Northern Stage Achieves $8.5m Act II Campaign Goal

Northern Stage has announced that through the generosity of more than 300 individual donors, we have achieved our fundraising goal of $8.5 Million to support the Act II Campaign: A Vision For the Future of Northern Stage, White River Junction, and The Region. This initiative will secure the future of the Upper Valley’s premier professional theater. 

"We are proud to have reached this significant milestone in Northern Stage’s development and grateful for the extraordinary support of our donors and audiences, who recognize the importance of this theater in our community,” said Producing Artistic Director Carol Dunne and Managing Director Jason Smoller in a joint statement. “In just a few months, we will have realized a longtime dream of building an arts campus in downtown White River Junction. Through the generosity of so many in our community, we have been able to play a significant role in the revitalization of our historic downtown, and we are eager to continue to build on Northern Stage’s successes. We thank our community, and the Upper Valley at large, for believing in the power of theater to change lives, one story at a time.”

Board Chair Jenn Argenti added, “I am tremendously proud of what Northern Stage has accomplished in the last five years. This campaign was launched in the depths of the pandemic. Through the dedication and hard work of a strong board and staff team, not to mention the hundreds of donors who came forward to support this vision, we are poised for long-term vitality and impact on our region and beyond moving into the future."

"The success of this campaign reflects the exceptional dedication of the Development team at Northern Stage and the Campaign Committee, whose tireless outreach to our community resulted in this dream coming true. The enthusiastic and generous response to this campaign was nothing short of inspiring. A most sincere thank you to everyone who participated in this historic effort. Together, you have made a tangible, lasting impact on our community,” said Campaign Chair Nancy Murray.

This announcement follows significant progress at the construction site at 156-174 Gates Street in White River Junction. Construction is expected to be substantially complete by July 2025, with actors, artists, and staff occupying the housing this fall.

Northern Stage is already benefiting from the pillars laid out in the campaign. Annual withdrawals from the Impact Fund have enabled us to bring salaries up to a competitive level, improve our benefits offerings, and retain talented staff. Our Endowment has grown significantly and is now generating more funds to support our annual operating budget. And beginning this fall, the new artist housing development will ensure an annual savings of $200,000 for the company, a major relief to the operating budget.

The Act II Campaign was launched in December 2021 and was announced to the public in May 2024. Major Challenge Grants from the Couch Family Foundation and the Barrette Family Foundation were critical to the Campaign’s success, as was a significant award from the Agency of Commerce and Community Development of the State of Vermont.

The artist housing development is designed by Jim Pulver of Bread Loaf Corporation, the same architect who designed Northern Stage’s 2015 Barrette Center for the Arts, and ground was broken in July 2024.

Northern Stage has just announced its 25/26 Main Stage Season, which opens with the Broadway hit musical Come From Away, and continues with a new adaptation of Peter Pan entitled Peter & Wendy, The Children, The World Is Not Silent, and a world premiere comedy Wonder! A Woman Keeps A Secret rounds out the season.

The 24/25 Main Stage Season concludes with The Vermont Farm Project: A Farm to Stage Musical, playing May 7-25, 2025.

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