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In March I wrote what amounted to an open letter to our community articulating the financial position of PCPA, but more than that, the aspiration to serve the community that undergirds our tangible and financial needs. I did so as a part of our ACT NOW! scholarship appeal, through which we were asking you to contribute toward our goal of raising $200,000 for PCPA’s scholarships. We were attempting, through this appeal, to address the significant shortfall we were seeing in foundation and corporate support for the theater due the global financial crisis. Our feeling was that individuals in the community, who have the most to gain by having a professional theater in their local civic life and economy, were in the best, and only, position to mobilize their support and frankly, move their dollars, to help address PCPA’s immediate and critical needs. The need was truly immediate and significant in terms of our real ability to continue to give the community the fine artistic work and the exuberant heart that has been the company’s hallmark for 45 seasons. We were attempting to raise this $200,000 in an economic environment that continues to be extraordinarily challenging for all of us, and we needed to do it by the end of our fiscal year, June 30th. Honestly, we weren’t sure it was possible. And now, I find myself in the awkward position of needing to apologize. I’m sorry to say that we underestimated your appreciation for – and commitment to—PCPA, and the generosity that you are willing to attach to that appreciation and commitment. As of our deadline date, the ACT NOW! scholarship appeal has generated donations to the tune of $272,367! It’s worth expressing that success down to the last dollar because for PCPA, every dollar truly counts. More than 500 donors participated in this appeal. Some made a very large commitment. $150,000 came in the form of major gifts from donors so magnanimous and humble that they wish to be anonymous. That is, of course, a significant portion of the total. In addition, the Will family gave an incredibly generous gift, as did so many old and new friends of the theater. Of no less significance were the many gifts, smaller in amount but of major import, given by so many, including one of our dear friends and volunteer ushers who gave $5.99 instead of buying meat at the market. And, so many of you who came to the theater and then spared a bit more pocket change after seeing Les Misérables, was genuinely encouraging and humbling to the whole PCPA company. We have a tendency to be much more articulate with the expression of our needs than we are with expressing gratitude when our needs are met. As a consequence we may have a similar tendency to remember our challenges very well and be less inclined to retain the sense of hope and appreciation we ought to have if we truly took to heart, and remembered well, the fulfillment of our requests. We are weak in our gratitude, perhaps because we don't exercise it enough, and we may be likewise weak in hope. We seem to be able to fill volumes with our expression of need, or want, and yet find it difficult to get beyond the simple and sometimes shallow 'thank you' that seems to resonate no longer than it can be spoken. And, it’s alright. Most of us give, when we give, not so much for the thanks we will receive, but because we are persuaded in our own conscience that what we choose to support is of value. When there is a genuine need, and if we have the capacity and desire to meet that need, we do, and consider it a blessing to able to do so. The thing we value continues and there is our gratification. In this case, that which continues is the art – and further – the development of the artist. The play, and the player, is the thing. Still, the gratitude we feel for the support the community has provided requires a greater expression. It’s my hope that those of you who gave will experience the great personal reward that is attached to your generosity. You gave personally and we receive it personally, and pass it on into the lives of your neighbors in the form of imagination, personal expression, insight, empathy and beauty. The art that PCPA is putting on our stages today is possible because you gave. The fine art and exuberant heart that is so palpable in every performance is an outgrowth of your commitment. The daily experience of young professionals and their ability to develop and refine their vocation is an expression of your choice to support them. The sense of possibility brought about by someone coming to the play who otherwise would have been bereft of that experience is attached to your gift. I see it in the twinkling eyes and sweaty foreheads of actors in our rehearsals. I hear it in the detailed discussion and fervent exertion of designers and interns in the design studios. I sense it in the deep commitment and persistent enthusiasm through the tireless effort in our shops. It is the hum of hard work and artistic possibilities that we are crafting out of your generosity and vision. I feel it, too, in the belly laughs, quiet sighs and enlivened conversations of our audiences. When you come to see the play, you’ll feel it too. Because, it is in the performance of this summer season that we are ‘playing out’ our gratitude, and it’s my great hope that you’ll be with us to recoup your investment, with interest. Your giving is truly appreciated, both in terms of the thankfulness it inspires and the increased value it brings to the life of community. On behalf of the students, interns, faculty, and staff of PCPA – we thank you. Mark Booher |