Looking for more patrons, theaters plan rare meeting

In an apparent first for Orange County, more than 50 county-based theater organizations have been invited to a round-table discussion Wednesday on how they might merge efforts to build a bigger audience.

“In economically challenging times, we all have to think about how to work smarter,” said Bonnie Brittain Hall, executive director of Arts Orange County, the nonprofit advocacy group coordinating the discussion at the Curtis Theatre in Brea. Invitees range from the big professional companies -- South Coast Repertory and the Laguna Playhouse -- to community theaters and edgy storefront troupes.

The idea of exploring a theater alliance for Orange County comes from Christian Wolf, manager of the city-owned Curtis. He envisions something “a little more grass-roots” than Los Angeles’ Theatre LA or Theatre Bay Area in San Francisco. First steps might include listing all county theaters in each troupe’s program, or offering discounts to patrons with ticket stubs from another local theater, Wolf said.