Theatre Baton Rouge suffered a financial crisis last summer, but several changes have stabilized the organization as it seeks a new leader.
The financial crisis was discovered after longtime managing artistic director Jenny Ballard resigned in late July. The organization’s structure had “blind spots” that prevented the money issues from being discovered sooner, according to Jennifer Feduccia, a member of the organization’s advisory board.
The organization took several steps, including layoffs, to cut operating costs from $29,000 to $19,000. These included a costume and furniture sale. TBR expanded its class offerings and incorporated them into current productions. The organization also changed internal processes for turning in expenses and was more diligent about the production budget.
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TBR launched the Light the Stage campaign last summer to raise $100,000 in 60 days. The organization surpassed the $100,000 goal in just over three weeks, Feduccia says.
“Shortly after the campaign, we reached our financial goals,” she says. “We were really diligent in paying off everything. It was all about 60 days past due. We started with the oldest and worked backward.”
TBR hired Porsche Wallace-Young as the new operations manager. Feduccia says Wallace-Young has been a vital part of stabilizing the organization.
Feduccia says the board is amending the job description before the nationwide search for an executive director begins and also changing the title to reflect the new organizational structure.
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“The original job description was too much for one person,” she says. “They were heavily involved and at the theater 24/7. What we’ve done with Porsche is give somebody with business acumen and customer service skills a 40-hour-per-week job. The new executive director’s job will be to hire the right production staff for every production, and then the main focus can be nothing but cultivating relationships with sponsors to ensure we have a continuous influx of donations.”
Feduccia anticipates the position will be filled by the end of this year or early next year.
This story originally appeared in an April 26 issue of Daily Report. To keep up with Baton Rouge business and politics, subscribe to the free Daily Report e-newsletter here.