Kathleen Cavalaro

Kathleen accomplished two extraordinary things in Portsmouth during the pandemic that saved dozens of jobs, provided income and opportunity to artists, helped several small businesses and nonprofit organizations, and generate hundreds of thousands of dollars in economic activity. Under her leadership, the Seacoast Repertory Theatre was able to pivot so quickly that even during the early days of the pandemic, it never closed its doors or laid off core staff. Instead, they focused energies on live streaming original productions. Because of her efforts the Rep was the first theater in the country to livestream a live, fully produced musical, which won the theater national recognition, including an entire writeup in the NYT, TimeOut, and other publications. She also sat on the arts reopening committee with the State of New Hampshire to help other organizations figure out a safe way forward and remained an arts advocate. She met with Senator Shaheen and other elected officials and helped create awareness about the important of arts in a community.

The second thing she did was conceive of a ‘pop up’ arts venue to hold cultural and community events outdoors in the summer of 2020, which was not an option for many organizations and even some restaurants. A temporary stage, food sheds, a beer garden, and outdoor seating provided the backdrop for dozens of area performers and four arts Portsmouth based organizations to sell event tickets. In addition, three Portsmouth restaurants and several local breweries were able to generate income while serving the public in a safe, socially distant outdoor environment. Thousands of residents and visitors were able to support the arts, small businesses and nonprofits while remaining safe and socially distant during the worst of the pandemic. None of that would have happened without the wildly creative, determined efforts of Kathleen Cavalaro.