Now that the world is returning to semi-normalcy, Sonoma County has seen an uptick in arts and entertainment events planned for the summer. Even though the pandemic has wreaked havoc on many businesses, nonprofits like the Cloverdale Arts Alliance (CAA) have stayed afloat and are committed to putting on their popular events again in 2021.
Due to the pandemic, the CAA has been unable to host its fundraising events. Luckily, loyal patrons and members have helped tremendously.
“We had to trim as much fat out of the budget as possible,” said Executive Director Mark Tharrington. “Everywhere that we could save money, we did. We have been very active in trying to seek grants, and we also have a loyal donor base in Cloverdale that helps enormously. We had a record annual appeal last year … we have been treading water to stay barely above it.”
Besides for memberships and donations, the CAA has two main fundraisers — Friday Night Live and an annual fundraiser in November. However, the latter has not occurred in multiple years.
“We had to cancel (the November fundraiser) due to the fire two years in a row, then coronavirus. It has been four years since we had it. It was a themed dinner and event with a live and silent auction,” said Tharringon.
The fundraiser likely won’t happen again this year, due to other events happening around the time it normally would.
“I don’t think we will have that event in 2021. We are running Friday Night Live later and it will run at the same time. That event is running into October and the annual event usually happens in November with the appeal in December. It’s too much too close together. It’s possible we will do something in early winter, but it hasn’t even been discussed,” Tharrington said.
One of the most notable fundraiser events put on by CAA is Friday Night Live, which was canceled in 2020 due to COVID-19. Even though the concert series is starting a bit later this year, there is sure to be a large crowd ready to hear live music again on July 2 in downtown Cloverdale.
Blues musician Maxx Cabello Jr. will be playing this Friday — his second time performing at the event. Even though it has been over a year since he has played a show, Cabello is excited to connect with a live audience again.
“Everyone has just been waiting for any sort of live show to feel some kind of normalcy, because the pandemic has taken it away from so many people,” Cabello said. “Personally, it’s going to be amazing, and I can’t wait. Last time I played at Friday Night Live, it was incredible, and the fans were so welcoming. I’m very excited.”
CAA relies on donations from patrons throughout the community to fund its events. Due to the pandemic, events had to come to a halt, with performances stopping in March 2020. Even though live performances were off the table, the CAA was still getting some financial support.
“We had a lot of our sponsors from Friday Night Live sponsor even though we didn’t have the event, and most of them just donated the money or we were able to roll it over, which kept us in business,” said Tharrington.
The CAA has been putting on different exhibits and shows for the last 14 years, and the pandemic has impacted business and event hosting for everyone.
According to the Sonoma County Economic Development Board, the county saw an occupancy rate in events and hotels of 63.3% for the year of 2020, compared to 82.5% in 2019. Because the pandemic broke out in mid-March, this number also takes into account occupancy before COVID-19.
With more people getting vaccinated, live shows and performances are slowly returning, and companies that host events are seeing more engagement. Even though most live events had to be canceled for over a year, the CAA found other ways to connect with the community.
“We did do a few livestreams of music shows, but other than that everything was shut down. We did four livestreams … we were trying to do something for our people. They were successful because a lot of people watched them,” said Tharrington.
Though the livestreams don’t benefit the nonprofit financially, they were a way for the CAA to keep people up to date and entertained.
“I didn’t really like the live streaming because you didn’t have the same kind of crowd reaction or enthusiasm, so it was tough,” Cabello said. “My last gig before COVID was March 14 of last year. So it is definitely an experience to get back on stage and see people again, live in-person. We are becoming more creative with how we engage with our fans.”
Now that things are returning to how they used to be, programs through the Arts Alliance will return as normal, according to Tharrington. Because Friday Night Live is a 14-week event, programs like the Jazz Series and the Acoustic Music Workshop will start up again when they normally would.
Fortunately, the CAA has also received financial assistance outside of its members.
“We got a big grant. It was the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant for people like Friday Night Live that just got shut down,” said Tharrington.
According to its website, the grant provides “… amount equal to 45% of (a business’) 2019 gross earned revenue or $10 million, whichever is less.”
This financial assistance is given to live music venues, museums and other visual arts corporations, to make up for lost revenue due to COVID-19.
Even though the CAA has struggled through the pandemic, popular events are returning, and the nonprofit has managed to stay in business. The upcoming Friday Night Live is bound to be successful with so many loyal community members excited for an in-person event again.
“Live music will be back and it brings so much joy to so many people,” says Cabello. “And it’s a genuine feeling, knowing that we are getting back to normal.”
