Neptune Theatre
Neptune Theatre in Halifax captivates audiences, trains aspiring actors, and introduces theatre to schoolchildren throughout the Maritimes. With an annual payroll of over $3 million, the theatre also contributes directly to the economy, and indirectly as a draw for other cultural activity.
“Neptune’s got a very special place in our community,” says Jamie Baillie, president of the theatre’s board of directors. “It’s a national theatre jewel that just happens to be located in Halifax. It certainly adds to the cultural dynamic of the city and the province in a very important way.”
General manager Doreen Malone says the focus of Neptune – now in its 44th season and one of the oldest regional theatres in the country – is “to produce world-class theatre right here in Halifax, and our mandate is to educate, to challenge and to entertain with that theatre.”
Fulfilling that mandate requires creativity, resourcefulness and community support.
Malone says creativity is “the essence of our being” at Neptune. As she explains, creativity is expressed in many different ways – from a director’s interpretation of a work to the planning of an opening reception in keeping with the production.
Creativity is also evident in a number of new initiatives. In collaboration with Toronto’s Tarragon Theatre, Neptune participated in a January workshop of a new production which will become part of next season’s lineup. Neptune is also holding a national new play competition in which the winning piece will be workshopped. Also new in 2008 is a small Monday night music series.
A concept which continues to be developed is the creation of a Neptune Theatre District to encompass an approximately two-block radius surrounding the theatre. While planning is still in the tentative stages, Malone says physical markings of the district might include banners on street posts and possibly some public artwork. The presence of the district might also come into play in the city’s marketing efforts.
Neptune’s influence extends far beyond the city. In 2006-2007, The Young Neptune Company Tour performed for 24,000 students in provincial schools. In 2007-2008, for the first time, the tour’s itinerary expanded to include Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick.
Children are also exposed to theatre through student matinees in Halifax and through the Neptune Theatre School which, in 2006-2007, had 1,430 students, the majority of whom are school-age children.
“We believe that part of being an educated person is to have a knowledge and a love of theatre,” Malone says. “We know we can enrich people’s lives and we want to start at an early age.”
Baillie, who is president and CEO of Credit Union Atlantic, says having young people trained to think creatively also has economic implications. “Neptune is training children in some very important skills that will make them part of the 21st century economy.”
Neptune itself achieved an economic milestone in spring 2007 – the completion of its last mortgage payment. The achievement represented the conclusion of the New Neptune Project, a significant reconstruction and refurbishment of Neptune.
“The New Neptune is finally complete and I suppose in some sense that it’s a final step,” Malone says. “But then it’s also the first step of where we go from here.”
In the future as in the past, resourcefulness will play a leading role.
“I think our organization is incredibly resourceful because frequently, as in many theatres, you want to do as much as you can so you’re always trying to push the envelope,” Malone says. “When you come up with a project you also have to figure out how you’re going to do it and where the money and the time are going to come from to do it….”
As Malone explains, presenting nine full productions a year demands collaboration and resourcefulness. From securing rights to selecting actors, from constructing sets to marketing the show, there are many stages involved.
One example of resourcefulness concerns Neptune’s promotion of holiday subscriptions. This season the marketing team came up with the innovative idea of doing a take-off of the Christmas classic, It’s a Wonderful Life.
“We didn’t have thousands of dollars to engage a video company to shoot a video so we used what we had to create something that would work,” Malone says. She says the resulting short video was posted on Neptune’s website and the popular site YouTube where it was in the top 100 most linked to Canadian videos in the first week of its posting.
“We’re in an exciting time in our history because we have a strong level of community support,” she says. “We believe that culture is really valued in this community.”
The response of the community to Neptune can be measured in concrete terms. Malone says 76 per cent of Neptune’s total revenue – which is approximately $5 million – comes from box office or box office-related activities, as compared to a national average of about 63 per cent. The community also shows its support through fundraising, which generates an additional 11 per cent of the theatre’s revenue.
“So between the box office and the amount of fundraising we do which is mostly coming from this community, you can easily see why we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for that support,” Malone says. “So our connection to the community is very, very strong and is very, very important to us.”
In turn, Neptune continues to contribute to the economy as it pursues its strategic goals surrounding artistic excellence, financial stability and growth, education and youth initiatives, and accessibility.
Malone says Nova Scotia “is a well-supported business environment to grow and prosper in.” She speaks of the diversity of businesses in the province, its cultural richness and the wealth of universities and talent.
Malone also touches on Nova Scotia’s beauty, something she experienced in a new way when this past summer she participated in a 10 km run on the floor of the Bay of Fundy between tides.
From one beautiful backdrop to another, Malone is happy to call Nova Scotia home. So is Neptune.
Feature story written by Marie Weeren
