The Niswonger could use your help…

I imagine most of you have heard about the opportunity the Niswonger Performing Arts Center has to address some physical needs of its facility. The Van Wert Area Performing Arts Foundation, the governing organization for the professional presenting operations, was awarded a State of Ohio Facilities grant in the amount of $200,000 several months ago. The reason for pursuing the grant was to make our operations more accommodating for the performers who use the backstage area. This is an area most of you never see.

Each year, we bring several large production shows to town that need lots of space in order to function properly. Well, you may wonder how you have been doing this for the past 12 years. I will attempt to create a picture for you. Regardless of what concert or show is being presented at the Niswonger, the Music Hall always looks pretty much the same. Even the lobby may look similar, perhaps just a little more congested.  Backstage looks completely different when we bring, for instance, The Sound of Music to town, as we will this May 4.

Four 53-foot semi-tractor trailer rigs come rolling into Van Wert filled with production equipment necessary to make the show look and function properly on our stage. In addition, a passenger bus of as many as 50 or more performers, staff, and management empties into our backstage area. This is after a crew of several workers arrive and begin telling our crew of as many as 40-50 workers what to unload and start constructing the stage.

Are you beginning to get the picture that backstage is starting to fill up real fast? We have two dressing rooms, able to accommodate about 12 persons in each. Where do the rest of these people go? Where do all the luggage and cargo cases with equipment, wardrobe, design sets, musical instruments, etc., etc. go?  Well, we start by using the three small practice rooms and one ensemble room located in the NPAC, which means sometimes school music students are no longer able to use them for instruction. As soon as we can, we commandeer the band and choir rooms in the school, but they are not available until instruction time is over.

Then, there is a need for laundry to be done before a show. Load-in is normally eight hours before a show begins, giving the crew time to clean laundry and wardrobe before a show begins. Now, you may not notice dirty clothes from the stage, but you can bet performers and crew do! Imagine yourself being on the road for several weeks straight. Laundry is good!

What we are proposing to build as an addition backstage is two smaller, some call them “star”, dressing rooms with private bathrooms connected. We also plan to include our own laundry facilities. We currently need to wheel baskets full of clothes down the school hallway and try to use the school washers and dryers, knowing we are responsible if anything happens to them. We also hope school classes are out when we need to use the facilities.

Included in our plan is also a larger room to store cargo cases once they are emptied and need to be filled once again as soon as the show is completed. Time is money! We want workers to get the job done ASAP.  We can also store set designs that have been built over the years of school productions along with accumulated wardrobe in this new room.

I think our addition is modest, but very important to our operations and facility. If you would like to be a part of our solution, I would love to talk with you. All donations are tax deductible as allowed by the IRS as the Van Wert Area Performing Arts Foundation is a 501(c)(3) corporation. Donations will be recognized in the Grand Lobby, just as the ones who originally donated to the building of the Niswonger Performing Arts Center.

We would be so grateful for your help is making our facility as nice as those who attend our shows and concerts! We are currently over halfway to our estimated goal of $1 million. I look forward to talking with you if you would like. Contributions can be made out to the Van Wert Area Performing Arts Foundation and dropped off at my office at The Van Wert County Foundation or at the box office at the Niswonger. We will be forever grateful as we move into the future at the Niswonger Performing Arts Center.

FINÉ.