Giving Tuesday, Past and Present

Last week we talked about Giving Tuesday, how it started and when it is. This week, let's take a moment to talk about all the things that will be possible because of the proceeds from this year's Giving Tuesday fundraiser.

Towne Street Theatre will be able to expand its Ten Minute Play Festival programming. The Ten Minute Play Festival has long been an audience favorite and it’s easy to see why. What’s not to love? Short, easy to digest plays; a strong cast led by creative writers and directors; and last but not least, a competition to see which play was the best.

(Standing: Whitney Blake Dean. Sitting: Charlotte Williams Roberts. Image from 2017 Ten Minute Play Festival "Egg Timer" by Christina Luzárraga.)

The Ten Minute Play festival asks playwrights to stick to a shorter format than they might be used to, and to write something within the genre that is chosen. One year was all about women, one year was about the Black experience and another year focused on celebration in all its forms. Each year is a new opportunity to flex those creative muscles for writers, directors, and actors.

This year, Towne Street Theatre will be expanding the Ten Minute Play festival to include a youth component and a film component. This will create more opportunities for Towne Street to partner with other organizations and community groups. It will also help existing members of Towne Street to explore new passions and develop new skills.

Giving Tuesday proceeds will also help Towne Street hire more staff as well as move some members of the expanding community into salaried roles. This will be a very exciting development for the company.

In previous years, the Giving Tuesday fundraiser helped Towne Street Theatre keep all its wheels spinning smoothly. It has helped pay actors stipends, come up with prizes for the winners of the best written play of the Ten Minute Play Festival, pay for costumes and helped build amazing sets. During the pandemic, it helped Towne Street Theatre keep bringing its audience quality theatre through digital programming created on Zoom and other platforms.

(A still image from a Zoom reading of "Black Annie" in the 2022 production year.)

Because Towne Street is a small theatre company, every donation helps. So this Giving Tuesday (November 29th) we hope you will open your wallets and hearts and help your favorite theatre company move into its third decade with a bang.