Total Operating Income $ 1,946,118

Net KEEPERS Income » $ 91,816 » KEEPERS Gifts are internally restricted for facility needs & long-term planning

2016 Revenues 70 % Ticket Sales & Handling Fees 12 % Sponsorships 6 % Individual Donations 4 % Big Top Gift Shop 3 % Grants 2 % Touring 1 % Projects , Advertising , Interest , Misc . 1 % Raffle < 1 % Big TAP ChautauquaFest

2016 Expenses 65 % Programming 13 % Office & Organization 6 % Publicity & Marketing 4 % Management / Administration 3 % Development 3 % Tent & Grounds 3 % Big Top Gift Shop 2 % Depreciation 1 % Major Purchases

Did you know ? Mt Ashwabay owns and operates the food & bar concessions . All proceeds benefit the non-profit Ashwabay Outdoor Educational Foundation . Learn more at www . mtashwabay . org

Dear Friends of the Big Top :

The year 2016 came and went with its share of celebrations and challenges . Our 30th Anniversary concert and mosaic of picnics was a fitting start to the new season ; friends and supporters gathered together to celebrate 30 years of “ Culture Under Canvas .” Weather really made an impact on several of our shows this year , most notably the double whammy of two major storms within a week in July where roads to the East and South were completely washed out . People holding tickets at that time literally could not get here unless they were willing to travel at least 2 hours out of their way to go around to the west . One week later a great storm cut the power to all of Northern Bayfield County . It was a nail-biter : would Lyle Lovett be able to reach us , could we get generators here in time , would the show go on ? Well , the shows went on ! However , we did fall short of our ticket sales goals for weather and other unforeseen reasons . Thankfully , our fundraising goals were met and we were able to end the year on solid footing .

The Board of the Big Top stands ready to make plans to secure the next 30 years of Big Top Chautauqua . We are proud to be debt-free heading into our next chapter . We are pleased to have reserved funds from our KEEPERS donations saved for building and facility needs coming up . We are thankful to all of our donors , sponsors , volunteers and KEEPERS for your investment in this community organization . We would not exist without this big family who cares about Big Top and the role it plays in the Northland .

With sincere thanks ,

Therene Gazdik Board Treasurer

4 WWW . BIGTOP . ORG 715 · 373 · 5552 888 · BIG · TENT

Glorious summer nights under canvas & stars