Texas Ballet Theater cancels monthlong run of popular holiday classic ‘The Nutcracker’
August 13,2020
See full Dallas Morning News article by Manuel Mendoza here.
Texas Ballet Theater has canceled its monthlong run of The Nutcracker, the popular holiday classic that generates a sizable share of the company’s annual revenues.
Announced today, the plan eliminates performances scheduled Nov. 27-Dec. 6 at Winspear Opera House in the Dallas Arts District and Dec. 11-27 at Bass Performance Hall in downtown Fort Worth.
Company officials say they explored all of their options but found it impossible to rehearse and perform the ballet under current restrictions intended to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Texas Ballet Theater already had to cancel Beauty and the Beast, which was to open its 2020-21 season. The company estimates a combined gross revenue loss of $2.8 million.
Dancers are still going to return from their regular summer break on Aug. 24, with new protocols in place. No additional budget or pay cuts are anticipated, the company said in a news release, and no layoffs are planned.
Executive director Vanessa Logan added, “Bringing The Nutcracker to life requires large numbers of dancers, crew and staff to be in close proximity with each other as early as September, which causes serious concerns amid our public health landscape.”
The company also said it could not recoup the costs of producing the ballet while reducing audience numbers to accommodate social distancing.
In May, the company announced a $2 million budget cut for the fiscal year that began July 1 and reduced the salaries of its 79 full-time employees.
The company had received $902,500 from the federal Payment Protection Program in April to help cover payroll and other expenses after it had to cancel the last two productions of its 2019-20 season.
Location Mentioned: Bass Performance Hall