UPDATE: In the comments section under an article called “Thumb in the Eye” in Perform Ink, John Peakes left the following message:
I am switching my annual donation to BoarsHead to Kris’s new venture. I hope lots of other folk will too. She has a vision, she has the talent and the grit to make it work. I hope all of my friends in Lansing, will shift their support from BHT to Stormfield. In these very hard times in the Arts (when isn’t it?), your bucks should go to the pros, the dedicated and the talented. If my old buddy Carmen Decker is in it for the long run, all of theatre supporters in Lansing and the surrrounds should be too. I’d be proud to work for KRISTIE. I hope she asks. JOHN PEAKES Founding Artistic Director – BoarsHead Theater 1966-2003
From the news release issued November 5 from BoarsHead:
LANSING, Mich. – Facing years of accumulated debt and a weak economy that has hurt corporate giving, BoarsHead Theater will temporarily go dark through the end of December, the theater’s board of directors announced today.
The hiatus means the theater will suspend all operations effective Friday. The production of “Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol,†slated to run Nov. 25-Dec. 20, has been cancelled. The theater is finalizing a plan for return tickets.
Plans are to resume operations in January, when corporate supporters make their 2010 contributions. The theater plans to stage its next show, “The Nerd,†from Jan. 28-Feb. 21, 2010, as scheduled.
In the meantime, board members and volunteer staff are working to reorganize the theater to more accurately and consistently reflect the Lansing market, both artistically and economically.
The theater deeply regrets disappointing its loyal subscribers by canceling the December show and is exploring a variety of options, including the possibility of adding a summer show.
The BoarsHead board commends the entire BoarsHead team – on both the artistic side and the business side – for their efforts to put the BoarsHead Theater on sound financial footing. The past debt and the weak economy have made that an extremely difficult challenge.
BoarsHead Theater is mid-Michigan’s oldest professional resident theater. Founded in 1966, BoarsHead is a 250-seat Equity house in downtown Lansing. As an AEA company, BoarsHead attracts artists from Chicago, New York, Detroit and across the nation.
