Uncertainty Takes Center Stage

The latest drama at the Courthouse Center for the Arts is not a new production. The West Kingston not-for-profit organization faces grave financial difficulties. A significant contributor to the cultural scene in South County for the past 24 years, the Courthouse now needs community support in order to stay open. As of press time, artistic and executive director Richard Ericson remains hopeful but uncertain about the center’s future. Here, the veteran producer and theater professional speaks candidly to SO.

“When I was hired last fall, the building was essentially empty. There was no staff and no programming,” Ericson explains, referencing the abrupt departure of former executive director Russell Maitland and much of his staff last summer. “The Board and I together decided that we would re-establish ourselves by doing ambitious programming between January and June, which we’ve done. My feeling is that we need to really focus more on what we consider to be the primary services that we provide.”

In addition to professional, critically acclaimed theater like their recent hit Titanic, the Courthouse offers visual art shows, concerts, classes and more. Ericson’s goals for the place include housing a school for performing and digital arts, and taking hit plays on tour regionally. While such diverse programming makes it vibrant and bustling, the center struggles to find its niche and secure funding. Ericson worries, “The Courthouse may be trying to do too many things, and therefore not be known for one or two things.”

Ericson wants the Courthouse to specialize in a few areas, and to be excellent at them. But he and the dedicated board of directors are still figuring out which areas. In the meantime, they’re fund-raising like mad in the hopes of closing the serious gap between their revenue and their operating budget. Above all, they’re trying to re-build the organization’s business model and to make it sustainable. Ericson suggests, “I think there’s been too much push to get to next week over the years, rather than really thinking out what is going to be, in the long run, the most successful thing.”

In a state as small as RI, and as teeming with talent, non-profit arts organizations often grapple for the same grants, donors and audience members. In tough economic times like these, the competition heats up. Government funding dwindles, philanthropists feel the pinch, and ticket sales dip. As Ericson puts it, “There just isn’t enough money to go around. The question is, does the community need the art? And are they willing to support it?”

Based on the enthusiastic response to the center thus far this year, the community certainly seems supportive. So the Courthouse plans to continue presenting quality programming, as long as it can. The upcoming American Music Series offers soul with Christine Ohlman and Rebel Montez on September 6, rock with Jon Butcher Axis and Farrenheit with special guest David Hull on October 4, and folk with Jim Kweskin and Geoff Muldaur on November 8. For Halloween, folks can tour a spooky Haunted Courthouse and catch the play DRACULA, an exciting, original adaptation running October 10 through November 4. But Ericson stresses that the best and most immediate way to show support for the Courthouse Center for the Arts is to send a donation.