http://www.yankton.net/articles/2013/02/21/community/doc5125967857511846921768.txt

YCTC Seeks New Home

By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net

The Yankton Children’s Theatre Company (YCTC) has been rehearing in the old Elks building, in the 400 block of Walnut, for several years, knowing that the facility could be sold at any time.

That time has come.

“The Old Elks building has been our home base for several years, so having to move at this point is certainly a challenge,” said Jill Paulson, president of YCTC. “However, we plan to do everything we can to work towards the continued progress of the organization, despite this bump in the road.”

The YCTC has been informed that the building will be sold after May 1, but they must be out by that date.

Paulson added that since the building has been for sale before, it was always a possibility that they would have to move out at some point.

“On a few occasions, we have reached out, or attempted to reach out, to property owners in the community that we felt might have empty or underutilized buildings that could fit our needs,” Paulson said. “Unfortunately, we have not been able to find, or connect with, the right opportunity at the right time. Through connections on our current board, we do have a few possibilities to explore, but we certainly do not have anything definitive in the works at this time.”

The building is scheduled to be sold at a hectic and busy time for YCTC. They have just completed one of their major annual fundraisers this past weekend, and are still in rehearsals for their largest production of the year, “Aladdin and His Wonderful Magic Lamp.”

Paulson said this will be an issue that YCTC will need to continue to work on as it moves forward.

“If we cannot find a new home, we are prepared to put our large collection of costumes, props and set items in storage temporarily,” she said. “This would not be an ideal situation, but we’re committed to keeping these creative opportunities open and available to all Yankton-area youth and their families.”

In YCTC’s current situation, officials are able to build their sets, prepare costumes and hold all of their initial rehearsals at the old Elks building. However, the building, Paulson says, is not a viable location for productions, so the YCTC must rotate between the three main theatres in town (Dakota Theatre, Summit Center Theater and the Marian Auditorium), based on the needs of the production and availability.

“In an ideal world, YCTC would love to find a home that would allow us to do all the things like rehearsals, set construction, productions in one place,” Paulson said. “This would not necessarily require a ‘traditional’ theater space — we are a creative group of people and might see possibilities in spaces that others might not. This would only increase our ability to enhance and grow our productions and offer new        programming.”

She added that what YCTC needs more than anything is a constant and stable location for storage, set and costume construction, as well as rehearsal space.

The YCTC has been instructed to be out of the building no later than May 1. However, that date may change.

“We have not been informed of a specific date at this point, but it is our understanding that the building will go up for auction sometime after May 1,” Paulson said.

She added that programs like the YCTC are important for the public because often arts-related programs are being cut in schools, so community-based programs for children, like YCTC, are increasingly  important.

Members of the YCTC are encouraging the public to call executive director Allison Spak if they think they have a space, or know someone that does, that might work for the organization.

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal