The Fight Has Begun. Support Yellow Tree Theatre

“But when you act, you take us away from the squalor of the real world” – From Evita Lyric by Tim Rice

Last Night I did something I rarely get to do, I went to a show for the second time, just to experience and share the joy of it. That show was A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Guthrie Theater, but it could as easily have been a show at Yellow Tree or any of the dozens of actively producing theatre companies in the Twin Cities area. On the ride home after we had dropped off my son and his fiancée and had finished discussing the play, my wife and I got talking about current events. The thought kept coming into my head, this is why we go to the theater, to raise our spirits and take us away from real world for just a few hours. That is one of the many reasons that the theater is so important. Not only does it help us escape, but it has the advantage over streaming at home in that it gets us out of our houses, out into the community, sharing an experience with more than just those on the couch next to us. We are so fortunate here in the Twin Cities to have such a vast and diverse theater community, but it is under attack. If we want to protect that community we have to step up now.

This morning I received an email from Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo, who has produced some wonderful theater out in the suburbs. Below are some quotes from the email:

Yellow Tree Theatre relies heavily on national and statewide grants to support our mission. Recently, we have been informed that statewide and federal arts funding have dramatically decreased or have been canceled making grant funding even more competitive and affecting our immediate cash flow. This is a drastic decrease like we have never experienced before. 

These challenges threaten not only our ability to keep our doors open but also our ongoing core mission:

Providing access to the arts for everyone, including underserved communities in North Minneapolis and the surrounding suburbs.

Championing diverse voices—stories by and for artists of color, women, LGBTQ+ communities, and others historically marginalized in theater.

We believe that theater should reflect the richness of the world around us. That’s why we remain committed to producing bold and inclusive work.

But We Can’t Do It Without You.

If you believe in the power to build bridges, spark conversations, and create change, we ask you to stand with us today. Every dollar makes a difference. Every gift fuels our ability to continue. Donate today to help us sustain our mission, keep our doors open, and continue making Yellow Tree Theatre a home for all.

We are going to see this more and more often going forward. Theaters will close, but let’s not let it happen today, let’s not let it be Yellow Tree. I’ve written before about my belief that these theaters like Yellow Tree and Lyric Arts in Anoka create a valuable link in reaching the goal of creating new theater audiences. That goal is more important now than ever before. We can make the theater community stronger by building that audience. I’m going to ask you to click on the button below and make a donation to Yellow Tree Theatre if you can. I’m also going to ask all of you, faithful readers, to take someone new to a show in the next few weeks. Let’s build that audience up!

https://ci.ovationtix.com/35626/store/donations/39012

Need ideas of what to see?

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