A V A Ballet Theatre

EDUCATING CHILDREN, TEENS AND ADULTS TO BALLET AND THE ARTS.

WE ENTERED 2021 STILL REELING FROM THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. IN 2020, ALL OF OUR PERFORMANCES WERE CANCELED EXCEPT FOR EXCERPTS OF "THE NUTCRACKER" IN FRONT OF A STATE OF NEVADA MANDATED AUDIENCE OF 50 PATRONS (IN A 1,500-SEAT THEATER). DUE TO GENEROUS FOUNDATION AND CITY, STATE, AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT GRANTS, WE WERE IN A GOOD CASH POSITION AND HOPEFUL WE COULD PRODUCE OUR FULL 2021 SEASON.IN MARCH WE BEGAN REHEARSALS FOR THE TWICE DELAYED PRODUCTION OF "THE LITTLE MERMAID." THE DANCERS WERE NOT GOING TO BE REQUIRED TO WEAR MASKS ON STAGE. THIS BALLET WAS SCHEDULED FOR MAY 1ST AND 2ND AT THE PIONEER CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS. THE 50-PERSON AUDIENCE LIMIT MANDATED BY THE WASHOE COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT WAS RAISED TO 250. WE DECIDED TO PERFORM THE FULL BALLETS EVEN THOUGH THE TICKET SALES WOULD NEVER COVER MUCH OF THE EXPENSES. FORTUNATELY, FOUNDATION, CITY, STATE, AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT GRANTS CONTINUED TO COME IN AND ALLOWED US TO PAY OUR WAGES AND EXPENSES.COVID RESTRICTIONS MANDATED BY THE PIONEER CENTER MADE TICKET SALES DIFFICULT. PROOF OF VACCINATIONS FOR ADULTS WERE REQUIRED AND SEATS HAD TO BE SOLD IN PODS. SO, IF A PERSON BOUGHT ONE TICKET IN A POD, THE OTHER SEATS COULD NOT BE SOLD TO STRANGERS. IN THE END, DUE TO THE POD ISSUES, WE SOLD ABOUT 200 TICKETS PER PERFORMANCE. THE RENO PHIL STILL HAD WIND INSTRUMENT RESTRICTIONS, SO WE WERE ONLY ABLE TO HAVE A STRING ORCHESTRA. DESPITE THE OBSTACLES, WE PERFORMED TWO OUTSTANDING SHOWS THAT WERE WELL RECEIVED BY OUR PATRONS.BY THE SUMMER OF 2021, COVID-19 ISSUES SEEMED TO BE DIMINISHING. VACCINES WERE AGGRESSIVELY BEING GIVEN AND THERE WAS HOPE THE PANDEMIC WAS BEGINNING TO END. BY JULY, WASHOE COUNTY LIFTED ALL AUDIENCE RESTRICTIONS FOR THEATERS. ON JULY 16TH AND 17TH A.V.A. BALLET THEATRE PERFORMED ITS POPULAR ROCK BALLET "VORTEX" IN FRONT OF 1,800 PATRONS. MASKS WERE ADVISED BUT NOT MANDATORY. THE AUDIENCES WERE SO EXCITED TO BE AT FULL UNRESTRICTED PERFORMANCES. IN AUGUST, TICKETS FOR "SLEEPING BEAUTY" WENT ON SALE AT THE PIONEER CENTER. THERE WERE NO AUDIENCE RESTRICTIONS OTHER THAN MASKS AND WE WERE LOOKING FORWARD TO A NORMAL BALLET PRODUCTION WITH THE FULL RENO PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA. WE HAD SOLD ABOUT 1,000 TICKETS WHEN THE OMICRON VARIANT OF COVID-19 BECAME AN ISSUE. AS WE HAD ALREADY SOLD SO MANY TICKETS, THE PIONEER DECIDED TO LET US CONTINUE TO SELL UNRESTRICTED TICKETS. HOWEVER, THEY MANDATED ALL FUTURE SHOWS WOULD REQUIRE PROOF OF VACCINATIONS TO ALL PATRONS (INCLUDING CHILDREN). THIS MANDATE, EVEN THOUGH IT DID NOT PERTAIN TO "SLEEPING BEAUTY" DID CAUSE CONFUSION WITH OUR PATRONS AND DID HURT TICKET SALES. ON SEPTEMBER 18TH AND 19TH, WE PERFORMED "SLEEPING BEAUTY" IN FRONT OF 1,600 PATRONS. FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A YEAR AND A HALF, WE DID HAVE A FULL RENO PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA.WITH THE PROOF OF VACCINE REQUIREMENT FOR CHILDREN, WE WERE VERY CONCERNED THAT THIS WOULD DRASTICALLY HURT "THE NUTCRACKER" TICKETS SALES. ON A NORMAL YEAR OVER 6,000 PEOPLE ATTEND "THE NUTCRACKER AND 50% OF THE AUDIENCES ARE CHILDREN. AFTER MUCH DISCUSSION, WE DECIDED TO GO ON SALE WITH JUST THREE PERFORMANCES. WE RESERVED THE RIGHT TO ADD AN ADDITIONAL SHOW IF TICKET SALES WERE GOOD. THE RENO PHIL SAID THAT WE MUST INFORM THEM BY NOVEMBER 1ST IF WE WANTED A FOURTH SHOW AS THEY NEEDED TIME TO BUILD THE ORCHESTRA. TICKETS WENT ON SALE THE FIRST OF OCTOBER AND TO OUR SURPRISE SALES WERE EXCEPTIONALLY STRONG. WE IMMEDIATELY DECIDED TO ADD A FOURTH PERFORMANCE. THE PIONEER STAFF WAS HAVING DIFFICULTY MANAGING THE LARGE CROWDS FOR "HAMILTON AND THEY DID NOT GET OUR FOURTH SHOW ON SALE UNTIL NOVEMBER. DESPITE THIS, TICKET SALES CONTINUED TO BE STRONG. WE RECEIVED A LOT OF HATE MAIL FROM PEOPLE WHO DID NOT LIKE THE VACCINE PROOF REQUIREMENTS. FOUNDATION FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR OUR BALLETS CONTINUED TO ARRIVE.ON DECEMBER 9TH, 10TH, AND 11TH WE PERFORMED FOUR "THE NUTCRACKER" SHOWS IN FRONT OF 5,200 MASKED AND VACCINATED PATRONS. THE BELOVED "THE NUTCRACKER," THE MOST ATTENDED NON-PROFIT PERFORMING ARTS SHOW IN NORTHERN NEVADA, WAS AGAIN ABLE TO BECOME A MAIN EVENT DURING THE HOLIDAY SEASON.FOR 2022, WE ARE HOPEFUL WE CAN GET BACK TO NORMAL AND RUN OUR COMPLETE AND FULL BALLET SEASON. WE ARE VERY PROUD THAT DESPITE THE CHALLENGES OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS, WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO KEEP PERFORMING AND GIVE THE CITIZENS OF RENO THE BALLET PERFORMANCES THEY DESIRE.