Arts Activities Support

Of the patrons who attended, over 85% rated that the production met or exceeded their expectations, and of participants, over 90% said they would participate in a Chaska Valley Family Theatre production again in the future. Additionally, responses from three senior center leaders indicated that 100% of participants to the senior matinee commented that they enjoyed their outing and would do it again of given a chance. We met most of our goals for this production, though we fell short is a few areas. We held eight performances for the public during our run from February 26 to March 6, 2016, and also held a special weekday matinee luncheon performance geared toward senior citizens. Goal achievement was as follows: We created an artistically excellent, attended by nearly 2200 patrons; we had hoped for 3000. We provided a quality, participatory experience for all involved, especially families. Our senior matinee lunch and a show was attended by 140 patrons, and was a truly memorable experience. We had hoped to get up to 300 for this performance. Both our participant and audience survey results that reflected a high level of satisfaction. We were unable to arrange an ASL-interpreted performance for this production. In the end, our artistic and participation goals were solidly met. Survey comments from audiences including words like "fantastic costumes and scenery" and "glorious musical performances." Participant survey comments included "this is the most fun I have had in years!" Since this was our organizations 20th anniversary production, director and organization co-founder Paula Atkins reached out to many participants from over the years and encouraged them to participate, truly resulting in an "anniversary," celebratory experience. As older-generation musicals, like "My Fair Lady" age, so too do the audiences. We were successful bringing those people to this production. Where we fell short, perhaps, is getting more student attendees. 85% of tickets were sold to adults, which was not unexpected, given the fact that the majority of the cast were adults. However, earlier, more thorough marketing to schools, or more discounting of student tickets may have resulted in better youth attendance. We knew going in that, due to the nature of this show (older-style musical, fewer children in cast), that we might have difficulty drawing younger audiences. This came to be true, but overall, we served our targeted demographic well with this production. That is, families from within our community who we serve with quality, affordable, LOCAL, entertainment. In particular, for participants, we were able to draw both old and new amateur participants from within the community for on and off stage roles in the production. Of specific note was the special senior matinee, where busing was provided and a special meal and show were held. In this instance, we were able to bring quality, affordable live musical theater to people who may not otherwise be able to attend due to lack of transportation or funds. One area we continue to struggle is in gaining traction with hearing disabled persons. In the case of this show, we were unable to coordinate a specific date that worked to have our ASL interpreters come to provide their services, so no ASL show was performed. Past efforts have been hit and miss in attendance, with the bulk attending being ASL students/teachers, and often families of deaf persons. We continue to work with local groups like VSA, and schools for the deaf, to develop joint partnerships to try to encourage deaf students and families to attend our shows.