May 17, 2009
Thank you Sacramento for giving us the privilege to serve and entertain you for the past two years. We couldn’t possibly thank each person that had a hand in making Garbeau’s what it became, but we sincerely appreciate our dedicated employees, our actors, directors and stage crews, our wonderful customers, the Sacramento theater community, local media and our families. Without you, Garbeau’s couldn’t have existed at all, and we are grateful to have shared this time with you.
As we move forward, we plan to send out updates through our website, email list and our Facebook page. If you would like to find out what we’re up to (especially in the event we might be able to re-open Garbeau’s sometime in the future) please sign up on our email list or join our Facebook page (called Save Garbeau's!). We also hope to see many of you at our farewell party on May 23rd.
Today was an emotional day with tears, laughter and many hugs as we closed our final production amidst a standing ovation. While we wish we weren’t forced to close our business, we are proud of what we shared with you, and our lives will forever be changed because of this experience.
Best wishes,
Mark and Andrea
April 3, 2009
To Our Friends,
To get overly-theatrical for one moment, no poet has ever penned, nor has any master orator spoken, the depth of gratitude we have for all of you as you've rallied to support us in this recession.
As you know, we were given a March 16th deadline to come up with a certain amount of money for our landlord . The deal was that doing so would let us enter into negotiations. Instead of negotiating, we were given a new financial deadline of April 1st.
The April 1st deadline was met with the help of Senators Steinberg and Cox, Assemblyman Niello, and Board of Equalization Member Leonard. The deal was that meeting that deadline would let us enter into negotiations. Ironically, this financial deadline included over a $1,000 increase in our rent per our lease--in the midst of our very effort to get (temporary) rent relief. Instead of negotiating, we were told that there would be no negotiation.
Because of your efforts, because of how much Garbeau's means to us and to you, and because the effort to save Garbeau's seemed promising, it is with sadness that I announce that Garbeau's will be closing May 31st.
Our hearts have been broken. But you have mended them. We are uplifted when we look at your letters and stories, when we remember your phone calls, when we see you at our venue and you share your memories of Garbeau's.
Is there any chance of changing the outcome? No.
-The landlord believes he has a comedy club as a new tenant. If that's the case, they personally have nothing to do with our closure and we certainly hope the best for them.
-There is no "footprint" of a building in which we can relocate. A dinner theatre needs a full kitchen and then a room that's big enough to fit a stage, backstage, dressing rooms, and then the dining area itself.
All this said, a future resurrection of Garbeau's someday in another building would be wonderful. If it can happen, we will be there, but I suspect that if it does, it would be a years-long process.
But for now, we are continuing our show through the end of our term. As we said at the start of our "Save Garbeau's" campaign, we are saddened, but our happiness in seeing you is genuine. We would truly love spending this last production of Garbeau's surrounded by friends. You will not see tears (ok..maybe at the last show...) and you will not see down-trodden faces.
You will see instead what we believe: We love Garbeau's--we love you. Whether our future is finding an eventual new home for Garbeau's or, instead, finding new jobs for ourselves, we will enjoy the ride until the end. We are content in believing we did the best we could with what we had. And we will treasure this experience forever.
May 31st will surely tug at our hearts and cause tears to be shed. But until then, we will celebrate!
Love,
Mark, Andrea, and the Entire Garbeau's Family
Garbeau's Letter To The Community
February 2, 2009
To our patrons, friends, and community,
It is with a combination of sadness and optimism that we are writing this. Due to the recession and demands from our landlord, we have launched a campaign to raise $100,000 to keep Garbeau’s from closing.
For the first nine months of our ownership, dating back to June of 2007, Garbeau’s had very healthy averages for attendance and revenue. In March of 2008, gas prices broke $3.50 for the first time and—practically overnight—our attendance dropped in half. We literally received many calls from guests who said they were looking forward to joining us, but the murky outlook (that we months later found out was a full-scale recession) prompted people to cancel their reservations due to uncertainty of what might be in store.
Changes were made to meet the lower attendance—our operating costs were smartly diminished to “skeleton crew” proportions without sacrificing our effort to provide quality customer service. The decreased revenue set us on a path in which we were able to cover most of our costs, with the primary shortfall being rent. We tried to negotiate with our landlord for a temporary rent reduction considering the economy. Our effort was to have a rent based on a percentage of our sales until the economy recovered; upon having stronger numbers, we would happily return to the regular rent cost.
We thought the negotiation would end favorably. If so, we would be like other companies who were struggling in this market, but who would manage to survive. This past Wednesday, our landlord said there was no room for negotiation. His demands were that we come completely current (we have not been capable of paying full rent) AND supply financial proof that we are well capitalized enough to manage full rent going forward. He stated that if we did not satisfy his demands, he would terminate our lease, an act that would force us to close Garbeau’s forever.
To meet his demands, we need to raise $100,000. On one hand, that number is depressing and we face the reality that not raising enough will leave us with no choice but to close. On the other hand, we are optimistic that this goal can indeed be met. For perspective, if the number of people who saw our production of I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change (which ran for only seven weeks—20 performances total) bought a $26 gift card, we would overshoot our goal by over a thousand dollars.
We are asking for help from everyone who wants to see Garbeau’s stay in business. Here’s how:
- Purchase a season ticket—without any risk of being left empty handed! We are so grateful to the other theatre companies who are supporting our effort. Because of their backing, if we do not meet our goal, our season passes will be honored for either free, 2-for-1, or otherwise notably discounted admission at California Musical Theatre Company, B Street Theatre Company, Stage Nine in Folsom, Magic Circle Theatre, Capital Stage, Davis Musical Theater Company, and other companies who have pledged to back us but who need final approval from their boards before being named. There is no risk in supporting us this way! Season Tickets (Flex Passes) range between $71 - $130 for 4, 6 or 8 vouchers. More information on Flex Passes can be found here.
- Purchase a gift card for any amount. Realistically, you know if Garbeau’s is forced to close, your gift card will not have value. If we make our goal, all is well. Either way, consider—can you risk losing $10 or $20 to keep Garbeau’s open? Small numbers add up, but only if you make that purchase.
- Tell every single person you know. Post it on your blogs, Facebook, MySpace—everywhere. In talking to a few of our friends and mentors in the community, they all said that people won’t know to help us unless they know what’s happening.
- Email a note to your favorite radio, television, or newspaper editors. Tell them to cover this story. The more press we get, the better our chances are to meet (and even exceed) our goal.
- Do it now. If hundreds of people are on the fence about making a purchase—waiting to hear how we’re progressing or thinking someone else will step in instead, then we will be closed by the end of March. We are a couple of weeks from some very unexpected hard and fast deadlines from our landlord to stay open. If you have any motivation to support Garbeau’s, it has to happen now.
- If the phone is busy, keep trying. Leave a voicemail if we’re tied up on the other line. If no one answers, it doesn’t mean we’re not there. If you get a busy signal, it doesn’t mean we’ve reached our goal already. We will also reply to emails.
- Come see our show! If the current production doesn’t match your taste, consider our (inexpensive) weekly Thursday Karaoke Night and monthly Tuesday Night Comedy.
- Because of credit card fees, purchasing with cash or check is helpful. However, we are grateful regardless of how you end up paying.
- You would help us by your knowing that we love Garbeau’s, we love what we do, and we love you, the people who have been with us—you who have sent emails saying how moved you were by a scene in “The All Night Strut,” or how much you laughed during “I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change!” or which character your grandchild liked best in “Alice in Wonderland.” Your support, and the support we have already felt from the entire community, is overwhelming. We are truly touched and look forward to making it through this very difficult time.
Please note that our goal has always been, and still remains, giving our guests an evening of fun. This effort is getting media coverage and we will be giving updates in our newsletter. However, the moment you walk through our doors, you are coming for dinner and entertainment—not an intensive care unit or telethon. If you approach us and specifically want to talk about this, we will. But otherwise, you will see us with genuine smiles as we do what we love to do—taking your cares away for the evening.
Sincerely, we are optimistic that this goal can be met. Thank you for any effort you can make on our behalf. And please beware that any help you provide may put you at risk for a hug the next time we see you.
All our best,
Mark, Andrea, and the Entire Garbeau’s Family
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