COVID-19 & SEASON UPDATES

June 10, 2020

Dear Blackfriars Theatre Family, 

First of all, let us say how much we miss seeing you at the theatre! We're heartbroken to have been disconnected for so long and to have missed some wonderful storytelling opportunities to share together. Though we find ourselves stationed in our homes for longer than expected, we do hope you and yours are safe and healthy and finding ways to stay sane.

As you can probably surmise, there will be some changes to our 20-21 calendar. We've been taking this time to connect with state and local business, artistic and community leaders; to glean advice from our county health department and Dr. Mendoza, and to work with our Board, staff and artistic teams to create a series of re-opening plans. Here are the updates we can provide, as of this moment:

— The 2020-2021 revised season will run from January 2021 through July 2021. This shift will allow us to retain a full six show slate. The line-up will preserve both Every Brilliant Thing and The Wolves, but will see four new shows added to the bill. Three of these shows will be announced later this summer.

— Godspell has been moved! Originally slated as our July 2020 production, we will be moving it to the final show of the new season. It will serve as the closing production of our revised 20-21 line-up, wrapping up the season in July 2021.

— Calendar Girls and Silent Sky will return! These stories were near and dear to our hearts and we couldn't just let them go away, so we have decided to program them for our 2021-2022 Season. Right now they are scheduled for our October and December slots for the 72nd Season. We're thrilled to still be able to share them with you.

— The 6th Annual Season Soiree is ON...line! Our unique and one of a kind gala fundraiser will still be happening on Saturday, November 21...only it will be a completely virtual experience. More information will be coming later this summer. But mark your calendars now!

— Seating may be limited. This is one area we still don't have solid ground to stand (sit?) on, but we want to be proactive about discussing the situation. As of this moment, if we were to gather in the theatre, the seating would have to be socially distanced. Meaning not every seat at Blackfriars could be used for all our patrons. We recognize this puts a damper on the possibility of having your favorite seats for every show, but first and foremost our job has to be securing everyone's health and safety. We will be keeping you posted on how we will handle this concern, but suffice it to say, there will likely be some bit of reshuffling tickets, dates and seats once we lock down the new schedule.

— Blackfriars summer schedule… Our offices will remain closed and Mary and Danny will be taking a summer respite and our Communication Coordinator, Danielle Raymo, will be our touch point for the next few months. In the spirit of being proactive, we have made this decision to reduce our expenses through the summer, in order to be fiscally responsible. We all want to be back in our theatrical home with you, our dearest supporters and artists, and we are making these decisions so that Blackfriars will continue to be a staple of the downtown Rochester arts scene for years to come. 

More information about next season, subscriber tickets, new membership packages, and organizational changes will be forthcoming. Admittedly we are not infectious disease experts, nor are we government officials, but we are doing the best we can with the knowledge we have to protect our patrons, artists and staff and to serve our community safely. To that end, we feel this is the best possible scenario that allows Blackfriars to still provide a full season of professionally-minded, artistically-ambitious productions while also maintaining the highest level of safety and precautions for all of us. 

We thank you for your patience and support as we continue to navigate this unprecedented situation for the good of our community. Our team is still hard at work bringing you Blackfriars programming while on hiatus. We hope you’ll join us for the BT Book Club, check out our Couch Concerts Series, enjoy Unleashed! Improv on Friday nights, and take a class with The Conservatory at Blackfriars Theatre.

Should you need to get in touch with us, please email us at info@blackfriars.org. In the meantime, please take care of yourselves and of each other. We look forward to seeing you again - happy and healthy - at Blackfriars when the time is right.

Warmly,
Danny Hoskins, Artistic & Managing Director
Mary Tiballi Hoffman, Development Manager
Danielle Raymo, Communications Coordinator