When Asolo Rep canceled the remainder of its 2019-20 season in March due to the ongoing COVID-19 health crisis, it had to temporarily lay off 60% of its 200-person workforce including members of its administrative and box office staffs, as well as its acting company. With the passage of the Paycheck Protection Program, part of the new CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security) Act, Asolo Rep has secured financial assistance that will allow it to avert at least 20 pending furloughs, as well as reinstate 36 staff members, including ten costume shop staff members who immediately began sewing face masks for local organizations. Thanks to the CARES Act loan, the 36 total employees have been reinstated with full health benefits for the next eight weeks.

“I am proud and deeply grateful for all who have made it possible for us to receive this loan through the CARES Act, said Producing Artistic Director Michael Donald Edwards. It represents a vote of confidence by the federal government of the United States that Asolo Repertory Theatre will be here when the all clear is sounded. The CARES Act is an extraordinary financial lifeline at a critical moment in our country’s history, but it is also a challenge that we at Asolo Repertory Theatre live up to our role as a vital part of the cultural and economic life of Sarasota.”

Acknowledging the crucial role the CARES Act funding plays in the future of the arts in our community, Managing Director Linda DiGabriele stated, “Sarasota’s arts and cultural organizations are the third largest employer in the county. These same organizations, so important to attracting tourism, will struggle to reopen with social distancing requirements. Without the support of our generous patrons and special programs like the CARES Act, it would be difficult to bridge the damage from this curtailed season to the next season in the fall. We are grateful to have received this generous loan.”

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