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On October 11th we closed the final production of our 6-week professional 2020 summer/fall season. And while it wasn't the season we set out to do more than a year ago, we are very proud to have brought you three excellent productions and to do so with the safety of our staff and patrons as our highest priority. We managed to do that while also maintaining our high artistic standards. Several of you commented that one or more of these productions were among the best we have ever produced. Many of you marveled at the transformation of our outdoor amphitheatre and encouraged us to continue to use it into the future (and, yes, we absolutely hope to!). The pandemic handed us lemons and we made some pretty great lemonade.
The season was not without its challenges. Social distancing requirements and additional costs related to COVID-19 meant that without significant financial assistance from programs like the PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) and other CARES Act opportunities we could not have managed even this short season.
In looking at the rest of the fall, a time when we normally focus on our community theatre and education department, we have come to the sad conclusion that all remaining planned productions for 2020 will be cancelled. Unlike our professional company which we were mostly able to quarantine in small "family" units and keep quite isolated, our community theatre and education department productions are made up of volunteers and students from the Lakes Region and beyond. We cannot fathom a safe way of bringing in many people from different households who have exposures to many different work and school environments at the present time. We are working on plans for online educational programming for all ages, the details of which we plan to announce shortly. We are also looking into the possibility of producing one or more small, professional performances for the holiday season but with COVID cases trending upwards again, we are holding off on a final decision until later in the year. If you have remaining pass tickets or tickets to now-cancelled productions, please click here for instructions. At this time of year we are normally also finalizing plans for the next calendar year. With so much up in the air we're anticipating having to have plans A, B, C, and D through P in place. No small feat but we're up for the challenge! We thank you for your understanding and support and wish you the best from our beautiful campus in fall! |
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--Neil, Lesley, Tim, Thom,
Donna, and Kate The Winnipesaukee Playhouse |
We are very grateful for the continued support of our generous sponsors and advertisers. Click here to see a full list of the businesses who support theatre and arts education in the Lakes Region.
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