In mid March executives for the Intiman stated that they were cautiously optimistic about the future of the Tony Award-winning theatre thanks to initial gifts and pledges nearing $175,000, and that the 2011 season would continue as planned.
The organization went public with its $1 million financial crisis in February. It was revealed that the Intiman would need to raise $500,000 by the end of March, in addition to $250,000 by June and another quarter of a million by September in order to continue operations.
An anonymous donor came forward in late March with a $100,000 matching challenge grant (a promise to match dollar-for-dollar all donations toward that sum), allowing the Intiman to raise $200,000 in a short amount of time.
Within six days of the announcement, the Intiman had raised $150,000 from public donations in addition to the promised $100,000 challenge grant. The organization has now raised $450,000 towards its first $500,000 benchmark. Board member Kim Anderson characterized the outpouring of financial support as "a clear signal that encourages us to keep moving forward."
The fundraising goal also allows the Intiman to transition from what they describe as "immediate financial repair to longer-range strategic planning," and allows former director of development Melaine Bennett to move on from her current role of acting managing director as of April 8. (She assumed the role following the departure of former managing director Brian Colburn.) Former A Contemporary Theatre managing director Susan Trapnell, of the arts consulting firm Arts Consulting Group, Inc., will be retained as the theatre's management consultant. *
Kate Whoriskey succeeded Tony Award-winning director Bartlett Sher (South Pacific, The Light in the Piazza) as artistic director of the Intiman last March. Sher departed his position to become the resident director of Lincoln Center Theater.
The Intiman staged the world premieres of The Kentucky Cycle and The Light in the Piazza. It was also the first regional company to stage Tony Kushner's two-part epic Angels in America, after its Broadway debut.
Visit Intiman.org.
