By Sophie Carrigan Gray

Local Journalism Initiative

As British Columbia continues to move forward in the four stage COVID-19 restart plan, one community is left still struggling to figure out what to do.

One such theatre is Oliver’s Frank Venables Theatre. The theatre shut its doors in March and has not been able to open them to the public since. Theatre manager Leah Foreman said that although the theatre could open for up to 50 audience members, the revenue from such limited ticket sales make it financially infeasible.

The theatre operates on multiple levels, as a rental facility for community shows from local dance groups to high school musicals, as well as a place to host touring, professional shows. Foreman said the theatre has cancelled or postponed all shows up until the fall, with only a couple remaining on the books she speculates will not go forward.

Although the theatre could host 50 audience members, Foreman said that’s just not enough.

“The touring shows, for 50 people they can’t do a show, they can’t make it. It’s not financially feasible, they’d lose a lot of money,” said Foreman. “It’s not even (about) making money, it’s just they can’t even do it. They couldn’t even break even.”

To cover the cost of paying the performers, the fees associated with using the theatre and staffing it as well as marketing for the shows, there would have to be a minimum of 100 to 200 people in the audience.

“We were the first ones out and the last ones back in the arts community,” said Foreman. “Because, like I said, we’re not going to get 150 people in there for a long, long time.”

Foreman is thankful this is happening during the summer, which she said is typically the theatre’s slower season. It’s given the theatre time to redevelop and put together a plan going forward to try and sustain themselves on a 50-person audience, to get Oliver back into the performing arts community.

In a written statement sent to the Times-Chronicle on Friday, Foreman announced, on behalf of the Venables Theatre, a new series spotlighting South Okanagan-Similkameen performers.

“We will be presenting an array of one-night only performances to a socially distanced audience,” wrote Foreman. “We are calling on all local artists to apply, from small dance and music ensembles, to theatre and spoken word artists.”

Each performer will be paid a set fee for their performance as well as a percentage of ticket sales, which will be capped at 50.

“We’re looking forward to welcoming artists and audiences safely back to the theatre very soon,” continued the statement.

Foreman said the theatre will struggle even with the new performance plan this year, but they will survive. It’s the performers themselves that are more at risk.

“I’ve been talking to theatres across the province and everyone’s feeling that the performers are the worst hit, and what’s going to happen?” said Foreman. “I know there’s artists out there that are having to sell their cars.”

Foreman said although COVID-19 has been devastating for the performing arts community, there might be some good that comes out of the struggle. She knows many artists who have taken this time to turn inward and get creative, to try and find inspiration from their new normal.

“We might, at the end of this, have some fabulous new art,” she said.