WaterTower Theatre Artistic Director Terry Martin has sent a letter to subscribers describing some changes in schedule the theater will undergo. The changes are in response to a decline in ticket sales this year attributed to the economic downturn.
“WaterTower has been blessed with amazing box office success over the past few years, and our 08-09 programming decisions were based on a six year history of almost capacity houses. However, along with the sudden and dramatic shift in the economic tide, WaterTower is experiencing a significant reduction in our ticket sales,” Martin writes in the letter.

The changes include trimming the production schedule from the usual four weeks to three, a decrease of five performances, and changing out two costly shows for a pair of more economical ones. The theater had planned to stage Our Town in April and How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying in July. Instead, Our Town will be replaced with Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie and How to Succeed will be replaced with a show to be determined.

Martin ends the letter by saying, “As we bring 2008 to a close, we have faith that with your patience, understanding and help, we will weather this challenge and emerge stronger than ever.”