Looking back at the history of Los Angeles Drama Club, we have put on some formidable Shakespeare plays on a shoestring. (Remember our first production of The Tempest?) After all, this company started in a backyard with a glitter-covered shoebox sitting out for donations. Some days there were five dollars in the shoebox. The show went on.
Since 2007, our loyal donors’ continued support has allowed us to rehearse and perform in a professional theater (not a church basement or a stark auditorium), a theater with lights, sound and our own greenroom. For seven years, when our children came to rehearsal at the Lost Studio, they climbed “up a steep and very narrow stairway,” breathing in the scent of the theater, which they will likely always remember. Now, in our new home at the Lyric Theatre, they are working in a real black box theater, and every day, they see new evidence of art-making by the artists with whom we share the space. And at Fais Do Do, they work in a bright, airy space, rich with the history of performers who have come before them (complete with a haunted bathroom!!). Because of our families, we are able to provide this experience for them.
The giant task of managing Drama Club has always been a labor of love, but we also realize that two people producing and directing four to six Shakespeare plays, teaching Improv & Camp, running Outreach Programs, AND overseeing it all, is not a sustainable business model!
Drama Club is entering an exciting new stage. Our 501(c)3 status has made it possible for us to teach Shakespeare in other communities, take our kids on the road, create a scholarship fund, and offer free community-building social justice classes. To do that, we need to create a framework that will support all of this.
So what do we do? We call on you. It is your involvement that we need.
We’ve joined forces with Charity Buzz and Omaze – is there an industry professional in your network who might be able to donate a red carpet photo op, a set visit, or some other “experience”?
Volunteer for a committee, spread the word, and please recruit your cousin, the 501(c)3 Tax Expert!
Whether it’s a financial contribution or a gift of your time and talent, we accept with humble gratitude. Please read our Wish List and see where you fit in.
And to the Choir to which we are already preaching … thank you for continuing to be part of this growing community of parents and activists who want this for their children … and for all children.
“The Play’s the Thing”