Bemidji Group Theater seeks money to offset renovation charges

The local community theater has experienced no income from the performs they would ordinarily have held this 12 months, and thus have experienced no income due to the fact their generation of “Murder Ahoy” in February.

“This 12 months has been a complicated calendar year for all of us,” BCT reported in a launch. “We have been in the last week of rehearsal for our kid’s musical, ‘Treasure Island,’ and were being established to open March 20. With a forged of 30 (most of them youngsters), there was exhilaration in the air. Then arrived COVID and the lockdown. Soon after all the work and expenditure of the musical, we had to terminate all performances. The little ones were incredibly dissatisfied. As the lockdown continued, we had to terminate our Might production of ‘Trip to Bountiful,’ our summertime theater camp (set for the first two months in June), and the late summer months quick participate in for kids.”

BCT was started off in December 1981 by a team of friends who recorded “A Christmas Carol” to be broadcast around the radio. Due to the fact then, plays have been executed in different areas all over Bemidji, escalating from 1 clearly show a year to their pre-coronavirus lineup of five demonstrates each yr, the release reported.

The organization bought its initially-at any time house in September 2018, the former home of Reserve Planet, in downtown Bemidji. They have because been renovating the retail house, producing storage places, dressing rooms, a make-up space, stitching area, surroundings shop and functionality place.

“Our previous rental phase is no extended viable, so it is imperative that our property has a performance space by the time we are allowed to open up,” the launch claimed. “There are a multitude of city rules that must be met to be equipped to have an audience: a handicap accessible restroom, a handicap available dressing room, sprinkler method, numerous escape routes from all floors, and so on.”
However, the business are unable to hold any fundraising gatherings because of to COVID-19 restrictions, in get to offset the renovation fees. Previously in the summer season, they held an on-line silent auction, which earned $2,468. Having said that, renovations are a fantastic offer extra than that volume, the launch said.

A GoFundMe was created in August to support elevate some added resources, but their aim of $25,000 is nonetheless far from remaining achieved. The GoFundMe can be located at https://gf.me/u/yp3zna.

“Any assistance you could give our non-gain group would be considerably appreciated,” the launch said. “Hope you see you ‘on the boards’ quickly!”