Being able to connect and relate to your community has proven to be a major advantage for small to midsize theater companies. “When you have that community support, that very clear voice, for the people, with the people, they will be with you at all times, versus this is just something that’s entertainment,” Charlique Rolle told The TRiiBE.
Charlique C. Rolle is an arts administrator and interdisciplinary artist, executive director of Congo Square Theatre Company, and a 2023 Chicago Urban League IMPACT Fellow. She was also recently named the new president of the Black Arts & Culture Alliance of Chicago, recently known as the African American Arts Alliance of Chicago, succeeding Taylor.
Taking over as executive director for the Congo Square Theatre Company in the spring of 2020, Rolle inherited every issue the pandemic presented for the theater community. Heavily relying on contractors and part-time artists, she was also the organization’s only full-time employee.
Now, with three full-time employees and numerous part-time employees, the theater has experienced growth.
“Small and midsize theaters, particularly, and especially the culturally specific ones, have seen a lot of growth throughout COVID,” Rolle told The TRiiBE. “Yes, there was a lot of funding directed towards us, but also, there’s a different model. Even beyond race, those that really spend time building community and doing work that is rooted in community, that’s something that’s innate to culturally specific institutions.”
An example of this would be Congo Square Theatre’s Radical Generosity Model, where they offer up to 30% of their tickets either for free or heavily subsidized for community members. The model has proven useful in times where subscription ticket sales have taken a substantial hit.
Meanwhile, more prominent theaters are reportedly struggling to maintain their pre-pandemic level audience attendance, according to an article by Crain’s Chicago Business. One of those theaters is Chicago’s Tony Award-winning Lookingglass Theatre, which has taken a pause from producing shows until spring 2024, while also laying off a majority of their staff — a move that shook Chicago’s theater community.
According to Rolle, about 85% of Congo Square’s audience has returned to the theater when comparing numbers to pre-COVID. Without a brick-and-mortar location, the organization has been able to save on costs associated with building maintenance and other overhead costs.
Through DCASE, the Black Arts and Culture Alliance received $180,000. Both organizations, associated with Rolle, have received funds from the program, and plan on using them for sustainability, to bring in additional staff, help support the expansion of community outreach efforts, and build a strong financial infrastructure.
Pay equity and stability is a main priority when building that infrastructure. For Kia S. Smith, the founder and executive artistic director of the South Chicago Dance Theatre, the grant has helped her provide a salary as well as health and dental insurance for her artists.
“I think in our city, there are a number of companies that offer health benefits, [or] that offer a salary for the dancer, or dancers are making a living wage,” she explained. “Most of those companies are on the city’s North Side, or in the Loop. I believe we’re bringing the same kind of work to our community that is being brought to the Loop and the North Side.”
Smith founded the South Chicago Dance Theatre in 2017. After being granted $150,000 from the Chicago Arts Recovery Program, the South Side native has grown the organization from nothing, to having a budget of $800,000 in its seventh season.
“When you look at the Loop, or you look at the North side, there’s so much art, there’s so much culture, so many institutions. That’s what draws people to those places and makes them want to be there because there’s so much life. We bring that life to the South Side,” Smith told The TRiiBE.