Centre Stage is holding its first fundraising gala since 2006. What has changed financially or organizationally to make a major fundraiser necessary now, and how will the proceeds be used?
This year marks Centre Stage’s 28th year serving children and families in Monrovia and the surrounding communities, and it is also one of the biggest years of growth in our history. We recently acquired our new home at 724 E. Huntington Drive, giving us approximately 9,000 square feet where we can expand our classes, rehearsals, private instruction and performances and create a permanent home for the organization.
With that opportunity have also come significant unexpected expenses. As we have worked through the building and inspection process with the city, we have encountered improvements the city requires that were not anticipated when we took on the space. Those costs are substantial for small nonprofit organization like ours.
At the same time, the economy has made our mission of accessibility more important than ever. One of the principles I have held onto throughout Centre Stage’s history is that we never want a child turned away simply because their family cannot afford to participate. As more families need financial assistance, we need additional resources to continue making that commitment possible.
The proceeds from The Other Side Gala will help us complete and improve our new facility, including our black box theatre, while also supporting scholarships and the continued expansion of our performing-arts programs in the community and local schools.
Since you founded Centre Stage in 1998, how have youth participation and families’ ability to afford performing-arts instruction changed?
Children’s lives have changed tremendously since 1998. There are more demands on families financially, and there are also many more things competing for young people’s time and attention. We are seeing families who genuinely want their children involved in the arts but simply cannot take on another expense.
At the same time, I believe young people need these opportunities more than ever. Performing arts give students a place to belong, particularly during the middle-school and teen years when finding a positive community can be so important. They are putting down their phones, working toward something together, making music, creating art and forming real relationships.
That is one reason we continue expanding our partnerships with schools. If a child cannot come to Centre Stage, we want to find ways to bring Centre Stage to them. Our goal is to remove as many barriers as possible so that a family's income does not determine whether a child has access to music, theatre and dance.
Apart from producing skilled performers, what lasting effects have you observed in students, and how does Centre Stage determine whether its programs are succeeding?
Some of our greatest successes have very little to do with whether a student becomes a professional performer.
Of course, we want our students to grow as singers, actors, dancers and musicians, and we believe strongly in artistic excellence. But we are equally interested in the person who walks off the stage. We see children learn confidence, responsibility, teamwork, empathy, public speaking, leadership and how to recover when something doesn't go exactly as planned.
Over 28 years, I have had the privilege of watching students grow up, go to college, begin careers and start families of their own. Some have pursued careers in the arts, while many have gone into completely different fields. What matters to me is hearing them say that Centre Stage was a place where they belonged, where someone believed in them, and where they learned skills and formed relationships that stayed with them long after the final curtain.
We measure success through the growth we see in individual students, through families who return year after year, through our relationships with schools and community partners, and through former students who continue to come back and stay connected. Sometimes success is a standing ovation. Sometimes it is a child who was afraid to speak in front of a room finally stepping forward and finding their voice.
That is ultimately what Centre Stage has always been about: using the arts not only to create great performances, but to help create confident, creative and connected young people.
- Brad Haugaard
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