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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW UCC victims included teacher, teens and adults seeking new starts ... Donors sought as field project deadline looms ... UPDATED: Names of UCC shooting victims released ... UCC victims included teacher, teens and adults seeking new starts ... Donors sought as field project deadline looms ... UPDATED: Names of UCC shooting victims released ... 2014 a 'banner year' for Camelot Comment By Bill Varble for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Bill Varble for the Mail Tribune Posted Jan. 10, 2015 at 10:41 AM By Bill Varble for the Mail Tribune Posted Jan. 10, 2015 at 10:41 AM » Social News Camelot Theatre in Talent is closing the books on its best season ever. Total attendance for the year was 26,400, versus 23,000 in 2013, or about a 15-percent jump. Big musicals led the way for the popular theater, with tickets for “Fiddler on the Roof,” “The Producers” and “Les Miserables” hard to come by. “We broke all our records with 'Fiddler,' ” said Camelot Artist Director Livia Genise. “We've had to turn people away.” The musical about Jewish life in a schtetl grossed $122,000, far more than any other play of the year. “The Producers” sold 100 percent of its seats after its first two weeks, as word-of-mouth reviews spread. “Les Mis” was nearly full every night. Longtime Camelot board member Ted Gibbs said total revenue for the year should come in at about $750,000. The numbers haven't all been crunched yet, but Gibbs said 2014 would be a “banner year.” An exception to all the filled seats was “The Lion in Winter,” James Goldman's classic drama about King Henry II of England and his wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine. It did about $33,000 in business. “It broke my heart that it didn't do well,” said Genise, who played Eleanor. Camelot's season typically includes four musicals, three straight plays, four “spotlight” musical tributes and one production by the theater's conservatory students. Genise says the stars seemed to line up in 2014, with a better economy and no dates lost to smoke from forest fires or to snowstorms. “We're also no longer a community theater in terms of quality,” Genise said. “We're starting to get people who've never come before.” The theater in 2014 also hired a full-time executive director, Dann Hauser, to run business operations. Genise said she has two special goals. The first is to retire a $500,000 mortgage. The second — her five-year plan — is to qualify for a Letter of Agreement from the League of Resident Theaters, a designation from Actors Equity Association, the union that represents live theater artists. The designation requires that each play produced by the theater include two equity actors and an equity stage manager. There's a fair number of equity actors in Southern Oregon due to the presence of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Genise said. Reach Medford freelance writer Bill Varble at varble.bill @gmail.com. By Bill Varble for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Bill Varble for the Mail Tribune Posted Jan. 10, 2015 at 10:41 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... Business Name address Location, ST | website.com Find Southern Oregon Attractions Bars Restaurants Beauty Salons Entertainment Doctors Medical Specialists Contractors Education Lawn Services Lawyers Shopping Travel Tanning Used Cars Wedding Services ▼ Add your business here + Events Calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. MailTribune.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501