Meet The Board Candidates

Steve Bermack

I strongly favor opening as soon as possible. However, before we consider our patrons, the safety of our cast and our crew are paramount. They have to feel comfortable, first and foremost. If we can’t staff the shows, there is no point in moving forward. We need to follow CDC and local guidelines in determining what is best. Once all of those stars align, we should open up to those who feel comfortable coming in, as soon as possible. I would also like to see an option where we live stream the show, if our licensing agreement allows for that.

Alison Costello

I strongly favor opening as soon as possible. Over the past year, it has become even more evident, that theater is an integral part of our lives, our community and our well-being. People are longing to feel the connections that theatre offers and to be able to escape into another world that Netflix and Amazon, just can’t fulfill. We allow people the unique experience of live theatre and our patrons would be thrilled by the prospect of walking through the lobby doors once again. In addition, I have served on several reopening task forces for the South Orangetown School District this past year. I have learned how safety protocols can be put into place to ensure that individuals can re-enter schools at full capacity. I would be able to contribute what I have learned to help Elmwood safely reopen its doors to the public.

Hasan Gray

I strongly favor of opening as soon as possible. ASAP is subject to interpretation. I believe it’s possible to place people with proper spacing within the theater, create a controlled operation for disbursement of the audience during breaks, to extend concessions to the outside patio area and limit what doesn’t fit the plan. “Don’t be afraid to make cutbacks. They’re better than cutoffs.” Limiting the numbers of people in the theater is better than no people at all. Ideally, there will be plenty of people vaccinated by the time we are ready to open. Reserve a performance just for them. Show proof of the second shot and the Sorkin is open for gathering. Use the beautiful patio for safely expanding concessions and as an intermission gathering space, particularly for those not yet vaccinated.

Jimmy Lugo
(incumbent)

I somewhat favor opening only when most of our subscribers are ready. We might need to favor opening when subscribers feel safe. The health and welfare of our subscribers is the crux of what community theater should be about. While member’s needs to perform is part of the equation, those needs should never supersede what maintains the integrity and goals of our organization to entertain the public. Actually, this time of Covid provides us with an opportunity to think outside the box and find new ways to bring the arts to the community. Many theaters including ours have looked to streaming which allows safe viewing as well as opening up membership for welcoming talent outside our general area. We can look to what Broadway and other reputable theater associations are doing and what health officials recommend while keeping in mind our theater’s square footage and the proper safety procedures necessary to not endanger health/lives. As we can see, we are coming out of the worst of it; but, rely on Elmwood’s Board to balance all considerations before opening back up.

Carol Napier

I somewhat favor opening only when most of our subscribers are ready. More accurately, I would want to wait until Off- Off-Broadway houses (100 seats or less) have reopened in accordance with recommendations of the CDC. Our problem becomes how to plan for that date without assurance when it might come. The virus is a volatile, changing situation, which makes planning much more difficult.

Derek Tarson

I somewhat favor opening only when most of our subscribers are ready. Although I generally favor a speedy recovery from COVID-19, I believe that it just makes financial sense to wait until our patrons feel comfortable before we reopen our main theatre. While we do have patrons that are not subscribers, I think it will be more difficult to gauge when non-subscribers will be ready to return to Elmwood and our subscription base is a good proxy. Elmwood would not be best served by rushing to produce a show and then have audiences of only 40-50 people per performance because people don’t feel safe. That said, I encourage Elmwood to continue producing outdoor theatre – such as “Porch Stories” – and Zoom theatre, such as the Cold Readings and Public Domain Players, to let our patrons know we’re still here and active, and hopefully to generate some income.

Rob Ward

I strongly favor opening as soon as possible. While our subscriber base is a key component to our group, we should try to engage our theatres’ creatives as soon as the county deems it safe to do so. Guidelines have been established, and are regularly updated, on how to offer best practices moving forward to keep our patrons and volunteers safe. We can open our theatre up with “Born Yesterday” then reconnect with shows that can be done simply, with small casts and production teams.

Steve Bermack

I somewhat favor more diverse and challenging shows. We’ve always done a great job of having a nice mix of both familiar shows and diverse and challenging shows and we should continue this tradition. People want variety. They want to see us do shows that they’ve seen before (can they pull it off??), plus they want to expand their horizons. Not everybody is going to like everything that we do. That’s ok! We need to continue to push the envelope, while also bringing in old favorites. I don’t see this as a conflict. I see this as who we are.

Alison Costello

I somewhat favor more diverse and challenging shows. One of the many things Elmwood had done very well over the past few years is creating a beautiful balance of crowd pleasers and shows that push the boundaries. I think we need to be mindful of our long standing patrons, our demographic, membership, etc, while simultaneously continuing to explore more difficult content that challenges our audiences to think in a broader way, see different perspectives and be exposed to new works.

Hasan Gray

I am strongly in favor of more diverse and challenging shows. I imagine we are a theater looking to make a change and the fact that it’s a question suggests it’s time, be it small or drastic. Honoring and valuing the subscriber base is important and I suggest a diverse focus group be included as we explore expanding our reach. There’s a balance. It’s not one way or the other. There is no right or wrong, just an opportunity for ideas.

Jimmy Lugo
(incumbent)

I strongly favor more familiar shows. Is the question perhaps too limited? Is the answer simply “yes old stuff” or “yes all new stuff”? Perhaps the answer is a careful blend of old and new. Especially with the addition of streaming and other post Covid realities, i.e., Zoom, we can offer what’s best for our community. Elmwood has a policy of creating a group for Play Selection. Always refreshed with new blood… open to new and loyal volunteers. The Board will continue to monitor this group but with the knowledge of all we have learned over this tough and stressful year. Let’s bring Elmwood back with the same standards of excellence but even better.

Carol Napier

I somewhat favor more diverse and challenging shows. I think a balance of diverse/challenging shows and those that might have more immediate familiarity (which could also include interesting and current themes) is important to consider. I think that many of our subscribers enjoy seeing shows that are well known as well as being exposed to new experiences. And how our directors choose to cast within even the “old chestnuts” can offer new perspectives.

Derek Tarson

I somewhat favor more diverse and challenging shows. This answer is the closest answer to my position, but I actually have a great deal of trouble with one of the assumptions in this question. The question asks if we should “move toward” challenging themes and diverse voices, but I feel that Elmwood’s always been on the leading edge of doing so – and has been since I first became associated with the theatre in 1980. Elmwood is the theatre that has produced “The Curse of the Starving Class,” “Fences”, “The Goat or Who Is Sylvia”, “Next to Normal” and many, many other shows that are not standard community theatre fare. We should keep doing what we’re doing – with an eye towards even more diversity and current social issues (but we shouldn’t limit our selection of challenging shows to only those two categories). While it’s true that, in very recent years, there’s been a slight pull-back to choose shows that are more financially viable, the operative word is “slight” and I believe that, given the events of 2020, we will find that challenging shows that address issues of racial and gender equality will be financially viable. (No one thought “Fences” would sell when we produced it, but it was almost sold out every show.)

Rob Ward

I strongly favor more diverse and challenging shows. At its heart theatre imitates and reflects life. Choosing challenging/current material only helps our community theatre grow and (evolve). We need to continue to look at how best to offer the classics that our base wants to see while exploring new voices.

Steve Bermack

I strongly favor relying only on volunteers. I understand that we need to pay people for certain services. (Let me go back to my answer for #3. I know we would need to pay a director for a Children’s program) I’m not a huge fan of stipends, but I get it for certain situations. However, I feel strongly about the volunteer nature of this theater. If we hire somebody to be an executive director, I see there being issues where one group likes the person, another group doesn’t, and it becomes a big conflict. We don’t have those kind of issues now (there are always going to be personality clashes, but things change dramatically where one person has that much control). One of the things I love the best about this theater is revolving cast of characters (pun intended) that shows up for each show. People do their part, they come and go, and come and go again. Having a full-time E.D. would profoundly change the nature of the theater. There are very successful community theaters that have an executive director. That’s great, it’s just not Elmwood.

Alison Costello

I strongly favor hiring a part-time or full-time executive director. Since joining Elmwood in 2005, I have watched and been absolutely astounded by how our little theatre has grown into a large “business”. Before we closed down, it was getting very challenging to manage all that the theatre requires. If there was one person over seeing it all, then our organization would run even more smoothly. While, yes, our volunteers are the core of our community, we have gotten to the point that we need help in the day-to-day tasks that our theatre requires.

Hasan Gray

I somewhat favor hiring a part-time or full-time executive director. “With the financial ability” is the key phrase. Sure. If we can afford it. Trouble is question one has us in dire straits and question five is assuming we have come out the other end flush with funds.

Jimmy Lugo
(incumbent)

I strongly favor relying only on volunteers. This is probably best held off – to wait and see (particularly when there isn’t money and we already have people on payroll). So much is going on… let’s get the new Board in place with our new focus and see if it actually is necessary at this time. I would recommend that this idea be tabled as we focus on what’s really important. To make an incorrect knee-jerk reaction based on “old” Elmwood at this time is not my focus. Let’s focus on what helps us bring arts back to our community. Once reestablished, it will be a better time to make a consideration that has a monetary price to it during our current “lack of cash flow” times.

Carol Napier

I somewhat favor relying on volunteers. It’s the devil you know, but I would want to ask questions and learn more about the possibility. I can’t imagine that we have enough money to offer a significant salary, unless it was quite “part-time.”

Derek Tarson

I strongly favor relying only on volunteers. I feel very strongly about this. The fact that there are seven of us vying for three board positions shows that there is no dearth of volunteers to run this theater. I believe that Elmwood was founded and has operated as a community theater since its inception and to hire an executive director would deprive (or at least weaken) Elmwood’s character as a community venture. While other non-profit organizations that are not theater-based and professional non-profit theater organizations use executive directors, those organizations generally do not rely on volunteers nor do they have a strong foundation of volunteer service. To impose such a structure on Elmwood, which has had historically and continues to have a robust tradition of volunteerism and community involvement, would sow discontent and an eventual dissolution of volunteerism at Elmwood. That would be nothing less than a tragedy.

Rob Ward

I strongly favor relying only on volunteers. I would certainly listen to a case being made for hiring an executive director, although I feel we could find additional volunteers to help out. If I thought it would be in our group’s beat interests to hire a General Manager, I would like to find someone with fresh ideas, possibly with no prior Playhouse involvement, to fill that role.