New Jersey Stage - September 2014 | Page 116

Harriett Trangucci in The Other Place Some of the worst memories? There were also a lot of moments when I was ready to throw in the towel, when it seemed impossible that we could go on. I have to say it was the strength of the individuals in the group, and I would include our board, staff and families in that group, that kept us going and allowed us to find a way to continue. I can’t believe it’s been 20 years, mostly because I’ve often been frustrated and exhausted but never, never bored. What are some of the challenges the theatre still faces each year? No surprise – money. Over the past several years, corporate and foundation funding has dropped. New Jersey Stage Laura Ekstrand, Jessica O’Hara-Baker, Rachael Lee in Shakespeare In Vegas Categories have gotten narrower and there just isn’t a lot of money out there. So we’re thinking more like a for-profit in that we need to earn more of our money the oldfashioned way. We’ve increased our audience, which really helps, and we’ve also added educational and outreach programming so we can take our work out into the community. That way we don’t have to wait for the people to come to us – we go to them! The 2011-2012 season was the first for Dreamcatcher to be able to present 3 MainStage productions. How did it feel to reach that level? September 2014 pg 116