Two River Final - Google Docs

8/10/2019 Two River Final - Google Docs

1/20

Alexandra Julian

Stephen Rotundo

Laura Wilson

Arts Venue and Parton Services

Professor Heidelberg

Two River Theater Company

Tucked away in Red Bank, NJ is the Two River Theater company. Since its

founding in 1994, the company has continually been expanding. It had humble

beginnings, performing the shows on the Monmouth University stage. From there, the

company performed in the Algonquin Arts Theater in Manasquan for eight seasons.

With help from the surrounding community, Two River Theater built their own space in

2005 to fulfill their dream of bringing world-class theater for an audience that would

cherish the experience as an intimate one. Over 55,000 patrons attend the theater

every year. Two River Theater Company makes it a goal to produce beloved classics,

brand new works, or revised masterpieces.

Though its title makes the Two River Theater Company seem quaint, it is actually

in a relatively populated area. Perhaps too small to be considered a city, however. Its

website includes directions for taking public transportation to the theater, which

indicates that Red Bank could be a city. That is the implication for those not from the

area. Also included on the website was a Google earth panorama of the street on which


2/20


3/20

the theater is located. From the looks of it, it is again a small city type of location, but

still includes some nature as it is right on the water.

On its beautifully designed website, http://tworivertheater.org/, is a page entitled

Who We Are, where there was contact information for every member of the Two River

Theater Companys team. This team is chock full of notable leaders. Some of these

people include John Dias who worked as a professor in NYU and Yale, and co-founded

other companies in and out of New York. Another impressive and reassuring name on

the Two Rivers team is Michael Hurst. Coming from the Public Theater, Hurst has had a

successful career in writing, and even won Pulitzer Prizes for his dramatic plays.

In addition to its extraordinary leaders, the Company conveniently categorized the

contact page. The categories included; Artistic, Administration, Audience Services,

Development, Education, Operations, Productions and Special Services. This made it

easy to find the necessary contact to discuss its venue progression since 1994. Ideally,

speaking with Robert M. Rechnitz would be incredible, seeing that he is the founder of

the institution and almost certainly knows the most about it. However, assuming he is

relatively busy, a few other people should prove to be useful contacts. Jennifer Collins is

Two Rivers Director of Development, and assumedly may know the history behind the

development of the institution. In addition to Ms. Collins, Gilda Rogers is the head of

Community Relations, and could be the individual to coordinate our visit there. Lastly,

Cassie Galasetti is the Associate Director of Marketing and Press Contact, and could


4/20


5/20

assist in sharing articles and information on the company that may be used as a source

later in the Arts Facility Presentation.

With its relatively new spaces, the Two River Theater Company also had to figure

out what other organizational activities should take place to fill the spaces. For the

2014-2015 season, nine shows are advertised on the website. Titles of the varying

shows include; The School for Wives, Camelot, The Very Hungry Caterpillar and

other Eric Carle favorites, Absurd Person Singular, and Guadalupe in the Guest

Room The shows range from new works/world premieres like Your Blues Aint Sweet

Like Mine, to Shakespeares classic A Mid Summers Night Dream, and a festival of

new plays which are entitled Crossing Boarders.

As with any quality arts organization, the foundation of building a loyal community

is through outreach and education. One of the activities mentioned on the website was

"A Little Shakespeare". No real description was given, but the link shows high school

students putting on modern adaptations of classic Shakespeare shows. They clearly

encourage all kids with varying talents and skill levels to join them. Another outreach

program mentioned was Summer Camps which includes younger children as well. A

program unique to Two River Theater Company is the "Metro Scholar" program. This is

said to be a highly competitive program for high school students across New Jersey. It

immerses students into professional training and workshops, and since 2005, has

produced 118 outstanding young theater artists. The last education program listed is the


6/20


7/20

"Theater Works" classes which is taught year round. They provide artistic, production,

and even administration classes to interested middle and high school students.

Under the "Support" column on the website is all the information on fundraising

and contributions for the Two River Theater Company. The first way to support is to

become the "Backstage Pass" member. This membership fee is allocated to the annual

fund for the company, and even states that "less than one-third of the theater's revenue

comes from ticket sales". The pass gives its members multiple benefits ranging from

discounted concessions to waived ticket fees. In addition, the "calendar and events"

portion of the website is provided. There were no fundraising events scheduled,

however. The only other mention of funds, was under the institutional giving portion,

which listed some of Two River Theater Company's institutional and individual donors.

Some of the more impressive donors included; New Jersey State Council on the Arts,

Monmouth University, and Wells Fargo.

The admirable success of this company makes it worthy of a case study to

exemplify how theater companies function with varying spaces. The theater scene

spans much further than most people realize, and Two River Theater Company is at the

head of that progression.

Red Bank is a pretty trendy town. Overall, the people that tend to spend time in

Red Bank are looking for a place to shop, eat, and experience some form of art. While


8/20


9/20

walking down the streets of Red Bank, our group saw mainly white people. The typical

age of people we saw where wealthy looking middle aged people. The next major age

group we saw were people who looked around college age. This age ground tended to

dress less wealthy and more artsy-chic. We also got a feeling from the people in

Red Bank that that the town attracts persons with a desire to experience local yet trendy

shopping, dining and entertainment.

Our assumptions from people watching were that Red Bank as a whole is a

mainly white community with a slightly higher than average, but not too extremely

wealthy. We confirmed our assumptions when we looked up the Red Bank census. It is

reported in the census that as of 2010, 63.2% of the population is white. Also, as of

2012 the aveerage household income was $62,143

(http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/34/3462430.html).

Overall, there is definitely a specific vice that people who go to Red Bank have.

The overall feel of the people in the town give is that they are educated with an

appreciation for the arts and local shopping. The people walking in and out of the Two

River Theater seemed to be around middle aged and most were dressed well.

Getting to Red Bank is not too difficult, but it is definitely not the easiest town to

get to. When loking up directions, visit.redbank.com stated, Take the Garden State

Parkway to Exit 109 (Red Bank). Take Route 520/Newman Springs Road East. Go thru

four traffic lights to end of road (Dunkin Donuts will be on your right). Make a left at that

light onto route 35 North. Cross railroad tracks, stay to the right which turns into Broad

Street. Downtown Red Bank starts after you go thru two more lights. These directions


10/20


11/20

were accurate, but the town might experience even more tourism if it was located closer

to the exit of the parkway. In terms of public transportation, NJ Transit has a train

station located in Red Bank. The train station is located blocks down from the Two River

Theater.

The town also provides a variety of parking options. There is a decent amount of

street parking available, which is metered during the day and free after 6pm. There are

also few parking lots throughout town where patrons can use a pay station. The Two

River Theater also has its own parking lot where patrons can park for free. There does

not seem to be enough parking for every seat in the theater though. Tese is also

currently construction happening around the theaters parking lot, so patrons have to

find alternate parking.

While walking through town, it became apparent that Red Bank has a very small

amount of chain stores or franchises. The only chain stores we noticed were 7-11 and

an Alex and Ani. Most of the stores in the area seemed to be small businesses that

would be in danger if more recognizable franchises move in. Our group could not help

but wonder if there are zoning restrictions on an overpopulation of franchises in the

area.

There are also a number of hotels in the area, which make the town an attractive

place to stay for the weekend. The Two River Theater even offers a Play.Dine.Stay

weekend getaway package which allows patrons to see a Two River show as we

In terms of programming, Red Bank seems to stick with more of what authors

Arthur C. Brooks and Ronald J. Kushner in Cultural Districts and Urban Development as


12/20


13/20

popular and educational programming. The town advertises for a variety of events.

Some of the popular programming events being advertised around town include a town

wide wine and foods sampling where patrons can pay a flat rate to receive wine and

entree sampling from bars and restaurants around town. There is also a girls night out

being advertised around town. This event will allow women to receive various discounts

at bars and restaurants. The town also advertises educational programming as well.

The Red Bank Library offers arts workshops where artists can gather and find

inspiration from each other.

Red Bank, NJs economy is not something one categorize as bad or on the

lower side, being that the average household income is about $74,000. Red bank and

its shops, restaurants, and theaters do pretty well for themselves, as well as support

each other in these hard economical times. Two River Theater itself brings an ample

amount of business to the local Red Bank shops and restaurants such as, antique

shops, beauty boutiques, small music shops like, Jacks Music, and restaurants such

as, 30 Burgers and the Red Bank Diner.

Since Two River puts on such top notch, professional shows, people will travel

from all over to experience Red Bank and its art scene. These tourists who come from

all over to see these shows will usually want to spend more than one day in the area,

which increases business for the local hotels and motels. Two River also has a special

package deal that allows patrons have a dinner for two, see a TRTC production and

stay at a hotel in the town for a flat rate of $299, which is very affordable for the

community of Red Bank and its surroundings. (http://www.tworivertheater.org/


14/20


15/20

calendar_tickets/playdinestay.php).

According to the Executive Director of the Monmouth County Arts Council,

Through direct and patron related spending NJs arts and history industries contribute

$2 billion each year to our states economy. One would think since the Count Basie

Theater is located so close to TRTC that there would be competition, but that is quite

the opposite. All the arts groups and companies in the area support and help each other

as much as possible so that Red Bank can thrive as a strong arts area instead of one

company trying to make as much money as possible.

Many of these groups receive funding from the New Jersey State Council on the

Arts either directly or through the Monmouth County Arts Council in a competitive grant

process. This funding is an investment in our local economy and our community, not a

handout. Ask the restaurants about the economic impact when the theaters have a

show and the difference when they are dark. (http://www.RedBank.Com. (n.d.).

Retrieved October 27, 2014.)

Two River Theater is a wonderful experience for a nice family visit to the beautiful

downtown of Red Bank. If one is looking for a sweet spot in the summer or fall by the

water with great shops, restaurants, and theaters...Red Bank is the answer. Between

the affordable tickets, many downtown eateries and shops, and the professional quality

theater, TRTC is a perfect option for tourists from other states or even other parts of NJ.

The arts will continue and are thriving today with the beautiful productions being

displayed and the amazing support from local arts organizations, so lets keep it up.


16/20


17/20

Works Cited

Brooks, Arthur C., and Roland J. Kushner. "Cultural Districts and Urban Development."

International Journal of Arts Management3.2 (n.d.): 4-15. 2001. Web. 11 Oct. 2014.

"Play.Dine.Stay." - Two River Theater :Web. 10 Oct. 2014.

Fouratt, Mary.ARTS AND HISTORY ARE AN ECONOMIC STIMULUS

https://www.RedBank.Com. (n.d.). Blog. Web. Retrieved October 27, 2014.

"United States Census Bureau." Red Bank (borough) QuickFacts from the US Census

Bureau. Web. 09 Oct. 2014.

"The Red Bank Visitors Center." The Red Bank Visitors Center. Web. 10 Oct. 2014


18/20


19/20

Alexandra Julian

Stephen Rotundo

Laura Wilson

Arts Venue and Parton Services

Professor Heidelberg

Organizational Choice

Two River Theater Company

Tucked away in Red Bank, NJ is the Two River Theater company. Since its

founding in 1994, the company has continually been expanding. It had humble

beginnings, performing the shows on the Monmouth University stage. From there, the

company performed in the Algonquin Arts Theater in Manasquan for eight seasons.

With help from the surrounding community, Two River Theater built their own space in

2005 to fulfill their dream of bringing world-class theater for an audience that would

cherish the experience as an intimate one. Over 55,000 patrons attend the theater

every year. Two River Theater Company makes it a goal to produce beloved classics,

brand new works, or revised masterpieces.

Though its title makes the Two River Theater Company seem quaint, it is actually

in a relatively populated area. Perhaps too small to be considered a city, however. Its

website includes directions for taking public transportation to the theater, which

indicates that Red Bank could be a city. That is the implication for those not from the


20/20

Documents

Two River Final - Google Docs