The owner of a musical theatre academy is appealing for help so the show can go on.
Stefanie Swinnard, owner of The Stage Musical Theatre Academy, has launched a GoFundMe fundraiser: Saving the Stage. The academy, which opened in New West in 2013, offers music, dance and theatre programs and hosts the annual theatre festival, StageFest.
“However, we find ourselves in a dire situation that threatens the viability of our organization and the community that has been built within it for the last 11 years,” Swinnard said in the GoFundMe post.
According to Swinnard, there is a “very real possibility” The Stage will be facing eviction.
Asking for help is hard, said Swinnard, but it may be the only thing that keeps The Stage New West from closing its doors.
In a lengthy explanation of the reasons behind the need for a GoFundMe campaign, Swinnard included a “Coles Notes” version of the campaign.
It detailed issues with a contractor hired to do some work in the space and delays in getting licensing and child-care subsidy approvals for a child-care space being created in the facility.
“We are facing eviction if we cannot clear the owing debt,” she wrote. “Funds will be used to cover legal aid and rent owed due to delays.”
Swinnard said she decided to expand her studio and program offerings, when the unit next to The Stage New West became available in the summer of 2022. She included a licensed child-care facility in her plan for the space, a project that had been in the works since 2018.
“We are now trying to recover from a significant financial deficit that is the result of our first contractor,” she wrote.
According to the GoFundMe post, Swinnard hired a second contractor in the fall of 2023 to finish the work, but by that it had already passed its goal of opening in September opening.
In addition to issues involving the contractor, issues related to provincial child-care subsidies are proving to be problematic for the local business.
The Saving The Stage GoFundMe campaign is seeking to raise $67,000. As of May 5, community members had donated $23,356 to the campaign.
“The funds we're raising will be used to remove the lien and pay the legal fees we need to remedy this situation as well as help us with the backdated rent to avoid eviction,” said the GoFundMe post. “If possible, it may also help us rectify the damage caused by the subpar work and get our expansion project back on track.”
According to Swinnard, the community’s support will help The Stage New West recover from this setback but ensure it’s able to continue providing high-quality performing arts education to children and youth in our community.
In 2021, Swinnard and The Stage Musical Theatre received the Bernie Legge Cultural Award at New Westminster’s Platinum Awards.
