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December 29, 2020
Greetings Fellow Savoyards,
Well, we have almost made it to the promised land. Maybe not the utopia we had hoped for, but as my grandfather always said, “In a desert, even muddy water looks good.” As we close out 2020 (thankfully) and move into 2021, I wanted to send you some updates on the Society and a few items to look forward to in 2021.Financial Status
I want to begin by thanking everyone who has supported us during this whole ordeal. Without our loyal fans we would have certainly gone the way of so many other arts organizations and small businesses, and yet, here we are. Thanks to a generous grant from the Cullen Trust for the Performing Arts, as well as donations from you, our loyal supporters, we are happy to report that we are financially secure for the time being.Giving Back to the Arts Community
In the spirit of giving, we used a large portion of the Cullen Trust grant to help out the members of our arts community hit the hardest by the darkening of the city's stages, disbursing grants to our stagehands, musicians and other theater workers. We could not do these shows without them, and our decades of partnership made these decisions very easy.The Past Year
This pandemic has been hard on our G&S family in ways we could not foresee. We have lost past members and not been able to sing “Hail Poetry” as they take their final curtain call. We have seen members of the Society struggle with COVID-19 in their own families and not been able to take them a meal.
While we have gotten down over the anxieties this has produced, we have found new ways to lift each other up. We have turned to virtual performances to share the joy of Gilbert and Sullivan with the world. We had a viewing of our 1998 “Yeomen of the Guard” that ended up as a reunion of sorts for Society alumni.
But what we miss the most is being on stage; hearing the orchestra tuning in the pit, the stage manager yelling “Places for Act 1!”, watching the stagehands raise the curtain, and see all of your smiling faces looking back at us from the seats. We are almost there, but we don’t want to rush anything.The Year to Come
With safety in mind, we have made a few decisions surrounding our 2021 schedule. Our Spring Gala has been postponed until further notice. We are looking at various options but hope to have it back in its usual place in spring 2022.
As of the release of this letter, we are hopeful to stage a show summer 2021. We are in a holding pattern with vaccine news and theater availability but are putting together a schedule that would see us have virtual auditions in the spring, followed by a staged production in July or August. Fingers crossed!!Thanks for Your Support!
As the sun sets on 2020 and we look ahead to the dawn of 2021, we thank you for your continued loyalty and support. Should you have the means to help further support our efforts to bring live theater back to Houston, you can do so by visiting gilbertandsullivan.org/support. We will continue our efforts to support not only the Gilbert and Sullivan Society, but the teams of people that help us bring these beautiful shows to life.
I hope you are all having a happy holiday season, have a prosperous new year, and will join us as we bring more G&S to life in 2021. Now, go wash your hands.
Sincerely,
Steven B. McCary
President
The Gilbert and Sullivan Society of Houston
www.gilbertandsullivan.org