Season Ends With Positive Numbers Despite COVID

The 39th season was unlike any other in the theater's history. The first six months saw record numbers of season ticket holders, individual ticket sales, an increase in renters, donations and business sponsorships. In fact, the theater was on track to have one of its best years in decades. Then the world as we know it completely changed overnight due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The months of March through June tend to be Tecumseh Center for the Art's busy season. In fact, nearly half of all TCA shows take place during those specific months each season. When the pandemic forced theaters to close across the State of Michigan in mid-March, the theater was looking at $60-80,000 in lost revenue by the end of the fiscal year (June 2020). It was at that time, staff made the difficult decisions to eliminate as many expenses as possible while implementing additional revenue streams during the shut down. From laying off employees to refunding tickets, canceling contracts to announcing the "Together We Can" Donation Campaign; the community and the theater's endowment rallied, allowing the theater to balance its budget for the 2019-2020 season. 

"The end of our 39th season was incredibly challenging," Stated TCA Director Kelly Jo Gilmore. "The theater takes great pride in balancing the budget each year and then all of a sudden we were looking at a rather significant decrease in revenue. It was then that the community came together and reminded us we are all in this together."

Below are some highlights from the TCA's 39th Season Statistics Report:

• The Tecumseh Center for the Arts 2019-2020 Season planned to include 79 events. Due to the novel coronovirus pandemic and shutdowns, 38 of these events (48.1% of all events) were cancelled and/or postponed. The actual number of events in the 2019-2020 Season was 41. 
• Patrons from 21 Michigan counties purchased tickets, merchandise, or donated to the theater during the 2019-2020 Season. Patrons from 18 U.S. states purchased tickets, merchandise, or donated to the theater during 2019-2020. 
• During the 2019-20 Season, the TCA had 40,656 engagements and 967,684 impressions on social media. This was a 284.53% and 196.76% increase, respectively. 
• The National Touring Season cost $19,818.00 and ticket sales were $46,831.00, with a profit of $27,013.00, even with the final performance by Phase 5 being postponed. This was an increase in profit by 58.01% from the previous National Touring Season.
• The number of season ticket holders during the 2019-20 season was 177, which was an increase of 27.34% from the 2018-19 Season.
• During the 2019-20 Season, 61.31% of ticket sales were conducted online, while 38.59% of ticket sales were conducted through the Box Office. Sales are predicted to be placed almost entirely online by either the 2022-23 or 2023-24 Season.
• Individual donations increased by 217.5% for the 2019-2020 season. Tecumseh Center for the Arts had budgeted $14,000 in donations and received $30,415. The TCA community donated $21,942 in just 15 days during the "Together We Can" Donation Campaign during April 15 - April 30, 2020.
• Tecumseh Center for the Arts ended the 2019-2020 fiscal year with a total of $386,675 in revenue and $382,743 in expenses for a ending balance of $3,932. The profit will be carried over to the 2020-2021 fiscal year to help offset expenses due to the ongoing shut down for concert venues. 

 To read the complete 2019-2020 Statistics Report, please click on the link below. 

See Last Season's Statistics Report