Seattle's Book-It Theatre Will Close After 33 Years
"Closing gracefully at the end of the show is the top priority for the Book-It board as it develops a plan to cease operations after 33 years. The team at Book-It encourages theatre lovers to see the final show and donate to help the organization sunset.
In March of this year, Book-It hired an incredible interim artistic director, Kelly Kitchens, who has deep experience in Book-It's mission of bringing literature to life through theatre. Feeling confident in the artistic vision, the board was fully invested in strategic planning for the company's future and the 2023/24 season, as well as exploring new sustainable business models. But the runway was too short to let Kitchens create the magic that was intended. Sufficient resources were not generated to enable the board to financially commit to a new season. Ticket sales make up just 30% of Book-It's budget, with the remaining costs subsidized by individual giving and grants. With theatregoers still slow to return to live performing arts, ticket revenue down, and individual giving not returning to pre-pandemic levels, forecasting is incredibly challenging. While forecasts for ticket sales and philanthropic funding were made and adjusted, the pandemic has left no margin for error. Not enough of those projections were achieved.."
More here.
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