Minutes of the Los Alamos Little Theater
Board of Directors Meeting
October 2, 2012
Present: John Gustafson, Eric Björklund, Gracie Cainelli, Patrick Webb,
Grady Hughes, John Cullinan, Chris Monteith, Kate Ramsey,
TJ Severinghaus
Absent: Bobbie Simpson
Visitors: Ken Milder, Jillian Burgin
Administrative Business:
Call To Order:
The board meeting was called to order at 6:00 pm by John Gustafson.
Minutes:
Eric distributed the minutes of the September 4th meeting. Gracie had a
correction to the Old Business section on the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony. Gracie
moved that we adopt the corrected minutes from September 4th meeting. TJ
seconded and the motion passed unanimously. However on subsequent review
after the meeting it turned out that Gracie’s correction was actually an update
insofar as it reflected what actually happened after the September 4th meeting
rather than what had been planned at the time. Consequently, Gracie’s
correction will be reported in these minutes under Old Business and the
September 4th minutes will remain unammended. Meanwhile, Robert is
probably turning over in his grave.
Treasurer’s Report:
For want of a treasurer, there was no treasurer’s report.
Mail:
There was no mail report either.
Concerns:
Neither were there any concerns.
House Report:
It turns out the shed is worse off than we originally thought. Our options are:
1. Replace the roof (estimated cost is $800)
2. Replace the shed (estimated cost is $8,000)
3. Replace the roof and the siding (somewhere between 1 and 2).
Given that winter is fast approaching and that we have already spent a lot of
money on the stage and electrical upgrades, the decision was made to throw a
tarp over the roof to keep the contents dry and revisit the issue in the spring
after the weather and finances have improved.
New Business:
Theater Rental By Democratic Party
Ken Milder approached the board about renting the theater to the Democratic
Party for the purpose of presenting a political satirist on October 30th, 2012.
Since this is the fifth tuesday of the month, the folk dancers would not be using
the building that night. Ken also confirmed that “Woman In Black” would not
be using the space that night either. He proposed an $18 ticket price with the
proceeds split 80/20 between the performer and the Los Alamos Democratic
party. The board agreed to the arrangement. No vote was taken because this
was viewed as being within the power of the building use committee (John
Gustafson).
However... Later that night Ken discovered that the folk dancers were planning
their Halloween party for that night so the Democrats would seek a different
venue.
However... On October 9th, Ken informed us that the folk dancers party would
be at the Unitarian Church, freeing up the PAC for the satirist. In the mean
time, John had come across some troubling information about churches being
threatened with the loss of their 501 (c) 3 status for representing partisan
political views. An e-mail discussion ensued culminating in the following
motion by Eric:
Move that we rent the PAC to the Los Alamos Democratic party on the
night of October 30 for the purpose of presenting a one-night show
featuring a political satirist.
The motion was seconded by Patrick and passed 8 to 0 with two abstentions.
Tech Crew Pipeline:
John expressed his concern about the dwindling pool of technical talent. We
need to start recruiting and training the next generation. For that matter, even
some of the current generation have been outpaced by the latest technology. A
series of workshops was proposed with the first step being to assemble a list of
Subject Matter Experts (aka SME’s).
Budget for “Frost/Nixon”:
Kate Ramsey and Jillian Burgin presented a budget of $2,765 for “Frost/
Nixon”. The only modification to the proposed budget was to remove $100
from “Set Painting and Decoration” because paint purchasing is a theater
expense and not a show expense (unless it is an unusual type of paint required
specifically for that show). Eric moved that we approve a budget of $2,665 for
“Frost/Nixon”. Patrick seconded and the motion passed unanimously. The
finalized budget is shown below:
Scripts:
$175
Royalties:
$600
Publicity:
$800
Set Construction:
$250
Set painting & decoration:
$0
Props:
$75
Costumes:
$300
Tickets:
$40
Programs:
$200
Lobby Display:
$25
Photography:
$25
Videography:
$50
Hair/Makeup
$100
Sound
$25
Total:
$2,665
Group Ticket Sales:
The Rotary Club has approached us about group ticket rates. After a discussion
on amounts, break points, and assigned seating, Chris made the following
motion:
The Los Alamos Little Theatre will offer group discounts on
advanced sale tickets only. The discount will be $1 off the normal
ticket price for 10-19 tickets, $2 off the normal ticket price for 20-29
tickets, and $3 off the normal ticket price for 30 or more tickets. All
seating is open seating on a first come first choice basis.
Kate seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
Guidelines for Play Proposals:
John sent out a proposal for a Play Proposal Information Sheet. Kate had some
suggestions from a set of questions she received from Jennifer Garcia apropos
of a publicity piece for the Monitor. It was decided that since we did not
anticipate any shows with long lead-time requirements that we would extend
the deadline for submissions to the end of January 2013.
Old Business:
Ribbon Cutting Ceremony:
The ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the refurbished Performing Arts
Center took place on September 14, 2012 at 11:30 am. There was a 5 minute
“trailer” from “Dead Man’s Cell Phone” followed by a luncheon. Ruby K and
Subway provided sandwiches for the event. Smith’s provided a cake.
Additional food was provided by Gracie Cainelli, Jim Sicilian, Sarah Preteska,
and Kathy Björklund. Total expenses for the luncheon were $339.
Pasion de Tango:
Gracie reported that we are on track for October 18.
New Year’s Eve:
There was a discussion regarding whether or not we should continue the New
Year’s Eve party. The party is difficult to put on and last year we just broke
even. Using local caterers instead of “Cowgirl” was suggested, although it was
pointed out that most of the local food establishments do not work on New
Year’s Eve. TJ and Patrick are the board NYE committee and will look into the
issue.
AACTFest 2013 Report:
We made a presentation to the Theater New Mexico board on September 29.
The current budget shows a $3,000 shortfall. We will be looking into corporate
sponsorships and selling advertisements in the program. (Note that the
AACTFest budget is TNM’s problem, not LALT’s.) We are lining up
workshops on Costuming, Play Writing, and Improvisation. There are at least
two candidates apiece to lead the Play Writing and Improvisation workshops.
Building Re-Keying:
No progress.
Adjournment:
TJ moved to adjourn. John Cullinan seconded.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:00 pm.
The next meeting will be Tuesday, November 6th, 2012.
Respectfully Submitted
Eric Björklund
Amanuensis