Our Annual ReportIn a normal year, we would hold an in-person members meeting to discuss the state of the theater. Since this is not a normal year, we are holding the event virtually. Executive Director Chris Collier explains in the video below.
The Theater has been closed since March 13th. Due to the pandemic, the Garden, like other theaters and businesses across the country was ordered to close. We have felt it has not been safe or financially viable to reopen yet.
It has been a very hard year without ticket revenue. Our income is down 55% compared to last year. Without ticket sales, our only income is through the support of our members and friends. We have cut our expenses to the bone, but will likely end the year with a significant deficit.
We still have reserves. Thanks to many years of support by our members and friends and stable management, the Garden entered the closure with some operating reserves. These funds - along with the continued support of our members and donors - have allowed us to weather the closure.
Our funds should last us to the spring of 2021. The money we have in our “Closure Fund” should get us to spring 2021. We are still looking to raise additional funds and apply for grants and other forms of support, as we anticipate 2021 to be a difficult year and we also need to replenish our depleted reserves.
THANK YOU. Thank you to our members and donors. Without your support over the years and especially during the closure, we would not be able to remain in business. Thank you so much for your continued support.
Thank you to our friends and donors. Through your generosity, we have already raised $28,000 toward our Recovery Fund goal of $50,000. For this we are incredibly thankful.
Your Support is Essential. Without ticket sales, our only income during this closure comes from contributions by members and friends. We are asking you to make a tax-deductible gift to the nonprofit Princeton Garden Theatre Recovery Fund to help secure our future.
Our Goal: Raise $50,000 by December 31st.
These vital funds will:
· Provide the operations support that will allow the Garden to weather the rest of the closure and return to operations in 2021.
· Replenish our operations reserves so that we can present great film
Please make your gift to help the nonprofit Princeton Garden Theatre remain a vibrant and an important part of our community. Make your tax-deductible gift today.
THANK YOU.
The Garden will remain closed until 2021. Over the summer, we established Four Criteria that the theater would need to reach in order to reopen safely and sustainably. Our staff have concluded that we have not yet met these three criteria and it is in the best interest for the theater to remain closed through the rest of 2020.
Four Criteria for Reopening
1. Governmental approval. While movies theaters in New Jersey were allowed to reopen in September, they still have strict capacity limitations. These limits make it challening to open, as we will not be able to offset the increased expense of reopening with such limited capacity. We will need to wait until Gov. Murphy increases the capacity limits before we can pursue reopening.
2. Safety Precautions for Staff and Patrons. With the ongoing conditions of the pandemic, we do not feel that we are in a suitable position to safely reopen for larger crowds. We are continuing to research the best tools and cleaning systems (foggers, air filtration, counter dividers, etc.) for when we reopen in 2021.
3. Fiscal Sustainability. Unfortunately, we do not feel that we would be able to make ends meet if we reopened now. There are not enough new films to play, and the theaters that have opened early are struggling to make ends meet or have re-closed. We stand to lose 3x more if we opened too early than if we remain closed.
4. Princeton University's Status. With the University operating virtually, we are without one of our most important audience bases. Our calculations show that University-related business (rentals, special events, tickets from students, staff, and faculty, etc.) make up at least 25% of our operating income. We are hopeful that the University will return to operation in the Spring of 2021. Their decision to return to operation has a large impact on our plans.
We will continue to monitor the situation and provide more information regarding our 2021 reopening dates as we near the end of the year.
Despite the theater being closed, we have still been engaging our mission to bring great movies, film education, and the cinematic experience to our community.
Our Virtual Cinema. We continue to offer thought-proving, entertaining, and artfully-made films that can be purchased and streamed through our website. Where we are normally limited by only having three screens, our virtual cinema offerings have allowed us to share a wide variety of films ranging from Hollywood Classics, American independent dramas, recent cult favorites, International titles, and a range of documentaries.
Film Education Programs. Our film education programs have continued in virtual form as well. The Film 101 Discussion Series, local filmmaker showcases, and Q&As with directors and cast members, have allowed us to continue the conversation about filmmaking, craft, and appreciation.
Check out our YouTube page for all Filmmaker Q&A and other content.
We will be back. Community life will eventually resume. And when it does, the Garden will once again be the cornerstone of our community.
But 2021 is going to be a difficult year. We anticipate that it will take us most of 2021 and maybe into 2022 to get back to regular operation. We expect that there will be bumps along the way, but we are keeping our focus on the long-range plan and adjusting our operations accordingly.
Our vision for the future is still positive. The press may be talking about the end of movie theaters. But they are not writing about theaters like ours. Our community-supported, nonprofit theater is something more than just a movie theater. We are a community anchor to Nassau St, a location for seeing and celebrating cinematic events you cannot see elsewhere. We are a living museum of the history of moving pictures, and when this is all over, we will still be here to bring you great movies for years to come.
The “Cinema Experience” will live on at the Garden. The pandemic may end up causing many industry-wide changes to movie theaters and movie going. We expect that a number of theaters (mostly multiplexes) in the country will not make it. But, with your support, the Princeton Garden Theatre will be there. And we envision a future in which we continue to keep the Cinema Experience alive.