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Oh, What A Night!
March 25, 2023, was a banner night as Meany friends gathered together — in person for the first time in three years — for our tenth Center Stage fundraising gala in support of Meany Center artistic and educational programming.
The theme this year was After Hours, and from the glittering array of spirits and wine to the polenta bar and the dessert tower, the stage was set for an effervescent evening of good food, good drink, good company and great music in service to a critical goal: bridging the gap between what ticket revenues bring in and the total cost of everything Meany does.
The reality is that ticket sales only cover about 50% of the cost of simply presenting artists on our stage— and not a penny of the expenses associated with our arts education outreach.
Those free student matinees that serve thousands of elementary, middle school and high school students every year? Without your support, they wouldn’t be possible.
Bringing visiting artists into UW classrooms to teach technique in the arts departments or bring an artist’s unique perspectives to students studying everything from math to history to women’s studies? We couldn’t do it without you.
Free community concerts, lectures and workshops in partner venues across the city? They only happen because of donors like you.
At the end of the evening — after two fantastic performances by our “house band,” The Turtle Island Quartet; after several energetic bidding wars during the auction; after Michelle’s sneak preview of our upcoming 2023–24 Season — the 124 guests on our stage went home knowing they had made a substantial difference: Meany ended the night with $401,000 more than we’d started out with that morning.
Many thanks to all of you who joined us at Center Stage this year — we appreciate you more than we can say! Special appreciation goes to our presenting sponsor, Goldman Sachs, and our dedicated Meany staff and board.
And for those of you who couldn’t attend, you can still make a difference and donate any day of the year.