Styx Helps

[sadie65]

I found this article, and while I am sincerely glad the venue was pleased by Styx' help with their plight, I was saddened to read that they "nearly sold out" a 1200 seat venue. Again, I think it's great that they came to the rescue, but that line in the article got me.

Read on and enjoy:

http://www.jconline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/a ... 336/-1/rss

Long Center recovers by pulling back, reaching out

A cultural quandary -- Part 2 of 2

By Tim Brouk
tbrouk@journalandcourier.com

In 2003, Long Center for the Performing Arts was $300,000 in debt.

Renovations and lackluster attendance had taken a toll on the historic downtown theater.

Today, Long Center is still in debt. But the bloated figure of $300,000 has been reduced, and with the help of a fundraising campaign, improved attendance and continued use from other arts groups or private events, the theater could be where it hasn't been in years -- in the black.

"We're doing better," said Dick Jaeger, Long Center board president, "and we're doing a lot of marketing, which seems to be bringing a lot of activity."

That activity has meant more events held at Long Center -- both public events, such as concerts and plays, and private events, such as weddings, seminars and receptions. Users pay Long Center Inc. a rental fee.

Traditionally, Long Center has booked its own events, but the mounting deficit forced the cancellation of its 2004-05 season, save the annual Heywood Banks appearance. The standup comic and musician is slated to perform Jan. 14.

Long Center did pick up its own shows this fall. The All-American Boys Choir, the Harry Potter Film Festival and an Arni's tribute concert were "not enthusiastically received," said Shannon Sabel.

However, overall attendance for 2005 was boosted by an appearance by rock band Styx. The November concert nearly sold out the 1,200-seat venue.

"Getting Styx in here was a big thing. For us, it was quite a success," Sabel said. "We got a lot of good feedback from people about it. Hopefully, we'll continue to get those kind of acts, which attract different crowds."

In July 2003, a Long Center-booked concert called Legends, which had musicians paying tribute to rock pioneers, such as Buddy Holly and the Beatles, drew fewer than 300 people. But for an October 2005 independently booked appearance from Beatles tribute act 1964, about 700 people were in attendance, a very successful show, according to Sabel.

The higher traffic is impressive due to the absence of two major arts organizations, Civic Theatre of Greater Lafayette and Purdue Convocations, which are sitting out the 2005-06 season at the Long Center.

Civic Theatre booked two plays for the 2004-05 season. High production costs and royalties, combined with lower-than-expected attendance, caused Civic Theatre to lose thousands of dollars on the shows. Civic might return to Long Center in 2006-07, said Susan Kisinger, Civic executive director.

Convocations has booked as many as four shows a season at Long Center but none this season.

Convos director Todd Wetzel said the reason was simply due to scheduling. He tried to get Lee Greenwood's Dec. 4 Loeb Playhouse concert at Long Center, but it was already booked. Wetzel and his staff consider Long Center with its usual Purdue University venues before deciding where a show will be held.

Factors include stage size, seating capacity, technical issues, load-in capabilities and the overall aesthetic match that the artist, audience and venue will have. Long Center seats 1,200; Loeb Playhouse seats 1,000; Elliott Hall of Music has 6,000 seats.

Convos rents venues for all of its nearly 30 shows a season. Wetzel said Long Center's rates are on par with Purdue's.

One key new center tenant is The Bach Chorale Singers. The choir, more than 70 men and women strong, performed twice at Long Center this fall and is contracted for the rest of its season through May.

The Bach Chorale showed its dedication to the historic theater by landing a $29,000 grant for new, detachable seats for the first five rows. The seats will quickly create an orchestra pit for the choir, allowing members to stand at the edge of the stage and take advantage of the venue's acoustics. Bach Chorale executive director Barbara Bennett said Long Center has been a comfortable home for the choir.

"You can stand or sit anywhere on the main floor or balcony. The acoustics are wonderful, as is the balance," she said.

Long Center's capacity is twice as big as most churches the group has sung in recently, she said.

To keep costs down, the center has kept a small, part-time staff of four. The city of Lafayette helps with repairs of the center but not the adjacent St. John's Pavilion.

Jaeger views an upcoming fundraising campaign set to start in early 2006 as crucial.

"We hope to raise $1 million in the long term, which will be a three- to five-year commitment," he said. "This will hopefully put us in a financial position less precarious than it is now."

[jrnyman28]

Well, when you think selling 700 tickets for a Beatles Tribute is a successful evening, then of course the "almost sold out" 1200 seats is a great thing. But it appears most of this has to do with the type of shows they usually book at the center. While Styx may not have sold a ton of tickets, it appears they will add some visibility to the center and that could help them schedule "better" acts.

[Abitaman]

If you schedule junk, people think all you have is junk. Maybe Styx can help change that-ERIC