Romeo and Juliet Update
Updates: Romeo & Juliet and 2017 Spring Concert
Report to the Cantus Board of Directors from Karl Reichert – 6/13/16
Romeo & Juliet
After reviewing all documents, a preliminary budget and then consulting with our Singers, Staff and collaborative partners, we have all agreed that it’s best to move Romeo & Juliet (R and J) to Spring 2018.
Artistically, R and J could be ready for Spring 2017, however, during a time of transition and very tight finances, it’s prudent for us to give this project one more year.
Guthrie Theatre General Manager Hillary Hart has assured both Wendy and me that the production can be moved to 2018, and she is consulting with Artistic Director Joseph Haj and others at the Guthrie to find dates for 2018.
Libby Larsen (our composer) has suggested that we consider engaging Trish Santini (and her partner Frank Butler of Mainspring Arts Cooperative) as a producer to manage the complexities of this project. Director Bill McCallum endorses this idea. I spoke with Trish on Thursday last week, and she is very willing to do all she can to bring R and J to fruition.
Trish has been involved with R and J from the very beginning … when she was the Guthrie’s Director of External Relations. She knows how to navigate the complexities of a project like this, including: working with the unions at the Guthrie, budgeting, contracts, preparing the show for touring, etc.
In the next few weeks we have to determine what we need to include in our budget for the new fiscal year re. R and J. We don’t want to lose momentum. On the upside, we can use the coming year to cultivate grants and sponsorships to support this exciting artistic initiative. By moving R and J, we now have a few open weeks that were dedicated to rehearsals for this production. We will look into options for how best we can use these weeks to generate much needed earned revenue.
America Will Be!
The Singers have moved quickly to create an excellent new program – America Will Be! – for Spring 2017 (details follow). We owe special thanks to Jeff Bina for lining up the venues with a very tight timeline and to Carly Thornberry for moving forward quickly to launch 2017-18 season ticket sales this week.
Chris Foss will speak to this in more detail tonight. Here is the information Carly passed on to me on Friday:
Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness haven’t always meant the same thing for all. How does an entire country change? How are rights and freedoms earned? In America Will Be!, Cantus explores the sacrifices of some of our nation’s greatest heroes at home: men and women fighting for the evident truth that all are equal. Featuring timeless spirituals like Harry T. Burleigh’s Deep River and This Ol’ Hammer by John W. Work, as well as new voices in American music, America Will Be! looks toward the potential of the American promise.
Report to the Cantus Board of Directors from Karl Reichert – 6/13/16
Romeo & Juliet
After reviewing all documents, a preliminary budget and then consulting with our Singers, Staff and collaborative partners, we have all agreed that it’s best to move Romeo & Juliet (R and J) to Spring 2018.
Artistically, R and J could be ready for Spring 2017, however, during a time of transition and very tight finances, it’s prudent for us to give this project one more year.
Guthrie Theatre General Manager Hillary Hart has assured both Wendy and me that the production can be moved to 2018, and she is consulting with Artistic Director Joseph Haj and others at the Guthrie to find dates for 2018.
Libby Larsen (our composer) has suggested that we consider engaging Trish Santini (and her partner Frank Butler of Mainspring Arts Cooperative) as a producer to manage the complexities of this project. Director Bill McCallum endorses this idea. I spoke with Trish on Thursday last week, and she is very willing to do all she can to bring R and J to fruition.
Trish has been involved with R and J from the very beginning … when she was the Guthrie’s Director of External Relations. She knows how to navigate the complexities of a project like this, including: working with the unions at the Guthrie, budgeting, contracts, preparing the show for touring, etc.
In the next few weeks we have to determine what we need to include in our budget for the new fiscal year re. R and J. We don’t want to lose momentum. On the upside, we can use the coming year to cultivate grants and sponsorships to support this exciting artistic initiative. By moving R and J, we now have a few open weeks that were dedicated to rehearsals for this production. We will look into options for how best we can use these weeks to generate much needed earned revenue.
America Will Be!
The Singers have moved quickly to create an excellent new program – America Will Be! – for Spring 2017 (details follow). We owe special thanks to Jeff Bina for lining up the venues with a very tight timeline and to Carly Thornberry for moving forward quickly to launch 2017-18 season ticket sales this week.
Chris Foss will speak to this in more detail tonight. Here is the information Carly passed on to me on Friday:
Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness haven’t always meant the same thing for all. How does an entire country change? How are rights and freedoms earned? In America Will Be!, Cantus explores the sacrifices of some of our nation’s greatest heroes at home: men and women fighting for the evident truth that all are equal. Featuring timeless spirituals like Harry T. Burleigh’s Deep River and This Ol’ Hammer by John W. Work, as well as new voices in American music, America Will Be! looks toward the potential of the American promise.
