A rosy reprieve: Iconic PT theater receives massive fundraising windfall

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In less than a week the Rose Theatre made about $153,000 — and they didn’t even have to open the door.

The iconic Port Townsend movie house’s owner began a GoFundMe campaign last week hoping to keep the lights on after months of struggle in the wake of being forced to close due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a plea for community support, longtime owner Rocky Friedman wrote that what aid the theater had so far managed to qualify for was insufficient to ensure continued operation if faced with a further prolonged closure, which is likely.

The campaign’s goal was $160,000.

“Since mid-March we have been able to cover fixed expenses with savings, three loans, one federal grant, four movie theater grants, temporary rent abatement, donations, movie streaming, and gift card, membership and popcorn sales. But it’s not enough,” he wrote on the GoFundMe page. “Our federal PPP loan application was denied. This GoFundMe goal would sustain us for six months.”

In less than 24 hours, donors had chipped in more than $80,000. By early Tuesday,
Sept. 8 more than 1,000 contributors had raised $152,930.

“That the campaign has been so well embraced has been hugely overwhelming and gratifying,” Friedman said. “I had no idea the response would be like this. None.”

The fundraising effort continues, and donations can also be made directly to the theater, the loss of which was for many, obviously, unthinkable.

Friedman recently chatted with The Leader about his reluctant call for funds and the stunning support the campaign received.

* This transcript has been edited for length and clarity.

Leader: It sounds like the fate of the Rose was looking dire when you decided to begin the fundraising campaign. What would it have meant for you personally to have to close the theater? 

RF: That’s really a hard question to answer because it’s projecting something in the future. But let me say, 28 years later I still have a job that I love and feel passionate about. And to imagine how I might feel having to close it, well that would likely be a loss on scale that I’ve yet to experience. 

Leader: It is sadly ironic that the Rose is suffering so badly just as we’re about to see the start of a newly revised digital-only film festival. What would it mean for the future of PT arts/culture to lose the Rose? 

RF: I’ve never liked answering the question, Why do so many people appreciate the Rose? — or What makes it unique? — because I think that answer has to come not from me but from our patrons. So your question falls into that same category. It would be speculative of me to personally answer it. My perspective of the Rose is different from everyone else’s because of my position there. I could say that certain on-screen entertainment would no longer be available, but there’s always someone else with a dream who might pick up the mantle.

Leader: Do you feel federal/state authorities have done an adequate job of supporting small businesses during the pandemic? 

RF: I’ve read that more than half of all business closures due to COVID-19 are now permanent, including 16,000 restaurants, so the answer to your question — on a federal level — is no. So many lives and livelihoods have been lost due to the pandemic. Better to ask the business owner who lost the business and job they were still passionate about. It’s absolutely tragic, and shouldn’t have been this way. 

Leader: Is there anything else you’d like readers to know about the fundraising campaign or your current/future plans for the theater? 

RF: I know that I’m perceived as the public face of the Rose, but it’s made possible by a team — managers and staff, supportive landlords (Sandra Johnson and David and Alison Hero), bookkeeper, board of directors, and especially my wise daughter who has always been my closest business adviser. I know that I speak for all of them when I say that our gratitude to the community for their support is beyond measure. 

According to Friedman, the Rose opened in 1907 as a vaudeville house. It has seen the transition from silent film to talkies, and from Technicolor to digital projection. Located in the heart of Port Townsend’s National Historic District, it serves as one of the major cultural hubs of the Olympic Peninsula, offering a wide variety of independent, classic, foreign and Hollywood films, in addition to simulcasts from New York’s Metropolitan Opera, Moscow’s Bolshoi Ballet and plays from the National Theatre of London; as well as an annual dance film festival and arts film series. It also serves as the hub for the annual Port Townsend Film Festival.

“With its three screens, including the intimate Starlight Room, the Rose brings stories from around the globe to its little corner of the world,” he wrote. “Every film is personally introduced; you’ll find local cider, beer and kombucha on tap, not to mention popcorn with real butter.”

In a Sept. 4, post on the campaign page, Friedman wrote a note of thanks to the effort’s many contributors.

“Your response to our campaign has been astonishing and we are grateful beyond measure. In just two days we’ve nearly reached our goal, and will have the resources needed to cover our bills for the next six months.”

Visit www.gofundme.com/f/rose-theatre-covid-support-fund to learn more and donate.