Surflight Theatre took its second major hit of the yearon Tuesday,with Tropical Storm Isaiasgutting the temporary venue set up by the theater in an attempt to salvage its season amid COVID-19 restrictions.
Tonight was supposed to be opening night for "Mamma Mia!" at the Beach Haven institution, which has been producing theater since 1950.
Instead, cast and crew members are carrying set pieces back to the shop for repair, as lighting and sound equipment, costumes and the stage itselfare inspected for damage.
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Oh, and the giant tent set up to house the entire open-air theater? That's in tatters. The company that provided it is working to replace and re-set it as quickly as possible.
Because after all, despite the challenges standing in its way, Surflight still believes "the show must go on."
And the challenges are many, starting with COVID-19, which shut down the season before it even had a chance to start.
Like many businesses, Surflight faced the loss of all of its income, which producing artistic director Steve Steiner said would have spelled doom for the theater, which re-opened in 2017 after a two-year closure that followed a string of difficulties that included bankruptcy, a fire and superstorm Sandy.
"We determined that we were going to lose money if we did this, but we would lose a lot more if we didn't. We're a nonprofit organization, but the losing much more would mean that the theater would once again close. We did it specifically to try to get to next year."
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"We erected the tent, built a stage inside of it, put lighting equipment and sound equipment and have been playing shows since July 8," Steiner said. He said that the outdoor theaterusually seats between 175 and 210 people, less than half of their regular seating, and well under the state maximum of 500, with social distancing. The theater is set up for each performance with chairs configured to match ticket sales, with 6feet between groups on all sides.
He also said that assistance such asPaycheck Protection Program loans has helped the theater run.
The tented venue is across the street from the main theater, a vantage point that allowed Steiner to watch Tuesday's damage from his office window.
"The tent was driven into the ground with spikes," he said. "You could see one leg and then another leg would be lifting up, and then it was billowing up and down for a while. It sort of became a kite that was semi-tethered to the ground."
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Surflight usually employs some professional Actors' Equity Associationperformers, but is going ahead this season so far without Equity partnership. The union has removed Surflight from its list of producing theaters, citing workplace safety concerns related to COVID-19.
Steiner says that Surflight's setup allows it to safely perform where other theaters may not be able to.
"We have a very unique situation here," he said. "Almost every theater in the country has either all local performersor a mix of local and some jobbed-in people. Because we're in a resort area, with the exception of the four or five people who work here year-round, there are no year-round residents that are theater professionals. Everybody that works here during the season is brought in, and we have housing for 55. So we created sort of a poor man's version of what the NBA is doing," including a social contract with everyone involved that says the only people they interact with while they are here are those associated with the theater.
"It's unique because most theaters don't have this kind of housing situation," he said.
Steiner says that the entire theater company, roughly 45 people, has been tested three times so far, with no positive cases.
The theater hopes to repair its damage quickly and re-open as soon as this week.AGoFundMe has been set up for donations to help the theater repair and stay afloat. You can make donations at gofundme.com/f/save-surflight-theatre.
Steiner says having Surflight open and producing shows is important not just for the well-being of the theater, but for its audiences.
"We needed to do this not just for us, but for our community as well," he said.
"Mamma Mia" is currently slated to run through Aug. 30, followed by "Almost Heaven: Songs of John Denver," "Murder on the Orient Express," "Almost, Maine,""Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story" and "Ebenezer: A Musical Christmas Carol" on the mainstage. Children's productions including "Frozen, Jr.," "Peter Pan," "The Wizard and Oz" and more also are upcoming.
Visitsurflight.orgfor updated show information, to learn more or to make a donation.
Ilana Keller is anaward-winning journalist and lifelong New Jersey resident who loves Broadway and really bad puns. She highlights arts advocacyand education, theater fundraisers and morethrough her column,"Sightlines." Reach out onTwitter: @ilanakeller;ikeller@gannettnj.com
