After a long hiatus, the Little Theatre of Jefferson City is getting ready to get back on stage.
Like many theater groups across the country, the Little Theatre canceled the remainder of its planned season last spring when the pandemic forced widespread closures.
"It was kind of heartbreaking to have to cancel," said Gabrielle Wittenberger, artistic director for the Little Theatre of Jefferson City, on canceling that season, which was the 50th anniversary of the Little Theatre.
But while the other three Jefferson City area theater groups came back throughout the past year to perform for live audiences, the Little Theatre has stayed dark. A plan to reopen last fall fell apart last minute when one of the actresses was diagnosed with COVID-19 about one week before the show was set to open.
At that point, Wittenberger said, the theater's board had to have a realistic discussion on whether continuing that season was possible.
"That was the harder decision," she said. "We were all just devastated."
Ultimately, they decided it wasn't in the best interest of the volunteers who serve the Little Theatre or the audiences who support it, she said. The Little Theatre would remain off stage for another season.
"It was better for us to just go dark," Wittenberger said.
Now, they're gearing up for the 52nd season, which will open in August with "The Wizard of Oz."
On Saturday morning, Wittenberger and several other volunteers arrived at the space the group uses for auditions and rehearsals at 1005 Chestnut St. to clean and organize after not using it for the past year. After arriving, they began to take down the sets that had been assembled for "The Game's Afoot," which was supposed to hit the stage last fall and is now planned to be the November show this year.
Throughout the morning, volunteers went through the building, taking out old items and organizing others.
John Wells was one of the volunteers helping Saturday. Wells has been involved with the Little Theatre for several years, serving as a past president and noting his wife will soon take over as president. Wells said he is looking forward to the theater getting going again, as it has become something the entire family can help with and enjoy.
And as more families get involved, the extended Little Theatre family continues to grow, Wittenberger said, noting the closeness of the Little Theatre community, both volunteers and audiences. It's one of the things they've missed as the theater group paused.
Wells said he is hoping one of the good things to come out of the global pandemic is a new found appreciation for live, family friendly entertainment that gets people away from screens and promotes interacting with the community.
Wittenberger said the work Saturday would help them get ready for the upcoming auditions for the August show. Auditions will take place on that site this coming weekend, with children's auditions set for 1-3 p.m. Saturday and adult auditions for 2-5 p.m. Sunday.
For that first show, Wittenberger said, the theater group has partnered with the Jefferson City Public Schools Foundation, which will help promote the show and provide some much needed startup money. After not bringing in any revenue for the last year, the Little Theatre, though a nonprofit, is struggling. Wittenberger said on top of the bills for the Chestnut Street building, it costs $4,500 for the group to use the Miller Performing Arts Center for one week, which is where the shows are actually performed in front of audiences. Plus, there's the costs of acquiring the rights to perform a show, which for musicals can be as much as $8,000 alone, she said.
And all of that is before factoring in sets, costumes, hair and makeup.
"We're trying to come up with ideas on how to fundraise this year," Wittenberger said.
Wittenberger also serves as the manager of the Miller Performing Arts Center, so she's had to keep Jefferson City School District restrictions in mind when scheduling shows at the venue. The nearly 900-seat auditorium has to be cut in terms of capacity, so each show is not as profitable as it once was.
But the time away had at least one positive outcome. While the shows for this season will continue in a similar fashion to how the Little Theatre has done things in the past, Wittenberger said they've all come back with a fresh perspective and are eager to try new ways of doing things, from promoting shows to selling tickets.
Anyone interested in donating to the Little Theatre can call the ticket line at 573-681-9400 or use the contact us page on the group's website at tltjc.org. Checks made out to the Little Theatre of Jefferson City also can be mailed to P.O. Box 485, Jefferson City, MO 65102.