A long-standing theater tradition has ended for many Ohio University students, as university officials announced last week that they would no longer lease the Monomoy Theatre in Chatham, Mass.
Serving the Chatham and Cape Cod communities, OU students have utilized the partnership through a summer theater program that was started 57 years ago by former OU President John C. Baker.
Citing academic and budgetary reasons, OU President Roderick McDavis notified the owner of the Monomoy that the university would not renew its lease after Dec. 31, 2014.
“The College (of Fine Arts) and (Theater) Division believe that shifting resources to support other theater learning opportunities for students and faculty closer to Ohio University would make better use of resources and expand the positive experience provided by the university’s Theater Division program,” OU officials said in a statement.
The Post withheld reporting on the relationship’s ending until the university provided budget costs.
The university pays nearly $250,000 per year to the Monomoy which covers:
-- more than $110,000 in annual costs
-- $60,000 in annual theater rental costs
-- $65,000 for repairs and maintenance, property taxes and insurance in 2013
“The Monomoy Theatre was always a great experience for students,” Margaret Kennedy-Dygas, dean of the College of Fine Arts, said in an email. “(Students) have the opportunity to meet professionals from the theater world, which helps them network as they get their own careers launched.”
The move “may or may not” greatly affect OU students, Kennedy-Dygas said, as the summer theatre program wasn’t exclusive to OU students, who had to apply and audition like other college students.
“There are very few of these summer stock theaters left in existence,” she said. A “summer stock theater” is one that only holds performances in the summer.
"Presumably, if Monomoy Theatre continues, our students will have the same opportunity moving forward as they have had in the past,” the dean said. “The only difference will be that the financial infrastructure will be provided by some other entity than Ohio University.”
The theater is also supported by the University of Hartford and Friends of Monomoy Theatre — a local group devoted to the institution that raises “significant funds” for the theater, according to OU’s Director of External Communication Stephanie Filson.
Representatives from the Monomoy Theatre did not return calls for comment.
“The buildings associated with the Monomoy Theatre are nearly a century old and face the need for major renovations, a project expected to cost millions (of dollars),” Filson said in an email. “It is because of this looming expense that Ohio University’s decision was made.”
New theater opportunities will be explored at OU’s expanding Dublin, OH campus in lieu of the Monomoy, according to the news release.
The College of Fine Arts and city of Dublin are in early talks to initiate an associated professional resident theater company, Kennedy-Dygas said.
“We envision this company presenting its first several seasons in temporary facilities in Dublin, possibly in one of the high schools,” she said.
Officials have announced plans to honor the partnership between the Monomoy theater and the university throughout the 2014 play season.
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