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AN EVENING WITH EMMA DONOGHUE, MARCH 2022
Government Funding And Special Grants
Each year, the Grand receives generous support from the City of London, the Ontario Arts Council, and the Canada Council for the Arts.
As the industry continued to operate in a COVID impacted season, the Grand applied for and received additional support from the Canada Council, $70K and The Department of Canadian Heritage, $125K.
In the 2021-22 season, one-time government grants and ongoing funding contributed 24% of our total revenue.
Community Impact
The Grand prides itself on the economic impact on London and surrounding regions. This past year, we provided employment for 270 people and contributed over $3.97M in salaries and benefits. Of goods and services purchased 53% or $1.6M was spent locally, making a significant contribution to the local economy.
The number of organizations using our box office services was lower than what would be typical in a non-COVID impacted season. In 2021-22, 11 local organizations used our box office services, and 9 local companies or individuals rented our facilities.
In an effort to open the doors of the theatre as wide as possible to new theatre audiences, tickets to the GRAND RE:OPENING FESTIVAL were provided free of charge. Following each Festival performance, a request for donations to support the work of the Festival Artists and the theatre was made. This included an ask at the conclusion of each streamed performance.
Beyond the GRAND RE:OPENING FESTIVAL, a concentrated effort in community outreach to open the doors to new theatre goers resulted in over 480 complimentary tickets provided to community groups and organizations throughout the remaining course of the season.
The Grand re-started its ticket donation program providing theatre tickets to local charitable organizations to be used as prizes for fundraising events. As many organizations continued to move away from in-person events, demand for donated tickets was lower than in a typical year which would see close to $60,000 in ticket valued donated. In 2021-22 close to $5000 in ticket value was donated. Additionally, vouchers that could not be claimed during the period of COVID shutdown were honoured by our box office.
We continued our partnership with Business Cares and the London Food Bank during the holiday production of HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS. Grand audiences generously donated $40,031 bringing the 5-year total of funds raised to $340,810 in support of London families and the over 35 agencies supported by the London Food Bank.
The Grand Gala
The 47th Grand Gala honoured retiring Executive Director, Deb Harvey. Titled “A Grand Goodbye”, Deb’s 22 years at the Grand were celebrated with an array of special guests and tributes. Presented by Sterling Marking Products, the Gala was co-hosted by Dennis Garnhum and former Artistic Director, Susan Ferley. Rick Miller served as the event MC and special performances from past and current High School Project participants highlighted the evening. Our thanks to Jan Alexandra Smith, Aiden de Salaiz, David Michael Moote, Ben Sanders and Olivia Sinclair Brisbane for joining the sold-out event and a special thanks to Victor Garber who sent greetings and good wishes to Deb via video. Funds raised at the Gala supported the High School Project and other youth programming initiatives as well as the Grand’s COVID recovery fund through the Grand Theatre Foundation.
Fund Raising and Development
The Grand Theatre’s continued commitment to producing leading and innovative work for our audiences while providing the creative teams who produce our shows the opportunities for artistic enrichment remains a top priority. The breadth of programming we offer is made possible through the generous support of exceptional sponsors, individuals, foundations, and corporate donors.
Many of the Grand Theatre’s individual donors pledge a gift to the theatre operations around the time of their subscription renewals. The absence of a subscription series in the 2021-22 season with reduced audience sizes due to uncertainty and apprehension of Grand Theatre patrons, resulted in lower overall donations than what would be typical. That said, we are grateful for the support of our donors and supporters, who supported us during this time.
Donors and supporters generated $1,36M (24% of revenue) in contributions to the operations last season.
A special major gifts campaign was launched to support the Grand’s COVID recovery efforts through the Grand Theatre Foundation. We are appreciative of the outpouring of support from donors to this effort, many of whom donated in tribute to Deb Harvey in support of the future of the Grand.
2021-22 SPONSORSHIP HIGHLIGHTS
BMO generously supported the Grand as the 2021-22 Season Sponsor. The impact of BMO’s ongoing support of the Grand cannot be overstated.
Libro Credit Union and The Thames Valley District School Board provided financial sponsorship of the 2021-22 High School Project –THE GREAT GRAND ROAD TRIP– with Western Fair District provided much-needed rehearsal space at no cost.
The GRAND RE:OPENING FESTIVAL was supported by generous grant provided by the London Community Foundation. Canada Life provided funding that allowed for barrier-free access to all four of the Festival productions.
Title Sponsorship for the productions in the truncated 2021-22 Season were as follows: McCormick Canada - HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS, Ahria ConsultingROOM, Michael and Stephanie McDonald – GROW. We are grateful for the additional support provided by Tourism London as hospitality sponsors for GROW. We offer our ongoing thanks to Selectpath for deferring their title sponsorship of CONTROLLED DAMAGE to the 2022-23 Season.
Sterling Marking Products enthusiastically returned as Presenting Sponsor of the Grand Gala. The Gala was also supported by Gold Sponsors: Spriet & Associates, Cornerstone Architecture, Form & Build, and Remax Hallmark A-Team. The added sponsorship support of Acura West, CIBC Wood Gundy - Larry Myny Investment Group, Matt Parr Mortgages, Nash Jewellers and Channers contributed to the success of the event.
We remain grateful for the support of Delta Hotels by Marriott – London Armouries and CIBC Wood Gundy - Larry Myny Investment Group for their support of Jeans ‘n Classics in the 2021-22 Season.
The impact of the support of the many community partners continue to make us London Proud. Thanks so New Era Grafix, MacMaster Chevrolet Cadillac, Buick, GMC, Daisy Flowers, Art & Framing, Len’s Mill, Sportwood Printing, North Moore Catering and our many dining partners.
