Rep actors join crowd at rally to save theater

Fundraiser intended to help with debt crippling playhouse

Dianne Estes of Little Rock drops money into a collection basket Tuesday afternoon during a fundraiser for the Arkansas Repertory Theatre outside the theater in Little Rock.
Dianne Estes of Little Rock drops money into a collection basket Tuesday afternoon during a fundraiser for the Arkansas Repertory Theatre outside the theater in Little Rock.

Even a villainous lion has a soft spot for the Arkansas Repertory Theatre.

Mark Campbell, who plays Scar in Disney's The Lion King, now playing at the Robinson Center, was one of many current, former and future actors who showed up at Tuesday's rally to raise funds for the ailing theater.

Before his evening performance, Campbell journeyed downtown to visit his former stomping grounds. In 2013, he performed in Treasure Island at the Rep.

"To try to build an institution like this from scratch is not possible," Campbell said. Local regional theaters, like the Rep, produce "world-class work," but also need the financial freedom to experiment, he said.

The Rep announced last week that it was immediately suspending operations, including canceling the final production of its 2017-18 season and halting plans for 2018-19.

Ticket sales have dropped steeply over the past several years. That, coupled with lackluster charitable giving and a change in Little Rock's theater landscape created "a perfect financial storm," the Rep said in a previous news release.

To clear the theater's operating debt and consider future plans would take $750,000 to $1 million upfront, the Rep's board said.

With news of a potential closure, Little Rock's artistic community rallied. Literally. On Tuesday, about 150 people crowded onto hot pavement in front of the theater to listen to short speeches and make donations.

Marci Robertson watched the band the Greasy Greens from the comfort of shade. She attended the rally Tuesday because "the Rep brings a lot of attention and economic impetus to the community," Robertson said.

It's the anchor of the Main Street corridor in downtown Little Rock, which has undergone years of development, she added.

"We can either point fingers, or we can hold hands," Skip Rutherford, dean of the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service, said from a podium. Rutherford and others took the reins to organize the rally.

At various times, the Arkansas Travelers baseball team needed a ballpark and the Robinson Center needed a renovation, as did the Arkansas Arts Center, Rutherford said. Each time, central Arkansans recognized the need, he said.

"Quality of life issues matter in this city," Rutherford said. "And we have a record of stepping up."

Metro on 05/02/2018

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