Sebastopol’s Main Stage West live theater to close

Rising costs and canceled performances are contributing to Main Stage West’s closure.|
DAN TAYLOR
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Main Stage West, housed in a former corner drugstore in downtown Sebastopol, will go dark for the last time this month after 12 years, surrendering to rising costs and lost income caused by the coronavirus pandemic and other calamities.

“Everyone hung on as long as they could. Our attendance has been good. Our ticket sales are very good, but running a nonprofit through fires, floods and COVID has been difficult,” said Keith Baker, producing artistic director.

“We lost four performances of ‘Ham for the Holidays’ last December because two of the actors in our cast of seven had COVID,” he added. “That cost us $5,000. When we lose a single night, that’s almost 10% of our income.”

The current production at Main Stage West — “Open,” a one-woman show starring Taylor Diffenderfer — closes Feb. 20. In late February, the theater will close for good.

In February, in addition to performances Thursday through Sunday of “Open,” Main Stage West also will present a concert by the musical duo Misner and Smith and a magic show Feb. 22 by Bay Area actor Ken Sonkin.

“Our lease expires in June, and we’ll need some time to get everything out of here,” Baker said. “It’s ironic that our last show is called ‘Open.’ This wasn’t supposed to be our closing show.”

The company had planned a full season, with two more productions to come.

Other factors contributing to the closure were increased competition among nonprofits for donations and state legislation that reclassified independent contractors as employees, including actors and stage technicians, which increased costs, Baker said.

“It’s all been a challenge,” Baker said. “It’s been a labor of love, but when you’re losing money doing your art, maybe it’s time to not do that anymore.”

The theater’s space was previously occupied by the Sonoma County Repertory Theater, which closed in 2011 and also maintained a downtown Santa Rosa location at one time.

You can reach Staff Writer Dan Taylor at dan.taylor@pressdemocrat.com or 707-521-5243. On Twitter @danarts.

UPDATED: Please read and follow our commenting policy:
  • This is a family newspaper, please use a kind and respectful tone.
  • No profanity, hate speech or personal attacks. No off-topic remarks.
  • No disinformation about current events.
  • We will remove any comments — or commenters — that do not follow this commenting policy.
Send a letter to the editor