Friday, June 24, 2016

Curtain Comes Down On New Theatre

Yet another vibrant but financially-strapped South Florida theatre goes dark.

New Theatre Logo Crop 06-24-16New Theatre, one of the most high-profile Florida theaters for 30 years and developer of the Pulitzer-winning Anna in the Tropics, is closing, its board of directors announced Thursday.

The cause appears to be economics although the specifics have not been disclosed.

It came to a head several weeks ago when the board asked Artistic Director Ricky J. Martinez to work this summer without pay.  Martinez resigned May 23, a disclosure delayed until Thursday because Martinez wanted to give the board time to get “the financials in order,” he said in an interview Thursday.

[…]

Thursday’s news hit the theater community hard because so many people had worked at the company.  While numerous companies have opened and even thrived in recent years, the closing is the latest in a series of crippling hits: Florida Stage in Manalapan/West Palm Beach closed in 2011, Promethean Theatre in Davie in 2012, Mosaic Theatre in Plantation 2012 and Women’s Theatre Project in Fort Lauderdale/Boca Raton in 2015.

The theatre has also produced four of my ten-minute plays and had my new full-length in their schedule for the upcoming season.  I’m sorry for the people who have put so much of their time and effort into bringing new and vibrant theatre to Miami.

2 barks and woofs on “Curtain Comes Down On New Theatre

  1. Sorry to hear about this. It’s been a number of years since I was actively involved in theater, but I keep noticing that Chicago’s theater scene seems to be thriving. In fact, I noticed for the first time yesterday that there is now an Edgewater Theater district, and thinking about it, yes, there are several theater companies in Edgewater, including Raven Theater, right across the street from my apartment. (We also have, not surprisingly, a Loop Theater District and a Belmont Theater District (mid-North).

    I’m not sure how they all keep going, but they do.

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