Comstock's magazine 0620 - June June 2020 | Seite 43

“We entertain, engage and challenge,”
Stevenson says. “Staying socially relevant
and politically relevant and trying
to deal with present-day issues.”
The Mondavi has curated a series
of virtual concerts it is sharing on dates
canceled shows were scheduled to occur.
While B Street was able to secure
a Small Business Administration
Payroll Protection Loan that covers
expenses for eight weeks, Broadway
Sacramento has had to cut staff. The
company let go or furloughed 13 of
its full-time staff and all 15 part-time
employees. The suspension of the
Broadway Music Circus season means
no work for the hundreds of people
usually employed there, including
actors, designers, musicians, stagehands,
concessions workers and box
office staff. “None of these decisions
were based on the performances of
these outstanding people and employees,”
Lewis says. “They were made
in consideration of the present state
of the company and the forecasted
months ahead.”
The SAFE Credit Union Performing
Arts Center is scheduled to open in
December with a Broadway Sacramento
touring show. There’s hope
the refurbished space, along with its
updated sister Memorial Auditorium,
will add to the optimism surrounding
the region’s performing arts, because
they offer larger options for presenting
groups. It’s also expected that
transitioning its ticketing to Ticketmaster,
used by outside companies
such as LiveNation and the Nederlander
Organization, will make it a
better fit for national producers.
But nothing can be for certain
anymore. “We’re wired to be social
and exchange information and ideas,
emotions,” says Stevenson of Capital
Stage. “When you remove that, it’s
really a gigantic change in life. Our
art form, ballet, music, art, they just
depend on a live audience. It’s a critical,
critical part. Here’s hoping things
turn around pretty soon.”
Marcus Crowder is a Northern California
arts writer. For 17 years, he was the
theater critic at The Sacramento Bee.
His work has appeared in Alta, American
Theatre, Diablo magazine, San
Francisco Chronicle and 7x7. On Twitter
@marcuscrowder.
MORE ONLINE
Many artists and art businesses
around the Capital Region have
taken to streaming services
to continue sharing their work
while performance venues and
galleries are closed.
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