Artists Repertory Theatre Rescued by Largest Donation in the Company’s History

The company will still sell half their theater, but is no longer in dire straights.

Artists Repertory Theatre (M.O. Stevens/Wikipedia)
By Shannon Gormley

Today, Artists Repertory Theatre announced that they received the largest donation in the theater's history.

The $7 million, given by an anonymous donor, comes at a crucial time for the theater. As WW reported last month, the company was so deep in debt, they decided to sell half their building.

According to a press release from the theater, Artists Rep still plans to sell part of their Goose Hollow building. However, the donation will allow the company to pay off the $1.3 million worth of debt the company has accumulated over the past four years due to dwindling ticket sales.

The remaining money will be used to renovate the south half of the theater. Considering the donation is almost twice the theater's $3.8 million yearly budget, it also insures a certain degree of short-term financial stability.

Artists Rep is currently in their 35th season, making them Portland's oldest theater company. Their building also houses other theater companies like Profile Theatre, LineStorm Playwrights and Portland Shakespeare Project.

They're currently staging a five-hour epic that's a world premiere by a Portland playwright.

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