The Denver Center for the Performing Arts’ newly issued annual report shows a welcome stabilization of the bottom line after several rough years. Attendance and revenue held steady, while giving took a hit.
“We were able to dodge the deadliest bullets,” said chairman Daniel L. Ritchie. “We finished in the black . . . and even more important, we maintained artistic standards without compromise.”
The DCPA is the business that oversees two sister presenting entities — the homegrown Denver Center Theatre Company, which stages up to 12 plays a year, and Denver Center Attractions, which hosts touring productions and runs the Galleria Theatre.
Overall, the DCPA finished the fiscal year ending June 30, 2010, about $150,000 in the black, an improvement of about $230,000 over the previous year. That was the bloody fiscal year of 2008-09, when the Denver Center cut about $800,000 in operating costs (though not from the Denver Center Theatre Company’s production budget).
Overall, the DCPA brought in $35 million in ticket revenue, up nearly $5 million from ’08-09. That’s attributable to the touring division, where attendance surged 20 percent, to 530,000, for musicals like “Young Frankenstein,” “Wicked” and “Legally Blonde.” But that’s more a reflection of volume than recovery — DCA simply put up more shows than the year before.
A more accurate reading of attendance is “percent of capacity” — a measurement of available seats sold. By that score, the touring series actually fell, from 78 percent of butts in the seats, to 74. The DCPA cited the volatility and unpredictability of the touring market last year when it announced it was phasing out its National Theatre Conservatory graduate program.
The theater company’s attendance looks like it’s in a freefall — down 12.8 percent, to 150,280. That’s a far cry from three years ago, when the company drew 193,000. But the theater company staged two fewer shows, and clocked in at 62 percent of capacity — unchanged from the year before.
Subscribed seats are an important indicator of the Denver Center’s bankable income. Of the theater company’s ticket sales, 35.4 percent were moved as part of a subscription package, up a tick from 34.4, while the touring series fell, from 17.2 to 16.2.
“We started to see a real attendance dive for the theater company in January 2009,” said DCPA chief financial officer Vicky Miles. “But this time a year ago, we really started to see things improve. I think we’re through the worst of it.”
The most troubling figures in the report aren’t as troubling as they look, says DCPA vice president Dorothy Denney. Giving, as might be expected, fell hard. Donations from individuals, corporations and foundations dropped an alarming-looking 30 percent — from 3.9 million to 2.8. But Denny said that’s just a return to normal a year after the Denver Center received several major, unexpected gifts.
“We have managed to weather this about as well as I think we night have,” said Denny.
Denver Center attendance by show, 2009-10
Denver Center Attractions:
Show, total attendance
1. “Wicked” 132,869
2. “Mary Poppins” 88,362
3. “Legally Blonde, the Musical” 30,055
4. “Young Frankenstein” 29,358
5. “Little House on the Prairie” 29,120
6. “In the Heights” 28,202
7. “Spring Awakening” 22,271
8. “Riverdance” 20,958
9. “Cats” 20,427
10. “Fiddler on the Roof” 16,046
11. “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” 11,507
12. “Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles” 11,058
13. “Cirque Dreams: Illumination” 10,687
14. “Mark Twain Tonight” 2,468
Denver Center Theatre Company:
Show, total attendance
1. “A Christmas Carol” Not available
2. “Mama Hated Diesels” 26,433
3. *”August: Osage County” 24,317
4. “Othello” 15,329
5. “Eventide” 15,006
6. “A Raisin in the Sun” 14,712
7. “Absurd Person Singular” 10,677
8. “When Tang Met Laika” 9,918
9. “The Voysey Inheritance” 9,619
10. “Quilters” 7,658
11. “Mariela in the Desert” 7,192
12. “Well” 6,748
*Touring production offered as part of DCTC season
Galleria Theatre:
Show, total attendance
1. “Girls Only: The Secret Comedy of Women” 42,930
National Theatre Conservatory:
Show, total attendance
1. “Hamlet” 2,170
2. “Tartuffe” 1,661
Briefly…
Buntport Theater was named one of the 2010 recipients of the Mayor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts. The other honorees are the Colorado Business Committee for the Arts and The Spirituals Project. There’s a reception at 5:30 p.m. Feb. 23 at Su Teatro’s Denver Civic Theatre. Free tickets must be reserved by emailing doca@denvergov.org. Read the full story . . . .
You may recall the hubbub over “The Good Body” in 2009 when the Lake Dillon Theatre tried to move its hit one- woman staging of Eve Ensler’s observations on body image to the Aurora Fox, only to be shut down because . . . well, it’s not supposed to be a one-woman play. “The Good Body” is back in an all-new staging by the Avenue Theater — and with three women actors: Emily Paton Davies, Megan van de Hey and Lisa Rosenhagen. It’s the fourth installment in The Avenue’s “January for Women” series” — though this is one men really should see as well. It plays through Feb. 26 at 417 E. 17th Ave. (303-321-5925 ). . . .
And finally . . . Channel 2’s Chris Parente hosts Curious Theatre’s third annual “OUT @ Curious” celebration of the gay community. The program begins at 6 p.m. Wednesday with a reception, followed by a performance of “Circle Mirror Transformation” and a post-show party with the cast. Tickets are $40-$100, with proceeds benefitting Curious Theatre and One Colorado (1080 Acoma St., 303-623-0524 or ).
John Moore: 303-954-1056 or jmoore@denverpost.com
This week’s theater openings
Opening Monday, Jan. 31, through April 16: Arvada Center’s “Flat Stanley” (children’s)
Opening Wednesday, Feb. 2, through March 6: 73rd Avenue Theatre Company’s “Pygmalion” Westminster
Opening Thursday, Feb. 3, through Feb. 26: Denver Center Theatre Company’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” at the Stage Theatre
Opening Friday, Feb. 4, through March 27: Union Colony Dinner Theatre’s The Fantasticks” Greeley
Opening Friday, Feb. 4, through April 17: Jesters Dinner Theatre’s “Camelot” Longmont
Opening Friday, Feb. 4, through March 13: Dangerous Theatre’s “An Evening With Mr. Johnson”
Friday, Feb. 4, and Saturday, Feb. 5 only: Gemma Wilcox Productions’ “Red Bastard,” at Naropa University Boulder
This week’s theater closings
Today, Jan. 30: Town Hall Arts Center’s “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” Littleton
Today, Jan. 30: PHAMALy’s “The Diviners,” at the Aurora Fox
Today, Jan. 30: ARCH’s “Medal of Honor Rag” at Denver Civic Theatre
Today, Jan. 30: Evergreen Players’ “Story Theatre”
Sunday, Feb. 6: Vintage Theatre’s “Bedroom Farce”
Best bet: Buntport Theater’s “Kafka on Ice”
Theater . . . on ice? Buntport Theater brings back “Kafka on Ice,” its popular dark comedy from 2004 that is performed on, yes, synthetic ice. The story weaves a semi-fictionalized biography of the Czech author together with the plot of his famously buggy short story, “Metamorphosis.” As the details of Kafka’s life spin into increasingly ice-scapade-esque madness, he desperately tries to rein the plotline in. Josh Hartwell joins the regular Buntport ensemble to play Kafka. $13-$20. 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays; 3 p.m. Sundays through Feb. 19 at 717 Lipan St., 720-946-1388 or .
Best bet: ARCH’s “Medal of Honor” Rag
“Medal of Honor Rag” is Tom Cole’s fact-based one-act play, showing the 1971 confrontation between a troubled black Vietnam War hero and the white psychiatrist who tries to help him after he returns. The two performances by the Association for the Retention of Cultural Heritages are at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, and benefit Veterans Green Jobs. Sunday’s staging will be followed by a panel discussion on veterans’ affairs. $15-$20. At Su Teatro’s Denver Civic Theater, 721 Santa Fe Drive, 303-296-0219 or .
This week’s video podcast
John Moore of The Denver Post takes you to the opening of the new Edge Theatre’s first production, “Extremities.” Guests include Rick Yaconis, Jessica Clare, Sonia Justl and director Laura Lounge. Running time: 3 minutes, 42 seconds.
This weekend’s most recent theater openings
“The Catch” In this world premiere staging, a failed dot-commer schemes to regain his lost fortune by catching a baseball star’s record-breaking home-run ball. Through Feb. 26. Presented by the Denver Center Theatre Company at the Space Theatre, 14th and Curtis streets, 303-893-4100 or
“Cuentame un Cuentito”This bilingual collection of Latin-American tales (“Tell Me a Story”) will be told through words and music. No knowledge of Spanish is necessary, appropriate for the whole family. Saturday only. Presented by Stories on Stage and Modern Muse at the Denver Civic Theatre, 721 Santa Fe Drive, 303-494-0523 or
“The Good Body” Eve Ensler (“The Vagina Monologues”) has shifted her fixation on the female body to the north in this seriocomic exploration of the estrogen-fueled abdomen. Through Feb. 26. The Avenue Theater, 417 E. 17th Ave., 303-321-5925 or
“Looking for Normal” Jane Anderson’s drama explores the impact a working-class father’s search for identity has on the greater community around him when he expresses his belief that he is a woman trapped in a man’s body. Through March 6. Bas Bleu Theatre, 401 Pine St., Fort Collins, 970-498-8949 or
“Love” This series of original short stories by local playwrights marks the debut of the Byers-Evans Theatre Company. Through Feb. 19. Byers-Evans House Museum, 1310 Bannock St., 303-620-4933.
“Loud: This Is It” The Heritage Square Music Hall brings back the last chapter in its popular series of “Loud” pop-music revues spanning the 1950s-90s. Total silly fun. Through Feb. 27. 18301 W. Colfax Ave., Golden, 303-279-7800 or
“Lucky Stiff” This screwball musical by the team that also wrote “Ragtime” is a murder-mystery farce about a British shoe salesman who is forced to take a corpse on a week-long vacation to Monte Carlo. Through Feb. 12. Longmont Theatre Company, 513 Main St., 303-772-5200 or
“The Producers” Mel Brooks’ Broadway blockbuster about, ironically, two theatrical producers who develop a get-rich scheme to produce the world’s worst musical. Through Feb. 20. Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, 30 W. Dale St., 719-634-5583 or
“Reasons to Be Pretty” Four working-class friends are forced to confront the reality of their relationships when one makes an off- handed remark about his girlfriend’s appearance. It’s Neil LaBute’s dark commentary on insecurity, cruelty and vanity. Through Feb. 26. Paragon Theatre, 1387 S. Santa Fe Drive, 303-300-2210 or
Complete theater listings
Go to our complete list of in Colorado, including summaries, run dates, addresses, phones and links to every company’s home page. Or check out our listings or
The Running Lines blog
Catch up on John Moore’s roundup of theater news and dialogue.
