Cypress Creek Foundation for the Arts and Community Enrichment, or Cypress Creek FACE, is just one of several nonprofit arts organizations that provides live music and arts opportunities to the Spring and Klein community.
Since the spread of coronavirus, Nanci Decker, Cypress Creek FACE executive director, said the organization has had to postpone and cancel all of its concerts through May 3 including performances by Daneliva Tuleshova, which Decker said she is working to reschedule from March 29 to the fall, and The Texas Tenors, which has been postponed from May 3 to Sept. 26.
“Our ticket sales have, obviously drastically dropped, which affects our income,” Decker said. “Unlike Hurricane Harvey when we lost [The Centrum], we don’t know when this will end. We are in uncharted territory about our future.”
Additionally, Decker said Cypress Creek FACE had to cancel its April Promenade concert featuring Mercury, which was scheduled for April 14, as well as its free children’s series performance of Joseph Dixon’s “History & Songs of the Mardi Gras Indians,” which was planned for April 18.
“As any nonprofit will tell you, when the economy takes a downturn people are less likely to spend money,” Decker said. “Unfortunately, the arts seem to take the first hit. Our hope is that our community will bounce back strong just like we did after Hurricane Harvey.”
In addition to Cypress Creek FACE, other local arts organizations have made changes as well in homes of mitigating the spread of coronavirus. Stageworks Theatre, a local theatre company, announced March 16 that all remaining performances of the troupe’s current play, “She Loves Me” had been cancelled and that all Mainstage and Academy rehearsals, classes, productions and auditions had been postponed until further notice.
“Words cannot adequately express the disappointment of our actors, productions teams, volunteers and board members in this decision,” Stageworks Theatre Board President Patrick Barton said in a statement. “We will resume only once we feel it is safe and responsible to do so. At that time, we will make every effort to reschedule main stage and academy spring productions and will update our patrons via email and social media.”
Playhouse 1960, another local theatre company, announced March 16 that the final weekend performances of “4 Weddings and an Elvis” had been cancelled and upcoming productions of “The Book of Everything” and “Sordid Lives” had been postponed. A statement from the nonprofit’s board of directors reads:
“We are working with the cast and directors of upcoming shows on plans that will allow us to resume live productions as quickly as possible after the restrictions are lifted. Each production requires several weeks of audition, rehearsal and set construction before a single person is seated in the audience. We hope to be able to work with our upcoming casts, utilizing methods that keep us within the guidelines while protecting the health of our actors, volunteers, and audience members. Once we finalize how this works, we will be able to better determine the scheduling for the remainder of our season.”
Likewise Texas Master Chorale, a community-based choir, also had to cancel its “Requiem for the Living” concert, which was planned for April 4; the organization is working to reschedule the concert for sometime in the fall.
Also closings its doors for the interim is the Pearl Fincher Museum of Fine Arts. Museum Director Ani Boyajian announced March 16 that the museum would close its doors March 17 and that all public programs and tours had been cancelled through the end of March. Additionally, the museum’s annual Pearls of Arts Gala, which was planned for March 21, has been postponed to June 27.
In the meantime, the museum is hosting a “Home Art Challenge,” in which interested participants can visit the Pearl Fincher MFA Facebook page to find easy art projects for artists of all ages and skill levels. After completing a project, artists are invited to post a photo of their creation on the museum’s Facebook page for all to enjoy.
While the duration of social distancing remains unclear, each of these nonprofit arts organizations agreed they will only be able to survive through the continuous generosity of loyal patrons.
“When the virus has run its course, we will be here to provide the quality performances that the community has come to expect from Cypress Creek FACE,” Decker said. “We remain optimistic that this will end soon and everyone in our community will remain safe and healthy.”
For more information on ticket sales, ticketholders are encouraged to visit each organization's respective website.
