The Englert (Part II) - ICCT

So where were we? When we last left, our intrepid band of Iowa Citians had just taken upon the task or raising $500,000 in a little over eight months. Can they do it? We’ll get to that in a minute. First, I’d like to talk a little about the Iowa City Community Theatre (ICCT).

(Disclaimer: ICCT is near and dear to my heart. I acted in high school, but when I got to college, there weren’t many opportunities for people who weren’t theatre majors. So I didn’t act again. As I grew older, I often had contact with people who were involved in theatre or acting in one way or another. I guess I should have taken that as a hint, but never did. Finally, in the fall of 1998, a friend from work got cast in ICCT’s production of Arsenic and Old Lace. When a member of the cast was hospitalized, my friend suggested that I audition to fill the departing person’s role. I did, I got it, and I haven’t looked back. I’ve averaged two shows a year since that time. I ran for, and won, a seat on the ICCT Board of Director’s in 1999. I ran for, and won, the presidency of ICCT in 2000, a post I held until June 2004, when the by-laws prevented me from running again. ICCT has been very good to me, and I’ve done my best to be very good to ICCT in return. So yeah, I’m a little biased. But that doesn’t mean I’m not factual.)

ICCT was founded in the spring of 1956 by a group of actors looking for an outlet for their theatrical urges. At the time, there was nothing in town but the theatres connected with the University, and if you weren’t a student, you were out of luck. They performed two shows that first season, starting with 27 Wagons Full Of Cotton. The group opened its second season in the fall of 1956, starting a tradition that extends to this day of the season running from the fall to spring.

After performing for about ten years in a variety of schools, churches, and other places, ICCT found a semi-permanent home in Montgomery Hall at the Johnson County Fairgrounds. A few years after that, it moved to a semi-semi-permanent home in Exhibition Hall at the Fairgrounds.

Why semi-semi-permanent? Because ICCT only has use of the building from mid-August til mid-May. During the summer months, the building is used for the Mennonite Relief Sale, the Johnson County Kennel Club Show, and most importantly, the Johnson County Fair. That means, every May ICCT has to move everything out of the building – the shop, the lobby, the stage floor, the risers, the chairs, the green room area, the costume changing area – everything. And each August ICCT has to move everything back in again.

And though that is a pain, it’s just a volunteer problem – with enough people, it can go pretty quickly. We can get it torn down or set up in about a week’s time, with the major stuff going up (or down) over the course of a long weekend. A more serious problem is that the Fairgrounds location is about five miles from downtown Iowa City, with no bus service. (But plenty of free parking!) This makes walk-up traffic almost non-existent. It also means that ICCT is out of sight for a lot of people.

These were the reasons ICCT was so exited about the Englert. We had long been looking for a new home, and the Englert opportunity provided us with a chance to gain a new venue, publicize ourselves, and reduce volunteer effort. So when we were approached, we jumped at the chance. We entered into negotiations with the original Englert group, and eventually we hammered out a deal. In exchange for $50,000 from our building fund and $2.25 from each ticket sold, we would receive

Two seats on the Englert Board Of Directors
Thirty-six performance nights each year
Sixty rehearsal nights each year
First chance at any black nights (nights when no events were scheduled)
Concession revenue

This deal was presented to the ICCT membership and approved by that group. It was signed and a copy given to each group. More on that in a later installment.
And so ICCT joined the fray. Not hesitatingly, not reluctantly, but feet first. We provided many of the initial volunteers for the group. We took part in the official campaign kickoff. I acted as the first Englert Secretary. (Note to all – never bring a laptop to a new group to take notes. They elect you to positions you may not want.) But our contributions didn’t end there.

A clause in ICCT’s by-laws stated that we could donate funds to other arts groups. This was an important thing for Englert fundraising. Because the Englert did not yet have 501(c)(3) tax exempt status, donations to the Englert cause did not qualify donors for a tax deduction. If you’ve ever taken part in a major fundraising campaign, you know that the tax deduction is a big incentive for many donors. Since ICCT did have tax exempt status, people could donate to ICCT and receive the deduction. Because of ICCT’s by-laws, ICCT could then donate those funds to the Englert cause. But we did more.

An ICCT person wrote the Englert’s 501(c)(3) application. (Me. I did it.) ICCT volunteers served on many of the Englert committees. And ICCT members, and people otherwise connected to ICCT, donated. At one point in those first eight and a half months, almost 70% of the donations came from people who had come to the Englert because of their connection to ICCT.

But it wasn’t just ICCT people. Volunteers from all over the community took part, all of us sharing that dream of a community performance space. And at the end of the eight months, we had done it. We had raised the $500,000 needed to buy the theatre from the city. We banked $400,000, and the Englert President and I (as Englert Treasurer) went to the city with a check for $100,000. The building was ours, and it was time for the next step. Raising the money to renovate and open the building.

(To Be Continued)