Austin Downtown Arts Magazine
Theatre
The Secret Behind Austin Circle of Theatres' Success
by K. Marie Black
Another Saturday night and you ain't got nobody. You got
some money 'cuz you just got paid... What to do? Well, were
it up to Ann Ciccolella along with her crew at the Austin
Circle of Theatres (ACoT) you would partake in the one of
the 150 to 200 theatre productions that mount and dismount
each year in Austin. Truly, and were it up to folks at ACoT,
your partakage would be not a once in a while, outta the blue,
I - don't - have - anything - to - do and isn't - it - about
- time - I - started - to - doing - adult - things like going
- to - the - theatah kinda thing. The folks at ACoT want you
and theatre to start a life-long relationship: one with passion,
fire, and the dreaded "C" word: commitment, coupled
with the dreaded "P" word: patronage. They themselves
have all these fine qualities, along with guts and ambition,
both have which have moved ACoT from a sleepy little organization
to one of the most dynamic non-profits in Austin. Here's how
they did it.
Believe it or not, ACoT started 22 years ago as a way for
actors, directors, and designers to legitimize their ongoing
Sunday brunch outings into something more codified (or, at
least, that involved fewer mimosas). In addition, the founders
of ACoT were keen on tipping their hat to the many fine performers
in and around Austin. Hence, the B. Iden Payne awards, which
celebrated the wellspring of talent in Austin. Thus was the
"smallest arts service organization of its kind in America"
born, under the stars of simplicity and good faith.
After its inception, ACoT swam along in a free flow state
for several years: a brunch here, an awards dinner there.
Then, about 15 years ago, the City of Austin said that it
would be willing to grant funding to small theatre organizations
provided that they have a minimal amount of structure. ACoT
responded by getting an office, a part-time executive director,
and a plan to service these organizations. They did just fine,
but, like many arts organizations trying to stay afloat in
rough Reagan seas of the mid-eighties, ACoT suffered several
years of economic drudgery, putting the organization at risk
of closing its doors forever.
When Ann Ciccolella came on board as ACoT's Executive Director
in 1991, however, ACoT had stabilized, was solvent (with some
savings, even!), and poised to move forward. Ciccolella brought
a wealth of experience with her. Born a Yankee, she was a
Dramatic Literature major at NYU and worked for several years
with some fascinating dramatic companies, including Shakespeare
on Wheels, which brings the Bard to you. She is also a writer/director
in her own right, most recently directing Hedda Gabler for
Critical Mass Productions. She will also direct A Streetcar
Named Desire for Critical Mass, which will run starting March
of next year. She started with ACoT as a volunteer and dazzled
folks with her no nonsense working abilities. When the then
ED decided to leave to pursue school full-time, Ciccolella
jumped in, hit the ground running, and has been going ever
since. She is a dynamic communicator, whose focus and clarity
leave most of us looking like an unmade bed. These traits
have also earned her a reputation for being, um, well, blunt.
To this, Ms. C would probably say, "Hey, I've got a job
to do." True enough. Her job description reads like the
Mission Impossible To Do List: to simultaneously serve the
membership and to promote theatre-going, "which indirectly
serves the membership," says Ciccolella.
But Ciccolella doesn't do it alone. Mary-Alice Carnes, is
a different side to the ACoT coin. She, too, has a performance
background, majoring in voice. She has been in productions
in and around Austin, and is the co-founder, along with her
husband, Freddie, of the Children of Light Players. She has
worked at ACoT since 1993, starting first as an assistant
and now as the Associate Executive Director. She is a master
at both coordinating events, as well as dealing directly with
members and volunteers. No matter what's going on in that
crazy place, Carnes is mostly smiling, together, and just
seems damn happy to be alive and working in Austin theatre.
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The dynamic duo of Ciccolella and Carnes, along with a dedicated
volunteer force and a strong board of directors, has helped
move ACoT from a mixed start to a fully empowered arts services
organization. Namely, with growth in membership, which has
doubled in the past five years, and community clout, ACoT
has recently moved to it right-in-the-center-of-the-universe
location downtown. How did the ACoT folks manage to get this
prime real estate? According to Ciccolella, the "how"
was forged not by endless hours of begging and playing the
non-profit martyr role. More adroitly, the new address became
a reality by using a Business 101 rule: building relationships.
This Ciccolella did with Tom Stacy, of Omni Realty at 823
Congress. She and Stacy worked together on the Downtown Arts
Alliance, and Ciccolella asked Stacy to check around for affordable
downtown space. He happened to have some "right under
the waterfall" at 823 Congress. Stacy and Ciccolella
both agreed that Austin needed an arts organization serving
as an anchor downtown. The Museum of Fine Arts was already
there, so why not make it a team? That's just what they did.
ACoT moved to its new location earlier this year and stands
ready for even further growth, now having five times the space
than its old location. The new space has allowed ACoT to increase
its services, which now include a bona fide reading library
where members can check out scripts in advance and actually
read them on the premises.
How is this growth potential manifesting itself? To start,
ACoT is expanding its membership to include Austin's prolific
music scene. This now includes nine members and counting.
"We are also just starting to reach out to local business,
such as Tivoli, and Sicola Martin. What we've done is to use
the Internet to spread the word about Austin theatre. We've
offered discounts and giveaways and brought business people
to the theatre." But Austin's premiere service organization
for theatre is not stopping there: it is also moving readily
into film. It will be present to represent ACoT members at
this year's Heart of Texas Screenwriter's Conference, a conference
that will play host to a deluge of writers, directors, and
actors.
Future plans include further outreach into Austin's burgeoning
hi-tech community, as well more activities and community presence,
presence, presence, which, according to Ciccolella, is the
mother of all expansion.
If ACoT keeps this rate up, it may not have the title of
the smallest arts service organization in the country much
longer.
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