Fort Worth Opera as a Community Resource

 (Kurt Howard, Production/Stage Manager)

Having re-joined the company this summer, one of the first things I was aware of was the amount of stuff that had accumulated in our warehouse - things that I remember purchasing as far back as 2004.  While the company was very focused on building and creating new productions, these resources were invaluable to keep in storage as bases to build upon, but now they are simply a burden of excess, unusable storage space.

Over the past few months, Kelly Hill (Associate Production Manager) and I have chipped away at removing inventory in ways that benefit the community - stewarding the resources we have invested in.  We have been in contact with the opera studio at TCU to take some props for their use and have begun a working relationship with the Welman Project to give them materials they can redistribute to teachers and other non-profits. The most direct support we have been able to provide have been boxes of shoes and winter coats to Community Crossroads - which give the clothing items directly to those in need, not a reseller. As we continue to reduce our inventory, we expect to have many more resources to redistribute responsibly.