Arlington County could absolve rent for Signature Theatre for the last two years as the company struggles to move past Covid-era hits to sustainability.
This comes a decade after the county bailed out the Tony Award-winning nonprofit theater company twice in two years: a $250,000 grant in 2013 to help it pay off its real estate and business taxes and a $5 million loan, at a 1% interest rate, in 2014.
Shirlington-based Signature Theatre has announced a slew of new shows and events as part of a season-long tribute to Stephen Sondheim.
Earlier this week, the well-known local theater on Campbell Avenue released its show schedule for the upcoming season. It will feature a season-long tribute to the American musical icon Stephen Sondheim, who died last November.
Welcome to Our Summer Interns — Two interns have joined ARLnow for the summer. Mavis Chan of the University of Missouri will focus on local news reporting while Pia Kramer, graduate of Virginia Tech and Arlington’s Washington-Liberty High School, will focus on audience engagement.
Passengers Spend Hours on Planes at DCA — “Thais Austin wanted to get home to the District after a weekend visit with family in Jacksonville, Fla. Instead, she said, she and other passengers were stuck on the Reagan National Airport taxiway for three hours Sunday night, unable to exit their plane… Hundreds of passengers on at least a half-dozen other flights reported similar delays after thunderstorms downed trees, flooded roads and left thousands without power in the Washington region.” [Washington Post]
The lights are coming on at Shirlington next week.
On Thursday (Dec. 2), the Village at Shirlington is hosting the holiday event “Light Up the Village” from 6:00-8:30 p.m.
As the region creeps back closer to normal, and with the holiday season now upon us, in-person performing arts are making a comeback.
Local theaters are once again welcoming back audiences for an assortment of concerts and productions.
Arlington arts organizations may have lost as much as $10 million in 2020 due to the pandemic, but they were able to get by with help from friends of the arts.
Many arts groups in the county reported losing 41-60% of their expected income, according to Embracing Arlington Arts, a group of local residents who work toward bolstering the arts in the county. But the arts organizations survived on a combination of government and private grants, generous locals and virtual performances.
Metro Resuming Midnight Service — “Metro will expand train service to midnight, seven days a week starting Sunday, July 18. The extended operating hours are the first in a package of service improvements passed by Metro’s Board of Directors in June that will add more all-day rail service, create high-frequency bus routes and improve service across the region.” [WMATA]
New Leader for Signature Theatre — “Signaling the rise of a younger generation of leadership for the American musical stage, Signature Theatre announced Tuesday that it has chosen Matthew Gardiner, the company’s second-in-command, as its new artistic director after a year-long, nationwide search. At 37, Gardiner — who has directed or choreographed more than 30 productions for the company — becomes the youngest head of a front-line Washington-area theater.” [Washington Post]
Fireworks Safety Demonstration — From the Arlington County Fire Department: “We want everyone to have a safe and enjoyable 4th of July by following some of these safety tips.” [Twitter, Twitter]
Undefeated Yorktown in Lacrosse State Final — “Yorktown will play at Battlefield in Haymarket after the Bobcats beat Cosby, 6-4, in the other Class 6 semifinal Tuesday… For Yorktown, the first steps toward Saturday’s state final were laid before this year’s players were born, and over 21 years the Patriots toiled and waited until they could play in a state semifinal.” [Washington Post]
Brittany O’Grady, a Washington-Liberty High School graduate, is starring in Apple TV+’s new series, Little Voice.
O’Grady plays Bess King, a singer-songwriter trying to navigate New York City while pursuing a career in music with her earnest songs.
Signature Theatre’s long-time leader is stepping down following allegations of sexual harassment.
The Shirlington-based theater said in a statement today that co-founder and Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer is retiring at the end of the month. No mention was made of the allegations.
Update on 6/24/20 — Schaeffer just announced his retirement.
Earlier: Shirlington-based Signature Theatre says newly-revealed sexual assault allegations against its leader “are false, misleading and without merit.”
