Local theater, animal rescue facility earn 'shuttered venue' grants to help them survive

By Jan Gottesman

Cultural venues were some of the businesses that suffered the most during the pandemic as these venues were considered non-essential.

Federal Shuttered Venues Operators Grants have been announced to support cultural and arts institutions that lost revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic; in this round were one each in Bolton and Boylston.

Animal Adventures Family Zoo and Rescue Center, in Bolton, and Calliope Productions, in Boylston, were among the agencies that received the federal aid.

Animal Adventures received $328,186 for its animal rescue and public facility at 336 Sugar Road, Bolton. They have reopened to the public this summer.Calliope Productions, with its theater at 150 Main St., Boylston, is a live performing arts organization. It opened for summer theater camps this summer and plan to offer performances this fall.

"Over the period of our 15-month COVID-19 shutdown - from March 2020 when we closed our opening play for 2020 part-way through the run of the show, until we began our 2021 Youth Theatre Workshop programs in June 2021 - Calliope Productions enacted as many austerity measures as we could and issued multiple appeals for donations from our patrons and supporters," said Dave Ludt, the artistic director of the theater company.

Those donations, "plus a COVID-19 Economic Recovery grant that we received from the Mass. Cultural Council in the spring helped us significantly get through the financial crisis while our operations were closed," he said. "The SVOG program grant ensures that our programs and operations will not be negatively impacted throughout the rest of this year - especially in light of our expectation that audience attendance - and revenue from ticket sales - will run 30% to  35% less that what occurred in the pre-pandemic 2019 season," Ludt added.

"In addition, the grant will establish a solid financial footing for our 2022 performance season - which will mark Calliope Productions' 40th anniversary as a community theater," he added.

“This pandemic devastated small businesses across the country, especially local theatres and concert venues,” Congresswoman Lori Trahan said. Bolton's Animal Adventures is in her district. “The Shuttered Venues Operators Grants program, which provides funding to bolster these small businesses and get Americans back to work, is critical to our pandemic recovery.

"This support will save venues and create jobs, and will enable our beloved businesses, like the 10 receiving grants in the Third District of Massachusetts, to continue their vital contributions to our communities. I’m proud to champion this effort, and look forward to continuing my work to support small businesses in Massachusetts and across the country,” she added.

The Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) program was established by the Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, and Venues Act, and amended by the American Rescue Plan Act. The program includes over $16 billion in grants to shuttered venues, to be administered by SBA’s Office of Disaster Assistance.

Eligible entities include: Live venue operators or promoters; theatrical producers; live performing arts organization operators; museum operators; motion picture theater operators (including owners); and talent representatives.

Other requirements include:

• Must have been in operation as of Feb. 29, 2020; and

• Venue or promoter who received a PPP loan on or after Dec. 27, 2020, will have the SVOG reduced by the PPP loan amount;

First priority was given to entities that suffered a 90% or greater gross revenue loss between April 2020 through December 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Funds may be used for specific expenses, which include: payroll; rent and utility payments; scheduled mortgage payments; scheduled debt payments due to the pandemic; worker protection expenditures; payments to independent contractors; other necessary expenses, such as maintenance; administrative costs; state and local taxes, operating leases in effect as of Feb. 15, 2020; insurance payments and some other costs related to producing a theatrical or live arts production.