priced at $30 embrace Moxie Theatre’s “Birds of North America”; Oceanside Theatre Firm’s “Fortunate Stiff”; CCAE Theatricals’ “Sunday within the Park With George”; and The Previous Globe’s “The XiXth (The Nineteenth).” And $45 tickets can be found for La Jolla Playhouse’s “The Outsiders”; Lamb’s Gamers Theatre’s “R-E-S-P-E-C-T”; San Diego Musical Theatre’s “Something Goes”; and the worldwide touring manufacturing of “Riverdance,” amongst many others.
Jay Henslee, board president for the Performing Arts League, talked about this system in an interview earlier this month.
Q: Why do you assume you have got such excessive participation in this system this 12 months?
A: We began this program eight years in the past as Theatre Week and it ran for 10 days. We all the time had an important lineup, nevertheless it restricted the variety of reveals individuals had entry to and prevented some theaters and humanities corporations from taking part. Extending this system to a whole month has enabled extra organizations to take part and consists of practically 40 reveals encompassing music, dance and theater.
Q: What number of tickets did you promote throughout Theatre Week within the years earlier than the pandemic?
A: Sometimes, we promote about 2,000 tickets, however final 12 months we offered barely extra and had over 10,000 guests to the web site. We hope to greater than double our ticket gross sales now that we have now prolonged this system to a whole month.
Q: Do you have got plenty of new members this 12 months?
A: We do. It’s thrilling to see a lot curiosity from the humanities organizations. Now we have returning corporations like The Previous Globe, Broadway San Diego, North Coast Repertory and others. This 12 months, we have now new additions from the San Diego Symphony, Metropolis Ballet, Yard Renaissance, Star Theatre and a number of other others. It’s unimaginable to see the variety of choices this 12 months.
Q: Arts organizations are nonetheless recovering from the pandemic. How necessary is that this Theatre Month promotion for them in promoting tickets and discovering new audiences?
A: It is a very essential time for arts organizations, as state and federal pandemic reduction is ending and viewers growth is so necessary. Theatre Month options performances for each price range at $15, $30 and $45. It is a nice alternative to see two to a few reveals for the worth you may pay for one.
Kragen writes about theater for the San Diego Union-Tribune. Electronic mail her at [email protected].
