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For years, fans of Artists Repertory Theatre have cringed as the company dealt with one crisis after another, from a seemingly endless renovation to the startling temporary suspension of its 2023-24 season.
Now, at last, there’s good news. In an email to patrons, ART managing director Aiyana Cunningham announced that the company has raised enough money to include the theater’s grand lobby in the current phase of its renovation.
“This is exactly what we needed to happen to propel ART forward,” Cunningham said. “The grand lobby is the heart of the new building, and we will be able to present work there as early as spring 2024.”
Donations for the lobby came from philanthropist Mary Boyle (whom President Biden named to the President’s Advisory Committee on the Arts in 2022) and her husband, Tim Boyle, chairman and CEO of Columbia Sportswear, as well as two other major donors.
“We can’t yet say what we will present in this lobby space, and honestly it may not be a full play,” Cunningham said. “We are still struggling with operational cash and don’t have the funds for a full production. However, we are thinking creatively about fun, meaningful things we can do in that space as soon as possible.”