by Trevor Osburn, President
The last 19 months have been tumultuous for us all. As a Member of Beaumaris Theatre we want to share with you how Beaumaris Theatre has been impacted by COVID-19 and subsequent restrictions.
COVID-19 and now the Delta variant has placed a strain on theatre companies around the world. Collectively, we have all been saddened by the closures, audience limits and the slow opening up of live performances. We support the government's actions to eradicate, slow and vaccinate against the disease but it’s unfortunate that there has been very limited financial recognition for the performing arts and the input they contribute to the Australian economy.
BEAUMARIS THEATRE IN 2020
In March 2020 we successfully staged They Came from Mars & Landed Outside the Farndale Ave Church, which played to very good houses and it seemed like 2020 was going to be another successful year for Beaumaris Theatre. As the applause faded after our final night's performance on the 14th March it was clear that COVID-19 was a growing and significant health problem.
We were concerned when, on 10th March, our Premier warned Victorians to expect "extreme measures" which included cancelling major sporting events, requiring certain sectors to work from home, and calling recently retired health professionals to return to work. A State of Emergency was declared on 16th March, with existing directions remaining in place including staying at home and restrictions on various activities, airports, cruise ships, aged care, hospitals and isolation for people diagnosed with COVID-19.
On the 21st March 2020, the Beaumaris Theatre Committee reassessed our 2020 season and made a decision to defer Anne & Gilbert, which had already started rehearsals to May 2021 and we tentatively postponed Speaking in Tongues to 2021. We made the difficult decision to cancel our productions of Closer than Ever and Ladies in Black. Thankfully we could stage our 12th Annual Biggest and Latest Morning Tea charity event ‘virtually’ with all funds raised going to Cancer Council Victoria. We contacted our 2021 directors to let them know we would reschedule Little Shop of Horrors and Little Miss Sunshine.
Victoria Stage 3 restrictions came into effect on the 30th March. During the lockdown, our traditional theatrical activities were all on hold, preventing us from generating any income. However, our expenses continued and we had to pay electricity, gas, water, phone, internet, security etc., which are significant recurring costs to maintain the Theatre. We were very grateful to Bayside Council who offered us a discount on our rent and Alliance Insurance for reductions to our public liability insurance.
Thankfully on November 27th, most restrictions were lifted in Melbourne. While we looked forward to 2021 with optimism, we cautiously decided to wait until our meeting in the New Year to finalise our 2021 Season.
At our Committee meeting on 16th January, we confirmed our 2021 Season would be Anne & Gilbert in May/June directed by Debbie Keyt, Speaking in Tongues in September directed by Sharon Maine and Little Shop of Horrors in November directed by Andy McDougall.
We also decided on dates for social and fundraising events: A Members Picnic & Season Launch in the park on Saturday 20th March with entertainment and appearances from each of our 2021 Directors; Betty’s Babies Improv & Comedy and the 13th Annual Biggest & Latest Morning Tea on Saturday 1st May.
BEAUMARIS THEATRE IN 2021
Below is a list of the lockdowns in Victoria so far in 2021, to highlight how often and in some cases, how quickly lockdowns have been imposed. The lifting of lockdowns has meant an easing of restrictions, which of course impact live theatre either by specific numbers, often limited to 30, i.e. 1 person to 2 or 4 square metres:
February 12th: A five-day lockdown under Stage 4 restrictions was announced which was lifted as anticipated on February 17th.
May 25th: Restrictions in Greater Melbourne were again tightened, to at least Friday, 4 June which included public gatherings that were limited to 30 people. The restrictions were initially planned to last for at least 7 days but the lockdown continued with some restrictions remaining till 10th June.
July 15th: A snap lockdown was announced for 5 days to 20th July.
August 5th: In response to the detection of six new community cases, our sixth lockdown was announced for 7 days.
August 11th- Lockdown was extended for another 7 days.
August 16th - Lockdown was extended for another 14 days, with the overnight curfew reinstated and a target end date of 2nd September.
September 1st- Lockdown was extended again.
Early in 2021, we had successfully held our Members Picnic in March and the 13th Annual Biggest & Latest Morning Tea, raising $2,152.00. We were very hopeful that COVID would not impact our much anticipated and long-awaited production of Anne & Gilbert.
The sold-out season opened on the 21st May with three marvellous performances on opening weekend to delighted audiences. Out of the blue, on 28th May, a lockdown was declared. Nine sold-out shows regretfully were cancelled and ticket holders received a refund. We were thrilled to stage five performances over the Queen’s Birthday long weekend. However, capacity restrictions meant that ticket sales were limited to family and friends with a mandated audience limit of 30 per show. We are extremely grateful and appreciative for the splendid theatrical experience and treasured memories of this production.
By June 2021, Beaumaris Theatre Inc., unfortunately, had no ability to generate income, continuing expenses and had suffered a significant $15,000 loss. We were hopeful our surpluses would provide a healthy cushion, but sadly 15 months of the COVID-19 pandemic had made serious inroads into our funds.
Speaking in Tongues was due to open on the 3rd of September. Auditions commenced on 30th May, via Zoom followed by face-to-face call-backs. The cast was announced and rehearsals began at the Theatre, however once the July/August lockdowns commenced rehearsals were limited to Zoom.
Over a number of weeks, we discussed the viability of the show opening on the 3rd of September, but the uncertainty of ongoing Government announcements meant this was not possible. Despite more than one attempt to reschedule the season, continuous lockdowns and slow easing of restrictions led to the difficult decision to cancel Speaking in Tongues.
Little Shop of Horrors was our final scheduled show for 2021, but there was some trepidation about its 12th November opening date. Face-to-face auditions were held at the beginning of August with callbacks taking place over Zoom when lockdown resumed.
The first virtual read-through was held on 29th August and the cast announcement was released on 30th August. The cast announcement generated a high level of criticism on social media based on a lack of diversity and not casting BIPOC performers in the roles known as the ‘Urchins', the trio who narrate the musical. There was also some consternation that the role of Mr Mushnik was cast as a woman rather than as a man as per script.
We are saddened to have caused so many people offence and distress by the casting choices made. We read the hundreds of comments left and listened to all the feedback we received and discussed the situation further with many members of our community.
Your Committee are a passionate group of dedicated volunteers managing a theatre during lockdown, and organising and discussing options for how to proceed with Little Shop of Horrors whilst managing the public response was difficult, to say the least.
However, on this occasion, we acknowledge that we were wrong. We are committed to doing better going forward to ensure greater diversity and representation is present in the audition room and on the stage.
On Tuesday 31st August, the Committee came to the unanimous, but incredibly difficult decision, to cancel Little Shop of Horrors. We certainly did not reach that decision lightly.
Many factors contributed to this decision including the challenges of re-casting while in lockdown and the uncertainty of future lockdowns. And then there are the financial challenges facing Beaumaris Theatre. We could not ignore that investing in excess of $20,000 in a musical when the Theatre had incurred a significant financial loss over the last 18 months is a significant risk. Ultimately, our decision was designed to protect the integrity and survival of Beaumaris Theatre Inc and look to the future.
We are looking forward to 2022 with unwavering positivity and hope. The last two years have been extremely challenging for us on many levels as they have been for countless businesses and individuals all around the world.
We have now been advised that we are eligible for some State Government support and we would like to thank them for that support. We would also like to thank Bayside Council for their support of Beaumaris Theatre not only with rent relief but also in dealing with maintenance issues quickly and effectively.
We are very excited by the prospect of staging fun, uplifting shows next year and beyond. We have wonderful plans for productions that will delight casts, creatives and audiences alike and we’ll be thrilled to return to what we do best and have done for the past 68 years- entertaining people! We can’t wait to open our theatre doors and warmly welcome you all back and revive the magic of theatre once again.