Marigold Cultural Centre

Trish Maynard grew up in a family of musicians, but when it came time to choose a career, it was early childhood education that attracted her. For 10 years, Maynard worked as a teacher's assistant with the Chignecto Central Regional School Board. That was until 2006 when her husband saw a newspaper ad for an evening/weekend manager at the new Marigold Cultural Centre in Truro and encouraged her to apply.

"I gravitated towards the job in part because of how excited I was by what the Marigold Centre was offering," says Maynard, who grew up in Boston and whose family regularly attended cultural events. "I remember looking at the first season and thinking that there were so many things I wanted to see and that I wanted to take my kids to see." The job was a fabulous opportunity to immerse herself in cultural shows and meet artists and performers. "I immediately fell in love with being here and I wasn't even looking for a new line of work! It was a calling I didn’t realize I had."

Fast forward two years and there's been a lot of changes at the Marigold. The first is that Maynard's been promoted to Executive Director. The other news is that she's been successful at drawing big names to the region. The Cottars, Cindy Church, and Bette MacDonald are just some of the stars who have come out to play. In addition, CBC Radio has chosen the Marigold to record musical performances and the internationally recognized group, the Barra MacNeils, actually hand-picked the cultural centre in the hub of Nova Scotia to record their latest CD. "They absolutely love the acoustics here," says Maynard of Marigold's top notch sound system.

"There’s a lot of buzz about us in the arts world," says Maynard. "The artists are talking among each other and really promoting us. It’s absolutely wonderful." Anything that brings the abundant talent of the area into sharp focus is a good thing, according to Maynard. "We've got a lot of talent here in Truro and a really supportive community."

The Marigold's home is the town's original theatre, the Centennial, which stood empty for three years before a group of keen arts-promoting individuals bought into the idea of an arts centre and purchased the building. In fact, their efforts were so well organized that they were able to raise $950,000 in just 90 days. "There's been a real need and desire for an arts and cultural centre in Truro for at least the last 30 years," says Maynard. "Bringing the Marigold to life was a real community effort."

A non-profit organization, the Marigold is run by the Cobequid Arts Council which provides all their operational funds. Their Board of Directors is a blend of representatives from both business and the arts. "The business people help us raise the money that we need and the arts people help to bring in the right programming," says Maynard. "It's a perfect balance."

The Marigold houses a 206-seat theatre, small art gallery, workshop space, board room, concession area, and offices. With the strong support of the community and various organizations, it also provides a variety of cultural programming to the residents of Truro. Promoting "arts education," the Marigold offers classes ranging from cello and violin lessons to youth drama productions.

Bringing together her love of the arts and youth, Maynard is drawing young people to the Marigold in droves. Her connections with schools and youth groups in the region have helped get the word out about youth-focused programs and opportunities. March Break camp, musical drama events, and summer theatre schools are just some of the activities being offered. "It's really important to me to involve kids in the arts and in the community," she says. "They are our future."

According to Maynard, these kids couldn't be growing up in a better place. "Truro is bustling right now," says Maynard. "It's really booming. New buildings are going up, new schools are being built, new people are moving in." Maynard says she hears stories all the time from people choosing to live in Truro and commute to work in Halifax. "They want more of a rural environment for their children. And it's just a great place to live and do business."

Maynard hopes that the Marigold will be able to contribute even more to the economy of Truro in the near future. "We'll soon be in a position to create more jobs through the Centre and I really think we can put Truro on the map as far as bringing in more tourism."

Truro's location and the fact that it is often a drive-through region rather than a destination, actually works to Maynard's advantage when she's booking talent. "A lot of artists and performers out there don’t even know Truro because in the past they've just driven by. We haven't had a huge calling card." That's where Maynard comes in. "I tell them about what we have to offer, and add that if they have to drive right by, they might as well stop for the night, perform a show, and make a little extra money," she says, laughing.

Two other full-time staff and three part-time technical staff help Maynard keep the Marigold running year-round. Approximately 50 acts grace the stage annually, and each month in business produces more seats sold and more shows sold out. "I'm enormously gratified with how things are going," says Maynard, who has big plans for the next five years, including sponsorship and subscription packages, and an in-house theatre school. "It's a very exciting time."