Hanover Theatre President and CEO on the Effects of the Health Crisis, and What They're Doing to Stay Afloat

The Hanover Theatre has recently announced that it will remain empty through the end of 2020, as it is not sustainable to reopen under the current guidelines set in place by the Massachusetts government.

President and CEO of the theater, Troy Siebels, recently chatted with MassLive about the effects the pandemic has had on the theater, and what they are doing to stay afloat. He remains hopeful that the theatre can return to live performances at the beginning of 2021, talking with the London Palladium about what that might look like.

"What they do matters it us, absolutely, because we learn from that," Siebels said.

Siebels estimates that, upon reopening, Hanover Theatre could have a capacity of 600 people, about a quarter of what it normally holds. However, he thinks that The Brick Box Theatre, which the Hanover Theatre also operates, would open first, with a one-third capacity being about 100 people.

"That feels like it's in the realm of what people might accept right now," he said.

Since March, the theatre has lost about $5 million in revenue. But with cancelled shows and furloughs, losses are closer to about $1.8 million. The theater received $670,000 from the Paycheck Protection Program, as well as repurposed capital contributions, and a Resiliency Fund.

"We are going to need the help. There's no question about it," Siebels said. "We're going to need the help and private philanthropy is stepping up to the plate but this is a scale that is just beyond anything we've dealt with."

Read more on MassLive.