September 2020: Newsletter #5
Fall Programming
We’re Opening!
We are excited to announce that we’ll be opening Arcadia Live in October. Our team has been hard at work coming up with some great diverse programming for this fall and winter!
Back Porch Music Series
If you’ve kept up with our social media and newsletters, you might know that the Arcadia theatre now boasts a large stage with glass garage doors that open directly onto our spacious deck. The deck overlooks the Guadalupe river and connects to our outdoor Antler Alley. We plan to take full advantage of this space with our first live entertainment series: the Back Porch Music Series!
Every Friday in October (the 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, and tentatively, the 30th), we’ll open up our garage doors to local artists onstage so attendees can enjoy views, drinks, and tunes al fresco. These events will be unticketed and, as such, will be first come, first served. We will limit attendance at the door to allow for social distancing. Our goal with the Back Porch Music Series is to create a casual entertainment option downtown as our community eases back into normalcy. We encourage attendees to dine at one of our neighboring locales and then walk over to enjoy a show. These will be free events, so we ask that you consider making a donation at the door to help sustain our non-profit as we work towards our mission, “to promote vibrant and diverse entertainment while preserving the history and life of downtown Kerrville.”
The first Back Porch event will be a members-only event. Our first featured artist is a talented local act, Possessed by Paul James. Members, join us on October 2nd for a fun mix of folk, punk, and roots. Keep up with our roster by checking our website where events will now be posted!
If you’d like to attend our first Back Porch Music event, consider becoming a member below! We’ll be sending out a reminder email to our Roadie, Director, and Headliner members prior to the event, so get on our list now.
Become a MemberHealth & Safety
Throughout the process of developing our opening guidelines we have done the following: Examined and implemented COVID-19 guidelines issued by the Governor for many types of venues (e.g. live entertainment, filmhouses and movie theaters, wedding venues), designed seating options to maximize functionality of our space’s layout, and conferred with/researched other organizations in this industry.
After much careful consideration, we have decided that we can best serve our community and provide a safe, fun environment by focusing on smaller, local acts, utilizing our outdoor space, and limiting attendance at Arcadia events.
If you’d like to know more about the procedures that will be in place at Arcadia Live, check out our website.
Sorry for the slightly wonky image- capturing a picture of the entire deck from the ground is no easy feat!
Here’s an awesome picture of the deck and garage doors, the setting of the Back Porch Music Series.
Photo credit: Justin McClure, of JAM Broadcasting, LLC who flew by our place with his new bird.
Putting the FUN in Fundraising
Construction is Done but We Need You
Since this project was started at the end of 2018, we have made astounding progress thanks to our team’s dedication and the resounding support of our community. To date, our Capital Campaign has nearly met our construction costs. While the theatre is ready to go (check out the before and after images of the main theatre space below to see how far we’ve come), our non-profit has an immediate need to raise funds for our one time capital expenses.
If you were thinking of making a year end donation please consider making it now. A gift this month will help us pay the balance on some of the best sound and lighting in the Texas Hill Country, our DLP film projector and screen, curtains and more. Please contact Anne, at [email protected] or 830-315-5483, if you have any questions about the capital expenses or naming opportunities.
This photo was taken prior to the kickoff of construction in November, 2019. Plaster was removed from the walls to expose the original brick, concrete platforms were poured, glass doors were added to the back wall, and our stage now covers the old orchestra pit.
This photo was taken on September 3rd, 2019. Currently, our sound and lighting systems are being installed. This space has so many beautiful details and is close to being completed.
Take a Seat & Let’s Talk Musical Chairs
Last month Arcadia Live’s chairs made a Grand Entrance with all 300 of them arriving on the back of a truck with no lift-gate (a GIANT thank you to the brave souls that helped us unload them into the venue). These seats were ordered months ago, but like most things these days, had transportation delays. These particular chairs will be used in the main theatre space on the first floor for seated live events, films, and some private events. So, why do we keep talking about them?
First, the arrival of these chairs is a big signal that we’re nearly ready to open the theatre! Seeing these chairs filling the space has been a welcome reminder to our team that this space is for the people of our community and that they’ll get to enjoy it soon. Speaking as someone who has been involved in the Arcadia Live project for over a year, it’s amazing to see concepts & ideas (many of which have been floating around town for decades!) being realized in the theatre- I’m sure followers of the Arcadia share in our sense of accomplishment and joy.
Second, these chairs are a major component in what is probably one of our most fun and interactive capital campaign efforts- the Chair Campaign. This campaign not only helps us cover the huge capital expense of furniture, but it also gives individuals the chance to give their favorite people tangible recognition at Arcadia Live. We’ve had quite a few backers to this campaign, which we think is cause to celebrate!
We’ll be hosting our Musical Chairs party on October 20th, 2020 for those that have contributed to the Chair Campaign. We’ll be sending out private invitations to this event in the next few weeks.
More Info
These chairs will mostly live inside, but talk about a seat with a view!
Digging up Memories
Setting the Stage for Our Ghost Light
We recently posted about our Ghost Light on Facebook and Instagram… We’ve decided to give it the stage in this newsletter!
In our industry, there is a prevailing sentiment that a theatre should never go dark. As such, theatres around the world have traditionally kept a single bulb lit on their stage between performances- their Ghost Light. There are multiple explanations for this practice, some being more rooted in superstition than others.
First and foremost, Ghost Lights serve a very practical purpose- Provide enough light in a dark theatre to keep a thespian or attendant of other sorts from falling on, off, or near the stage before the lights are turned on.
Other explanations are far more supernatural. According to some sources, this light welcomes the spirits of past shows to the stage. Other sources say that ghost lights keep spirits, that may or may not inhabit a given theatre, content and give them a chance to be in the spotlight when the space is not in use. The final explanation of the Ghost Light is to keep away mischievous spirits by leading them to believe that the space is in use.
Ghost Lights are traditionally very simple. In many theatres they’re a single, exposed bulb mounted on a pole as a free-standing floor lamp. Ours follows suit, with a few Arcadia touches! The majority of our Ghost Light was created using repurposed materials and was welded together by our awesome Roadie member, Riley Rector.
Two pieces of our Ghost Light were scavenged from the theatre: The pole is a spare section of pipe from our 2020 renovation and the small metal piece joining the pole and base was found in the orchestra pit (prior to its renovation into a green room and our stage). We’re not sure what this piece of metal was originally for or how old it is, but there’s a very real possibility that it has been in the orchestra pit for nearly a century! The square base piece was fashioned from an old well pipe, donated to the cause by Riley.
We are excited to bring the Arcadia Theatre back to life and join the leagues of historic theatres and live entertainment establishments that promote art and culture in their respective communities. Hopefully our Ghost Light keeps our Arcadia ghosts at bay… at least until we bring them up in next month’s October newsletter!
Here’s our simple Ghost Light hanging out onstage (which is currently covered to protect it during construction).
Community-Centered Neighbors
Volunteer Opportunities
With our opening plans set to rock ‘n roll, we need all the help we can get. If you’re interested in spending some extra time (and sharing your talents!) at the Arcadia theatre, please consider signing up as one of our volunteers. We plan to reach out to our pool of volunteers in early September to share calendars and start our training process.
Our most immediate need will be for ushers at live events, however, we will have a wide variety of volunteer opportunities available in future. So, we encourage you to sign up now to get on our radar, cool cat!
To chat about or sign up for volunteer opportunities, please reach out to our Executive Director, Michael, at 830-315-5483 or [email protected].
This newsletter is brought to you by our Corporate Sponsors
Thank you to the following companies and individuals for supporting Arcadia Live’s mission.
We sincerely appreciate you.
Encorpe, Inc.
John Fontenot, Consultant
Ken Stoepel Ford
Michael R. Borchers, DDS & Shari Addington, MD
Steamatic Restoration & Cleaning
Texas Multi-Chem, LTD
Please look forward to seeing more about these sponsors in upcoming newsletters, on our website, and in the theatre!
Want to be an Arcadia Live Corporate Sponsor?
Becoming a corporate sponsor shows your commitment to the Kerrville community and will help us bring diverse, live entertainment to our iconic downtown venue.
Join the ranks of the wonderful corporations and individuals acknowledged above by becoming a Corporate Sponsor.
Please contact Katie at [email protected] or 830-315-LIVE for more information or to become a sponsor today!