{"id":2459002,"date":"2020-05-29T21:36:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-30T03:36:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/aspen-arts-nonprofits-taking-fundraising-galas-online-for-the-coronavirus-summer\/"},"modified":"2020-05-29T21:36:00","modified_gmt":"2020-05-30T03:36:00","slug":"aspen-arts-nonprofits-taking-fundraising-galas-online-for-the-coronavirus-summer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/aspen-arts-nonprofits-taking-fundraising-galas-online-for-the-coronavirus-summer\/","title":{"rendered":"Aspen arts nonprofits taking fundraising galas online for the coronavirus summer"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image p402_hide\">\n<div class=\"caption-container\">\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"561\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/05\/benefits-atd-052920-1-1024x561.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-post-image\" alt srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/05\/benefits-atd-052920-1-1024x561.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/05\/benefits-atd-052920-1-300x164.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/05\/benefits-atd-052920-1-768x421.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/05\/benefits-atd-052920-1-1536x842.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/05\/benefits-atd-052920-1-2048x1122.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"><\/p><figcaption><strong>Pianist David Dyer performing online during Thunder RIver Theatre Company&#8217;s ExtravaGala! on May 7.<\/strong><br \/><em>Screenshot\/thunderrivertheatre.org<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText DropCap\">While countless Aspen philanthropic <a id=\"N0x25ef030N0x262d790:N0x25ef030N0x2455c48\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/aspen-art-museum-cancels-artcrush-events-due-to-coronavirus-pandemic\/\">galas and benefits have been canceled<\/a> since the novel coronavirus upended in-person events this spring, arts organizations are breaking new local ground by experimenting with concepts for virtual galas.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Thunder River Theatre Co. recently hosted the first local virtual benefit, <a id=\"N0x25ef030N0x262d8b0:N0x25ef030N0x2455d68\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/entertainment\/thunder-river-theatre-company-to-host-virtual-gala\/\">its May 7 ExtravaGala!,<\/a> and dubbed it a success. Anderson Ranch Arts Center announced its Un-Gala to take place virtually July 16. And the biggest fish in Aspen\u2019s arts nonprofit pond, the Aspen Music Festival and School, is eyeing its own online benefit for summer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cI would absolutely recommend that any organization that normally throws an in-person gala try something digital this year,\u201d said Thunder River executive artistic director Corey Simpson.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The Thunder River event offered a small-scale template for what an online gala might look like, with performers in tuxedoes and ball gowns \u2014 pianist David Dyer, singer Nina Gabianelli and actor Gary Daniel among them \u2014 appearing via Zoom on the company\u2019s ThunderStream YouTube channel, which <a id=\"N0x25ef030N0x262d910:N0x25ef030N0x2455f18\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/weekly\/at-home-in-aspen-live-from-main-street-its-carbondale-first-friday\/\">launched soon after local stay-at-home orders went into effect.<\/a> ExtravaGala was free to watch, with donations encouraged but without gala staples like a live auction or competitive paddle-raise.<\/p>\n<div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"col\" readability=\"6\">\n<div class=\"row at-donation at-donation-mobile p-0\" readability=\"7\">\n<div class=\"col-xl-4 p-2\">\n<div data-bg=\"url(https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/03\/AT-logo-white.png)\" class=\"p-0 mt-2 mb-2 h-75 text-center rocket-lazyload\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/03\/AT-logo-white.png\" class=\"logo m-0 p-0 invisible\"><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><h3 class=\"d-inline mr-3\">Support Local Journalism<\/h3>\n<p><button class=\"btn d-inline\" type=\"button\" onclick=\"handleDonationButtonClickMidArticle()\">Donate<\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">It worked, according to Simpson.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cFinancially it was a success,\u201d he said. \u201cThe outcome was equivalent to our best year at our gala because there was practically no cost to producing it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The cost of benefit events has long been a thorny issue for local nonprofits. Keeping up with the trends of increasingly lavish events has meant spending more on caterers, venue fees, rentals and decorations, cutting into the proceeds that go toward an organization\u2019s mission.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cIn some ways, it\u2019s the best possible way to channel the money back into your mission, rather than throwing a big party,\u201d Simpson said of the virtual gala concept.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The downside, he noted, is that local vendors who make a living off these events aren\u2019t benefiting. To help ailing local restaurants, Thunder River promoted take-out options for those watching the gala.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">It\u2019s yet to be seen whether a virtual fundraising event for an organization like Thunder River \u2014 which operates on a roughly $250,000 annual budget \u2014 can scale up to the level of a nonprofit like the Music Fest, which runs on $17 million annually and last year raised nearly $7 million for its operating budget through donations.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Music Fest president and CEO Alan Fletcher said that loyal donors have continued giving as the nonprofit <a id=\"N0x25ef030N0x262da30:N0x25ef030N0x2456398\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/aspen-music-festival-and-school-cancels-2020-season-due-to-coronavirus-pandemic\/\">canceled its in-person 2020 season<\/a> and began planning as-yet unannounced online summer programming, which is expected to include a virtual benefit.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Last summer the Music Fest\u2019s American Feast of Music Benefit, hosted in August at Hurst Hall, included a performance by soprano Ren\u00e9e Fleming and raised more than $1 million, according to the Music Fest\u2019s annual report. It was supplemented by several more benefit events the nonprofit normally hosts during summer, including its annual Opera Benefit and series of private home-hosted Artist Dinners.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cWe do anticipate converting what would have been our summer benefit into some kind of virtual event,\u201d Fletcher said last month. \u201cThat will probably be free to attend virtually and, hopefully, will lead to some increased giving.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Anderson Ranch\u2019s Un-Gala is a more traditionally ticketed event, with single tickets starting at $1,000 and virtual tables available for $25,000. Online attendees will receive a \u201cbash-in-a-box\u201d package, with surprise contents that promise to offer participatory art experiences during the curated online event and some of the booze and glamour of the traditional Aspen gala experience.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">It replaces the <a id=\"N0x25ef030N0x262da90:N0x25ef030N0x2456668\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/magazines\/aspen-times-weekly\/mountain-mayhem-anderson-ranch-gala\/\">Ranch\u2019s Recognition Dinner<\/a>, which is normally hosted at the Hotel Jerome and last year raised a record $1.5 million, with internationally renowned artists in attendance to accept Ranch honors.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Anderson Ranch has already been connecting with its community and its donors through online programming, with events like its free Virtual Art Salons and Thinker Thursdays as well as donor-exclusive happenings like this week\u2019s National Council members\u2019 salon.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The Ranch also moved its summer art workshops online, planning more than 40 virtual workshops for the season. Last week at a virtual event, Anderson Ranch president and CEO Peter Waanders said the Ranch has seen a fervent response to those expansive offerings and an enthusiasm for virtually connecting with the Ranch during the pandemic.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cFrankly they are selling out really quickly,\u201d he said of the online workshops. \u201cSo we are really excited to see the response from people about experiencing the Ranch but doing it in a new way during this crisis.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Philanthropic parties boomed in Aspen in the mid-1980s and marked a cultural shift from the resort\u2019s \u201970s-era of pure hedonism. A story on the proliferation of Aspen galas in the New York Times Style section in 1985 counted some 200 annual fundraising events and delineated the migration of the local socialite scene from \u201cskiing and sex\u201d to fundraising.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The conventional wisdom back then was that Aspen\u2019s philanthropic set needed a party to write a check for the growing number of Aspen arts nonprofits and other charities.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cThe no-party solicitation doesn\u2019t work here,\u201d Ballet\/Aspen board president Lita Heller told the Times back then. \u201cPeople want a party.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">That\u2019s appeared to stay true through the decades, judging by how benefits have grown in number and in opulence, with local arts offerings expanding commensurately.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">This summer, when large gala-sized gatherings are unlikely to be allowed under public health orders, will test whether today\u2019s donors will give when a party isn\u2019t possible and whether a virtual gala can approximate the cash boost of a gala, while the pandemic also tests the fiscal resilience of Aspen arts organizations. It could permanently reshape and cull the glutted benefit lineup.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The calendar of galas had grown so crowded in the valley that before the pandemic, Thunder River had already planned to drop its in-person summer gala this year \u2014 planning a fundraising campaign without an event, pitching it as a break from the demanding social calendar for the philanthropic community.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cThat was a response to our valley having so many events and so many fundraising galas,\u201d Simpson said. \u201cWe felt like this was the year when we stepped back from that and gave our patrons a rest.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">But once public health orders forced locals to stay home, Simpson and his board decided a virtual gala would be a welcome reason to celebrate art amid the stress and hardship of the moment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cIt was clear that, rather than just a fundraising campaign, it could be really fun to pull together local performers who were all still hungry to be creative and connect with audiences,\u201d he said, \u201cwhich is healing for us as artists and, I think, healing for our community as well.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Though it wasn\u2019t billed as a benefit event, <a id=\"N0x25ef030N0x262dbb0:N0x25ef030N0x2456e48\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/entertainment\/at-home-in-aspen-5point-unlocked-brings-free-film-festival-to-you\/\">5Point Film\u2019s \u201c5Point Unlocked\u201d event<\/a> served as an unexpected fundraising success for the adventure film nonprofit and an example of the potential reach of creative virtual events.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The three-day online presentation \u2014 held in late April over the dates when the canceled festival would have run at the Carbondale Rec Center \u2014 included favorite short films from festivals past, new segments of adventurers in quarantine, and hosts familiar to local audiences.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">It was free to watch, with donations accepted. It raised $26,000 from 1,500 donors, far beyond 5Point\u2019s modest expectations.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cIt outperformed anything I could have imagined,\u201d executive director Regna Jones said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The programs drew more than 20,000 views, far outstretching the limited capacity of the in-person 5Point fest. Nearly 50% of those viewers watched from outside Colorado, making \u201cUnlocked,\u201d Jones noted, an outreach event that connected more people to the organization than anything 5Point has done before.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cIt was a testament to the idea that you can find your wings in the air,\u201d Jones said. \u201cIf the intention is good, these online events will work.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText Tagline\"><a href=\"mailto:atravers@aspentimes.com\">atravers@aspentimes.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/aspen-arts-nonprofits-taking-fundraising-galas-online-for-the-coronavirus-summer\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: The Aspen Times<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pianist David Dyer performing online during Thunder RIver Theatre Company&#8217;s ExtravaGala! on May 7.Screenshot\/thunderrivertheatre.org While countless Aspen philanthropic galas and benefits have been canceled since the novel coronavirus upended in-person events this spring, arts organizations are breaking new local ground by experimenting with concepts for virtual galas. Thunder River Theatre Co. recently hosted the first [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2459002","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-local-news"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-08-17 04:58:37","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSPN The Valley&#039;s Quality Rock","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2459002","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2459002"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2459002\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2459002"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2459002"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2459002"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}