SLO “Rep” should still be a SLO community theater. Community theater. A creative outlet for all citizens far and wide. A repertory theater is, by definition, an exclusive club of limited, privileged performers.
When the longest continually running community theater in the country was replaced by Kevin Harris (Managing artistic director? Please.) and his enablers, it seemed no one noticed or understood the significance of such a change. It was the end of an era for our community, not some cultural upgrade and all the pretense that comes with it.
If Harris wanted a repertory, he should have started his own. And now he comes begging for our tax dollars because of COVID-19. Yes. COVID, the Karmic Strain.
I implore the powers to perish the possibility of financing this vanity project and spend our money on something philanthropic like food banks, homeless shelters, and drug rehabilitation centers.
Oh and full disclosure: My wife was the very successful development director for SLO Little Theater and would have known how to weather these difficult times. Her fundraisers, inexhaustible energy, and creativity kept the Little Theater always in the black. Her career along with our household income was severely damaged by this treachery. Bitter? You bet.
Michael S. Miller
Arroyo Grande
This article appears in Mar 3-10, 2022.
An “exclusive club of limited, privileged performers”? It seems like the real gripe is that they are now casting based upon ability. While I can understand the objections of disappointed thespians, I’ll bet that the audiences are greatly relieved. The image of someone like myself, attired in tights and a tunic, fumbling through a Shakespearean soliloquy, is disturbing and something the public should be spared.
Your bitterness screams loud and clear. Why do you want to trash Kevin Harris for the amazing success he (and all his team and supporters) has had in bringing professional theatre to SLO county? Instead of tearing him down and insisting that this prestigious endeavor be changed back to “community” theatre, why don’t you take your own advice and start a community theatre in the area? There’s plenty of room for more theatre arts, plenty of eager audience now that live theatre is finally returning, and I’m sure there would be enthusiastic support from a volunteer base– since that’s what you would depend on for labor on and off stage. Your clever wife could once again be development director, you could be Managing Director or whatever title you want, and I’m sure there would be some public funds available to assist. This is what people who love theatre do. They start a company, they put on a show, or they volunteer time and energy to make theatre happen. People who love live theatre don’t need to trash one company’s efforts– it’s the audience that decides, really, if a company lives or dies, and in this case SLO Rep is resoundingly successful at pleasing a very large audience base by maintaining a level of excellence. Wouldn’t it be great if your new community theatre did the same?