An era in island theater will come to an end on Halloween night when Army Community Theatre — a presence on the local stage scene since 1942 — shuts down with the closing-night performance of "The Rocky Horror Show" at the Tropics on Schofield Barracks.
ACT season ticket holders were notified recently the Army had decided "to discontinue producing large Broadway musical shows at Richardson Theatre." The letter cited as contributing causes "fire and safety concerns, the high cost associated with producing large Broadway musical shows, and a steady, steep decline in theater attendance that is anticipated to continue based on trends and the current economic climate."
The Army plans to replace the familiar ACT schedule of Broadway and off-Broadway musicals with "recreational programs in which (military personnel and their families) can participate" and "smaller productions geared to young soldiers and their spouses that they will enjoy performing in and attending."
‘THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW’
Presented by Army Community Theatre
» Where: Tropics on Schofield Barracks, Foote Street, Building 589; must show photo ID, car registration and proof of insurance for admittance to military base.
» When: 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays through Oct. 29; 8 p.m. Oct. 31; pre-show entertainment at 7:30 p.m.; prop bags sold at the door.
» Cost: $15; buy tickets by phone at 438-4480, online at www.mwrarmyhawaii.com/army-community-theatre Opens in a new tab, at the door and all military ticket outlets.
» Note: No one under 18 will be admitted. Beer and "pub food" will be available.
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The move to shutter ACT was not unanticipated. The abrupt closure of Richardson Theatre last spring left the group scrambling for a place to stage its ambitious production of "Bugsy Malone." Paliku Theatre at Windward Community College hosted the orphaned show, but the change of venue hurt ticket sales.
ACT began during World War II as an on-base activity for military personnel. Production costs and performance royalties were paid by the government to provide an opportunity for soldiers to participate in theater.
Things changed when government funding was reduced and ACT was required to cover an increasing amount of its operating expenses. To that end the group reached out to the civilian community and began producing shows that competed for the same audience supporting other community theater troupes. Casting plum roles with "name" actors from the civilian talent pool — Shari Lynn and Larry Paxton, for example — helped sell tickets and fill seats in recent years but reduced opportunities for military personnel to participate. And, as government funding continued to shrink, the break-even point continued to rise.
Because it is a government entity, ACT was limited in its ability to raise funds in the civilian community, further hampering its survival. That was a significant handicap when staging the same type of Broadway musicals that were being presented by civilian theater groups with bigger production budgets.
Longtime managing and artistic director Vanita Rae Smith, who had kept ACT going through good times and bad, retired in 2010. Her successor, Brett Harwood, was brought here from the Army’s military theater program in Germany. Inheriting a perfect storm of government budget cuts, a dwindling core audience, shrinking revenues and minimal participation by military personnel, he responded with an ambitious program of edgy modern theater — shows like "Zombie Prom"; a high-tech, postmodern production of "The Threepenny Opera"; and a stripped-down staging of "Nine" — as well as traditional fare such as "Camelot."
The results were promising. ACT received 14 Po‘okela Awards for excellence this year from the Hawai‘i State Theatre Council, including a best-musical nod for "Nine" and awards for Harwood for his work directing "Nine" and "Showstoppers." It was ACT’s best showing in years.
"When I got here there didn’t seem to be anything pushing the envelope at all," Harwood said. "My goal was to start growing an audience of younger military people, and with ‘Threepenny Opera’ we started growing a new audience."
He said "Rocky Horror" is a look at what the future might hold for Army theater programs in Hawaii.
"We ended up being able to cast the show with about 13 active-duty soldiers, 10 (military) family members and three civilians, whereas (previously) we had a very small percentage of active-duty military and a high percentage of civilians," Harwood said. "The goal was to show that this (program) could indeed attract active-duty military. … To have a 90 percent (military cast) is very high — much higher than we’d hoped for."
"Rocky Horror" runs through Oct. 31.
