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56 n e w h a v e n B I Z | J u n e / J u l y 2 0 2 0 | n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m Ingui. "It would be used to basically cover cash flow. None of the $5.5 million would be directed at $3 million debt, which is currently secured at the moment. But if all goes well we would like to make some payments toward it," he adds. New 'Emerging Season' Because of the uncertainty of when actors, crew members, staffers and audiences will feel comfortable returning to Long Wharf 's two theaters, the 2020-21 season — which was announced just days before the shutdown in March and included four of the five productions to be mounted in the smaller 200-seat Stage II theater — will now become the theater's 2021-22 season. "Doing four of the five shows in Stage II under the current conditions was not just very realistic," says Ingui. But there will be Long Wharf shows before the fall of 2021, with plans for an "emerging season" with productions at various other New Haven venues and sites when conditions allow. "We are looking at bringing Long Wharf out of the theater and into the community," Ingui explains. Even before the pandemic, the previously announced season took into account the theater's financial crisis, by tapping into partnerships with other groups and only the final show of the season — a revival of the musical Jelly's Last Jam — to be presented in the larger (408-seat) mainstage space. Ingui now says LWT is reassessing to determine whether the four productions previously earmarked for Stage II can be presented on the main stage when that season begins in autumn 2021. Other plays — several in partnerships with other theater organizations — include the world premiere of Monet Hurst- Mendoza's Totera, in association with the Sol Project; Night's Dream, a stripped-down version of A Midsummer Night's Dream; Continued from page 54 e Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity, in association with New Haven's Collective Consciousness eatre; and Queen, in association with the National Asian-American eatre Co. "We're really trying to galvanize the community," says Padrón, who took over as artistic director in February 2019. "We want to get folks inspired because the important message is that we're going to get through this in partnership with the community." In the meantime Padrón is engaged in a number of online projects to keep connected to the theater's fans and supporters. One is sponsored by the Doris Duke ' We'r e d o i n g w h a t m a n y o r g a n i z a t i o n s a c r o s s t h e c o u n t r y a r e d o i n g , w h i c h i s g r a p p l i n g w i t h t h e i r i m m e d i a t e n e e d s . ' LWT board chair Laura Pappano (above) ARTS & CULTURE Foundation, in collaboration with four other leading theaters: New York's Public eater, Baltimore Center Stage, St. Louis Rep and Washington D.C.'s Wooly Mammoth eatre. "We decided that each theater company would commission five to seven playwrights to create five- to 10-minute plays that we will post online to a website," Padrón explains. "People could download these joyful, family-friendly plays so they can read them with family and friends. We're calling that 'Play at Home,' and we will continue to think about what are the ways we can stay virtually connected." "Long Wharf is going through a crisis, but we're not alone now," says Kit Ingui. "We felt we were in a unique situation [in March], but now we're in something pretty terrible together. is [pandemic] has revealed the unsustainability of our operating model. "It's not just Long Wharf, but regional theater in America," Ingui adds. "But we think by centering the art-making and the artist in our community is how we will move forward." n Long Wharf Managing Director Ingui: 'Long Wharf is going through a crisis, but we're not alone now.'

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