The final show of the 2012 season of The Great Passion Play in Eureka Springs was nearly the final show ever.
Only days before the Jan. 1 deadline, the Gospel Station Network of Ada, Okla., managed to raise the $75,000 required to pay interest on loans with the Cornerstone Bank in Eureka Springs, saving the outdoor drama’s 2013 season.
“A lot of people stepped up,” says Kent Butler, director of marketing and public relations for the play. “Funding came in worldwide.”
For Butler, the show is about more than faith. Like many others who take part in the presentation, Butler sees the Passion Play as a family affair. Butler has been participating in the play since he was 16 year old, his wife since the age of 5. “My father-in-law plays Jesus,” he says. “It is very important to us.”
The outdoor show faced closing after catastrophic financial losses in 2010.
Overseers of the play’s operation, the Elna M.
Smith Foundation, posted record losses of more than $550,000 that year.
Expenses for the show topped out at nearly$2 million, with only $1.6 million in revenue, Executive Director Sam Ray said in an interview in 2012.
The foundation’s fortunes turned around at the end of 2012, when Gospel Station Network stepped in to help. The loans were paid throughdonations, and overhead was cut. “We reduced the show’s runs from 110 to 80 performances,” says Butler. “Taking away 30 performances was a major faith move, and at the same time, it was also a major business move.
“We lowered the price by $4 and the value pack by $20,” he adds, “and we have increased the pacing of the show, cutting down on run time and cost. Because of these operational changes, we have a had a growth of 7.51 percent.”
Beyond the quickgrowth seen in 2013, the past season’s alterations indicated potential for longterm success. “The 2013 season was vastly more successful that any in the previous 30 years,” Butler says. “We’re returning the holy land to its ‘former glory.’
“Outdoor theatre is on the decline, so we must have something new,” he continues. “We now have more actors, professional readers, and more scenes.
And we’re always striving for more special effects. We want people to feel like they left a magic show. They will be awestruck.”
The new year will welcome new aspects to the show. The Passion Play will introduce the Jerusalem Marketplace, an interactive exhibit that Butler calls “Silver Dollar City in Bible days.”
The planners will also introduce more and larger gospel concerts starting June 21. “We’re also openingthe show, giving people the opportunity to be in the play,” says Butler. “People from the audience will be able to participate. It’s fully interactive.”
The animals previously sold at the close of the 2012 season will be back as well. “Northwest Arkansas really came together,” he says. “The Wildlife Safari in Gentry donated baby camels so we now have four. The sheep, donkeys and horses are back too.”
Even the trained birds sold in 2012 will be returning.
“They were bought by the animal handler and returned to us when we reopened,” says Butler. “It’s all a miracle.”
Opening night is May 2, 2014, and the show will run 80 performances Fridays and Saturdays through Oct.
25 with special Monday performances on June 23 and 30, Tuesday evening shows from June 3 to Aug. 12 and Thursday performances from May 29 to July 31.
Whats Up, Pages 11 on 12/20/2013