05/25/2023
Dear BoHo Family,
When we took a spring hiatus, we had hoped to reconvene in June to prepare for our 2023/2024 season. We dreamed of another vibrant, beautiful season of new work and musicals that would contribute to our community and the national conversation.
Our four Bohemian Pillars have always been Beauty, Truth, Freedom, and Love. Like many theater companies emerging from the pandemic, we started imagining how our budgets could reflect these core values. How could we fully support the emerging artists and administrators who work with BoHo? Because as long as we continued the practice of paying these workers below minimum wage, we were contributing to an economy of desolation, not consolation; a mindset of scarcity rather than abundance. This uncomfortable truth stood in sharp contrast to the Pillars we celebrate. And so we explored different avenues to transform our practice.
Friends, it has become clear during this hiatus that we do not have a viable pathway forward to keep producing stories in line with our values while also compensating staff and artists in line with those same core beliefs. So, after 19 seasons, it is time for BoHo Theatre to say goodbye. All things must end, and I’m so grateful that we’re taking our bow with blessings from a supportive board and memories of a beautiful final season.
Since I joined the leadership team as Artistic Director, many Bohemians have described to me the love they feel radiating from this company. I’ve witnessed that outpouring of love in so many moments shared between artists, audiences, company members, and board members. Since 2003, BoHo productions have forged countless friendships and partnerships. Meanwhile, this company has launched many bright careers and nurtured the sweetest dreams. I know it’s disheartening to learn about yet another Chicago storefront theater shuttering. But this great love doesn’t end with BoHo or with any single company. It keeps moving outward, bouncing and refracting in ways we’ll never know. Our company members and associate artists, past and present, will continue spreading this love throughout Chicago and far beyond the city limits. So keep loving each other fiercely friends, and go tell more stories about the richness of human connections.
More life,
Elizabeth Swanson
Artistic Director
