Hiatus in Hanover

The question I’m being asked most frequently this week is, “Why is Barksdale taking such a long break at the Tavern.” And every time someone asks it, it’s easy to hear the concern in their voice.

Please be assured that nothing is going wrong. In fact, everything is going right. It’s quite true that Smoke on the Mountain closed this past Saturday, April 28, and that The Odd Couple will not open until Friday, June 29. That’s a break of two months—pretty unusual for a resident theatre.

But the reason for the hiatus could not be more “usual” in the nonprofit sector. We’re taking a two-month break from Hanover Tavern because of money.

You see, Hanover Tavern is itself a nonprofit organization, and Barksdale Theatre is a separate nonprofit organization. From 1953 until 1990, Hanover Tavern was owned by Pete and Nancy Kilgore and Muriel McAuley. The Tavern was their home, both literally and artistically. They raised their children and their pets there, and they worked tirelessly and selflessly to save the historic Tavern for future generations.

In 1990 they made a difficult decision. They realized that the 18th Century Tavern that they loved needed millions of dollars of work if it was to remain standing into the 21st Century. They also realized that their job was making great theatre, and that they wanted to turn the responsibility of raising the millions that were needed over to a broad-based community foundation.

And so they sold their beloved Tavern to the Historic Hanover Tavern Foundation. They used the proceeds of the sale to fund a meager retirement account—the only pension they ever received from their lifetime of work at Barksdale Theatre. In 1993, Pete, Nancy and Muriel retired after 40 years of exemplary service. And in 1996, they lent their support as Barksdale Theatre, under the staff leadership of new artistic director John Glenn and the Board leadership of Carrie Galeski, Ted Linhart and Neil November, moved theatrical operations to the beautiful new space at Willow Lawn that we occupy today.

When Barksdale returned to the Tavern in January 2006, we did so as a rent-paying tenant. We are one of three major tenants of the Tavern. The other two (our partners, so to speak) are:
· the Historic Hanover Tavern Foundation, which not only owns the Tavern but also presents numerous historical programs and interpretations year round, and
· Michelle’s Restaurant.

As the Historic Hanover Tavern Foundation seeks to fulfill it’s fiduciary responsibilities for the Tavern’s finances and future, it works with its two partners (Barksdale Theatre and Michelle’s) in an attempt to maximize earned revenues. Let’s face it, 18th Century Taverns may be cool, but they're not inexpensive to maintain.

One of the things that the Foundation has learned is that a major revenue source for the Foundation and Michelle’s is the income received from weddings and wedding receptions held at the Tavern during the months of May and June. Due to sound issues, plays cannot be presented in the theatre at the same time that weddings or wedding receptions are taking place elsewhere on the property.

And so the Tavern has asked Barksdale Theatre to forego theatrical programming during the months of May and June, so that they and Michelle’s can maximize the revenue they receive from springtime weddings. We are happy to oblige.

So, during the next 60 days, please come visit us at Willow Lawn for Intimate Apparel, or visit our sister company, Theatre IV, for The Wizard of Oz at the Historic Empire Theatre. And plan now to join us on or after June 29 for The Odd Couple at Hanover Tavern.