WPCNR STAGE DOOR. By John F. Bailey. June 19, 2006: The Friends of the Nyacks community group announced today they have signed a 15 year lease with Milbrook Acquisitions of Great Neck, NY to operate the defunct Helen Hayes Theatre—with an option to buy. They have two years of rent guaranteed to them by a mystery donor to turn the operation around.
The Helen Hayes Footlights Will Shine Again, thanks to a Mystery Donor who has guaranteed approximately $500,000-plus in rent and equipment leasing to the new lessor, Friends of the Nyacks. Photo, WPCNR ArtsCam.
The community “save” is made possible by an anonymous resident of Nyack stepping forward and guaranteeing two years of rent & taxes to the landlord, Milbrook Acquisitions, giving The Friends time to get the theatre producing, and breaking even. The theatre was sold to Milbrook in December to eliminate $2.7 Million of debt, accumulated in the last five years.
Deborah Darbonne announced the agreement in which The Friends of the Nyacks will run the theatre, paying Milbrook $18,000 a month rent for the space. She said the theatre will be run by a community board that will be announcing a staff for the theatre in the next two months. She announced the theatre is looking for a new Artistic Director. Photo, WPCNR ArtsCam
Darbonne said the theatre operating budget was estimated in the past to be $300,000 a year, and that the new community board was looking to trim that. She also said she would be applying to the Rockland County government for funding.
Programming would include productions of local film and theatre groups, she said, and the Friends would be seeking individual concerts, corporate meetings, and be offering rentals of the theatre’s facilities at reduced rates. Organizations interested should contact The Friends of the Nyacks, www.friendsofthenyacks.org.
John Shields, Mayor of Nyack said he saw the community coming together to save the theatre as a new direction for Nyack, visualizing the Helen Hayes Performing Arts Center as Ms. Darbonne said it would be known , as the corner stone to make Nyack a center of performing arts in the region. With Mayor Chields is Nyack resident, Grey Johnson of WGBO Jazz Radio. Harriet Cornell, Chair of the Rockland County Board of Legislators congratulated Ms. Darbonne on her achievement on negotiating the lease. Photo, WPCNR ArtsCam.
Tom Kleiner, Rockland County Executive also lent his presence to the affair congratulating Ms. Darbonne for taking the inititative to save the theatre, saying there was nothing the county could have done, and “we cannot thank you enough.” Photo, WPCNR ArtsCam
Introduced as guiding advisors of the theatre in its new incarnation who will be working with Ms. Darbonne and the Friends of the Nyacks in managing the theatre, were A & E Television Network’s Elliot Forster, host of Breakfast With the Arts; Grey Johnson of Nyack, Marketing and Membership Manager for WBGO jazz radio. Also introduced as participants in guiding the future of the theatre were Darrel Larson, the WFUV host of Whole Wide World Friday evenings on WFU, William Erwin, the noted producer, and Neil Berg, the composer.
Darbonne said there will be a cleanup night for the community to help get the theatre into shape on July 15. She also said an extensive fundraising effort would be created shortly. No date was given for a first performance.
No members of the former Helen Hayes Theatre Company Board of Directors, (who secretly sold the in the face of community protest), were present at the news conference, though that Board did send a congratulatory note to Ms. Darbonne. No representative from Milbrook Acquisitions was asked to speak, but Gary Kahn of Milbrook was thanked for his negotiating the contract. Former Artistic Director of the Helen Hayes Theatre Company, Tony Stimac was not in attendance.
