SLO REP’s Miossi Trust Matching Challenge for new venue in downtown cultural arts district
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. - The San Luis Obispo Repertory Theatre is preparing for its second act by building a new theatre downtown.
In acting there are no small parts, only small actors.
For San Luis Obsipo Repertory Theatre, it’s an issue of space.
“We currently run sell out shows all the time. And so we need a bigger space,” says Suzy Newman, SLO REP’s production manager.
For nearly a decade, the 78-year-old professional non-profit organization has campaigned and fundraised to build a new theatre.
The price tag: $21 million.
“We've been working for the last several years, partnering with the city of San Luis Obispo to build a brand new theater complex as the gateway to downtown San Luis Obispo as a new cultural arts district,” says Kevin Harris, SLO REP managing artistic director.
In 2023, the Harold J. Miossi Charitable Trust donated a million dollars.
Now the trust is matching any contribution up to $500 thousand.
“We're confident that once people hear about this project, hear about the cultural arts district here, about how this is going to bring 50,000 people to the downtown core every single year. This is so much more than just building a place to produce great theater,” says Harris.
So far, they've raised $19 million. The remaining 2.4 million must be raised by this December in order to break ground early next year.
“That trust is really encouraging community members to be a part of building this new part of their downtown,” says Newman.
The new theatre would be center stage as the city transforms a stretch of downtown into a cultural arts district.
“This new venue has a black box space which is about the size of our theater that we are performing in right now. And it has larger theater, about 215 seats. And it's still a very intimate space. Nobody's more than 40 feet from the stage,” says Newman.
For information on SLO REP and how to participate in the Miossi Matching Challenge, you can visit the theatre’s website by clicking here.
Video clips courtesy of RyLo Media Design, Ryan C. Loyd.
