Why some of Sudbury's arts organizations are struggling

If you ask Theatre Cambrian president Derek Young where the organization's problems began, he'll point directly to the theatre's building on Eyre Street in Sudbury.

It's in that old church, seated in the front row next to the stage, where Young reflects on the community theatre company's recent financial struggles.

"The building was purchased at 40 Eyre St. in 2007 with the intention that it would serve as a rooming house for students that are going to school, studying in the arts," he explains.

The board of governors had a lofty vision at the time, which included raked seating, an addition on the front of the building and new accessible washrooms. They hired an architect and began a $1.75 million capital construction campaign.

"At the end of the day, they had challenges raising the money and weren't able to complete the work," Young says.

"So over time, certain elements were phased in but the construction itself never really had been followed through on, and it never was really achieved to its full potential."

Over the years, Theatre Cambrian continued to carry the costs of operating and maintaining the building, leading to a sizeable debt.

A growing trend?

Theatre Cambrian is one of three long-standing arts organizations in Sudbury that have received emergency funding from the city since last fall.

In October 2017, city council approved $200,000 in emergency funding for the Sudbury Theatre Centre.  The following April, the Sudbury Symphony Orchestra received $52,000.

In May, Theatre Cambrian came forward with its own funding request of $150,000, which was ultimately rejected. Council voted instead to give the organization $20,000 towards rent at the Sudbury Theatre Centre.

Young says the board is now in the process of selling the building, with plans to stage future productions at other locations in the city, including the theatre centre.

The proceeds from the sale will help knock back Theatre Cambrian's debt and Young hopes it will also solve another problem: declining audiences.

He says the patron experience has suffered over the years, in a building that was never able to reach its full potential.

Changing audiences

Declining audiences have also been a problem for the Sudbury Symphony, according to board member Brian Koivu.

He says the Symphony experienced a series of small operating deficits of around $10,000 annually, that built up to a shortfall of more than $70,000.

Koivu attributes part of that debt to a loss of subscribers.

"We moved from 600 to 700 hundred subscribers in the [2016-2017] season, to a little less than 400 for the season that we just completed," he says.

"Some of these individuals that used to come to concerts … are getting older. Some of them spend their winter in Florida or Arizona or Mexico."

In contrast, he explains that younger audiences are less likely to subscribe to a whole season and instead prefer to attend individual shows.

'We've just got to persevere'

In addition to a flagging audience, Koivu says the Symphony also struggled with operational costs, including staffing and rent for performance and office space.

Staffing was a big issue for the Sudbury Theatre Centre as well. In June 2017, then-board president Gerry Copeman told CBC News the salaries of the previous artistic director and general manager were a big expense for the organization.

Current artistic director John McHenry, who started in the role in January, describes the past season as "a bit of a gong show."

"We had that great injection of cash from the city which really did save the theatre company," he says. "It got us through the 17/18 season."

Now the theatre centre is trying to get back on its feet, and McHenry says the upcoming season already seems to be drawing a larger audience.

"Our subscription campaign is on at the moment and I think we've tipped 400 subscribers, which is almost double of what we had last year. So I think people are really buying into next season and looking for a good night out."

Despite the positive outlook, McHenry acknowledges the theatre centre has had to figure out how to attract a new generation of theatre-goers.

"They might come and see a show with their parents and may not come back for five or ten years afterwards," he says.

"But then you know, when they've got their family and they have a disposable income, they can go, 'Hey let's check out STC. This show looks great or that show looks great.' So it takes time, and we've just got to persevere."