A New Year.. (school year that is)!
Half way through July 2014 and I will be honest, my thoughts are filled with the possibilities of the up coming school year and the summer to follow. I sit in a unique position as a high school drama teacher. Every year brings new students, new productions, and as a result, new challenges and rewards.
This coming school year I have secured the rights to Big Fish the musical and I have to say I am so excited. Last year my life was consumed by producing Mary Poppins the musical. Not only was it a pilot version for Disney, but it was the first time in the northwest it was being produced. It was an honor and quite frankly a miracle I survived. With the help of some incredible friends and family we were able to fundraise for Mary to fly across the stage, and STILL be able to make record box office sales. Big Fish, also a northwest premiere, holds just as much, if not more potential, I can hardly wait to get started on it. I have some amazing plans in store for the production and I think it will be a huge success! Eagle High School has agreed to partner on the production with me which makes me so happy. I want those students to have the opportunity to participate in a musical, and Big Fish provides just that. I'm crossing my fingers for more sell out shows! :-)
Additionally, I have been presented a unique opportunity outside my teaching career, to purchase a community theatre that started my life in Boise. Starlight Mountain Theatre, after 15 years is looking at closing it's doors. Ed Davis, a close friend whom I consider family is so many ways, has decided to move on to other projects. As a result I have the opportunity to take the theatre over and move this outdoor venue into the next decade of success. The only problem, I am a teacher.... we all know how little money teachers make and I certainly am not in a position to purchase land ($300K) and a business ($50K). Thankfully there is some great crowd funding opportunities out there that I'm praying will help fill in the gaps. Musical Theatre has played such an important role in my life, I can not imagine Idaho losing another theatre that brings those opportunities to it's youth.
Today I start the process of creating a Kickstarter program in hopes of securing the funding needed to continue Starlight. There is a LOT of preparation work I need to complete before I can make it active, including creating a video, but I am hopeful that the Treasure Valley will step up once again and help keep this theatre alive. I will be asking for $150K in support ($50K for the business, $50K for a deposit on the land, and $50K for royalties and start up costs of next season). This amount though hefty, is the minimum that will be needed to get the ball rolling. I'm hesitant asking for so much from the community, but I believe so strongly in the mission of Starlight, and know that I will work so incredibly hard to take it to the next level, that I feel if people are willing to believe in me, they will see the benefits of their investment.
Stay tuned for more information on my progress! I'll be posting my ideas, budget projections, and a bunch of other information. I want my organization to be as transparent as possible so everyone know exactly where the money is going in hopes that they will be more inclined to support the organization fiscally during this initial change over.
Until next time- keep smiling!
