Some Notes for the Families of 'Shelter'!

Hi there, all -
Well, we are reaching the midpoint of our run here on Shelter...and the pride I feel (and that I know you share) in the talent, commitment, and sacrifice shown by your young artists is real! Our audiences have been solid, our performances rich...and it's time, finally, for a break!
A couple of things to share with y'all as we prepare for the final stretch:
1) The next two days (2/16 and 2/17) are what we in the theatre biz call 'dark': No calls, no onsite obligations. This is a great time to rest, to recover, and to reconnect. That said, we do have some sizable audience yet to share the power of Shelter...so it is asked that members of the team take a few minutes each day to review their lines/notes/tasks so we're not coming in cold for Wednesday's Archival/Pickup.
2) On that note, the schedule for Wednesday is 400p-930p. During that time we accomplish a lot of goals, including refreshing ourselves on the show for our second weekend audiences ('Pickup Rehearsal') and recording the show for the future, for our playwright, and for potential grant opportunities ('Archival Recording'). It is a day as vital to us as any performance.
3) Speaking of important days, we clear the show and reset the auditorium for other uses from 1000a to 300p on Sunday, 2/22. This is a mandatory call for ALL cast, crew, and management. Due to the calendar, IBW is hosting another event on Wednesday, 2/25, and we need all hands on deck to un-do in five hours what we spent nine weeks putting together. Every team member is expected on time and contributing Sunday morning.
4) Speaking of long calls, thank you to the six families who have so far contributed over $300 to help feed the 40 or so cast and crew members during our long, draining days representing IBWHS. I couldn't do this without you! If you have the means, please help me offset the over $800 (so far, and we need more food) it's cost to feed your young people throughout this process. Again, there are no school resources to help with this...this has come out of my personal bank account. Both PayPal and Venmo are options: @tragcom22
5) Speaking of resources, as many of you already know, this has been a tough year on the theatre company financially...and given the state of PPS finances, not likely to improve. If it isn't too much to ask, I'd like to invite anyone who can join us to a meeting here at IBW this Wednesday, February 2/18 at 830pm. It's a bit late in the day, but for anyone who has someone in the show, my goal is to end just in time for you to pick up your student from Pickup/Archival that night and go home together! We'll talk about ways that the community we've built around this amazing show can help us insure the present and future of theatre here at IBW!
6) Finally, the following is the response to our production from a very highly respected member of our regional theatre community, encouraging the world at large to take part in our story:


Shelter - Tony Sonera Audience Review -Social Media.png

Your folk are doing simply singular work here...again, I could not be more proud!
Thanks for all you've done and shared through your students. It means the world!
- jm