Thanks to Artown and a slew of new arts organizations, events and venues that have launched in recent years, the Reno area is enjoying something of a cultural renaissance. But in some of Northern Nevada’s more rural communities, arts programming has traditionally been harder to come by. That’s why Carson Valley Community Theatre (CVCT), a small, upstart theater company in Minden, was founded 20 years ago.
One of the few people who has been with CVCT almost since the beginning is its secretary and grant writer, Diana Jones, who joined 19 years ago—and was president or secretary of the board for at least 15 of them. Jones explained that the company’s founders wanted to bring live theater to a community that had lacked it, but they also saw a need for education.
As the company evolved, so did its mission: As an all-volunteer, not-for-profit performing arts theater production company, CVCT’s mission is to present musical and dramatic productions for the entertainment and cultural education of the Carson Valley community and the surrounding area, to showcase local talent, and to provide opportunities for residents of the region to participate in all aspects of live theater production and management.
Ann Delahay is a longtime board member and former president and treasurer with CVCT. She remembers when the company had a $5,000 annual budget and performed in the gazebo at Heritage Park and upstairs in Sharkey’s Casino.
“When we began, we were rehearsing in folks’ garages, living rooms, and above the bar at a casino,” Jones recalled. “Our productions were held in Carson Valley Inn banquet rooms and other smaller venues. As we became more successful and well known, we were able to rent out space at the Copeland Building.”
These days, the company has its own space at the Carson Valley Improvement Club, or CVIC, in Minden, which provides an office, a green room, equipment storage and a large shop, with rehearsals taking place in The Annex and major productions happening at the CVIC Hall, which features a large stage, lights and seating for over 200 people.
The company’s evolution has been impressive, Delahay said. “We now have a large group of volunteers with a $50,000 annual budget and are performing with full sets, a sound system and lighting in the CVIC Hall to audiences averaging over 100 people. We have a core audience of area residents who look forward to our shows and are consistent theatergoers.”
Audiences have grown from mostly being friends of the cast to including a wide variety of people. “A recent study indicated that about 50 percent of our audience comes from Genoa south, and the other 50 percent from Carson and Reno,” Jones said. “That is a major difference from when we began and just had a small number of local residents.”
It is and always has been an all-volunteer organization, from directors and producers to actors and technical crew. In fact, Jones said that a typical show racks up over 1,000 hours of volunteer time.
One regular volunteer is Cori Rosa, who is producing CVCT’s July show, Making God Laugh, which opened July 19 and runs through July 28. She said the company has developed a loyal following among a niche audience.
“We definitely cater to the Minden/Gardnerville community, a lot of whom are seniors,” Rosa said. “Our focus is on trying to get people involved in the arts here, but we can’t go too out of the realm of accessible content.”
In their case, this means mostly comedies and musicals—nothing too complex or weighty. Although, as this month’s show demonstrates, the company is working to expand both its volunteer base and its audience. Renee Kaldor, who teaches drama at Douglas High School, is in her second stint as a CVCT director for Making God Laugh, and her connection to the school has brought in a new crop of young actors. She explained that the eight-person cast ranges in age from 14 to mid-70s, and she’s excited about the show’s potential to bring in a younger audience.
“There are two sons and one daughter, and they are becoming adult children, so it takes us from when they are in their 20s, all the way up to their 50s, and looks at how the choices they’re making are not the choices that their parents wanted them to make,” Kaldor said. “I think it has universal themes of family dynamics and what happens when you grow up.” She added that some serious issues, such as how a family copes when a member has dementia, will also come up. In short, she said, it should appeal to a cross-section of viewers.
The play, which Kaldor characterizes as a dramedy, spans 40 years in the life of a family—two parents and their three children.
It’s not really about God, Kaldor said, but a reference to the old expression, “The easiest way to make God laugh is to tell him your plans.” In other words, things never turn out the way you expect.
The company hopes this is only the beginning of what it can accomplish in terms of its evolution. “We are currently trying to increase our acting base in the 35-50-year-old age range, as this will allow us even greater flexibility in choosing shows,” Jones said, adding that accessibility in price is an important part of this too. “We do a pay-what-you-can night during our mainstage productions, where people can pay anything from a dollar to whatever they please. This allows us to expand our outreach to the community and encourages those who might be tight on funds to come see our shows.”
After Making God Laugh concludes its run, all eyes will turn to Sept. 6, when CVCT will celebrate 20 years of delighting audiences in Carson Valley. The anniversary gala will include a three-course dinner at the Carson Valley Inn, followed by entertainment provided by local performers Krista Jenkins, Cedric Williams, Carolyn Lancaster and Melanie Johnson, among others, who will perform skits and songs from several of the shows performed over the last 20 years. They will also pay tribute to some of the volunteers who have contributed hundreds of hours of their time over the years to make CVCT a success. (For details or to purchase tickets, check the website, www.carsonvalleycommunitytheatre.org.)
What’s the vision for the next 20 years?
“Our primary goal is to build our volunteer base and our talent pool to enable us to continue to provide quality entertainment,” Delahay said. “Our long-term goal is to raise money to build our own theater venue with raked seating and better acoustics for the audience, as well as sufficient backstage space for scene changes, and storage and construction space for sets, costumes, props, lighting and sound equipment, all in the same place.”
“Primarily, we want to continue doing what we’ve been doing and growing as we have been growing,” Jones added. “Doing the highest quality performances we can, and maybe stretch the comfort level of our audiences a bit.”