By Ian MacFarland
As Queens Theatre in the Park approaches the end of a multimillion-dollar fund-raising campaign that has seen the institution renovate its lobby and add a cabaret performance space to its two existing theaters, QTIP is seeking the public’s help to cross the fiscal finish line.
After the city gave QTIP $23 million to construct a dramatic new entrance area known as “The Nebula,” add a third cabaret-style performance space with food and beverage service, and new offices and make other renovations, the theater’s board of directors launched a separate campaign to raise $2 million in private donations to fund the theater’s artistic development.
“Now is the time for the Theatre to move to the next level,” said Jeffrey Rosenstock, the theater’s executive director.
The $2 million would establish a $1 million endowment and a $500,000 grant fund for supporting artists and shore up the theater’s financial reserves with the remaining $500,000. 
“The artistic growth fund was part of our capital campaign because we wanted to build ‘artistic capacity’ as well as organizational capacity — and move the theatre forward in terms of its artistic impact on the community,” said Rosenstock. “We hope over time to grow this fund, but it’s a big step to recognize that an institution like ours needs to think towards its future, and creating an endowment fund is a critical step in right direction.”
Rosenstock pointed to a recent performance by Chile’s Alejandro Caceres Dance Company, which QTIP co-commissioned with the LaGuardia Performing Arts Center, and the theater’s Immigrant Voices Project, which helps playwrights of color develop and stage new plays, as examples of the sort of artistic growth QTIP wants to promote with its new funding source.
As August drew to a close, the theater had raised more than $1.89 million, or about 95 percent of its target.
“This campaign is a reflection of the commitment of the Theatre’s board of directors to sustain and build the Theatre’s future. It is a large undertaking for an organization like ours, especially during this economic climate. The fact that we have commitments towards 95 percent of our $2 million goal speaks to the determination and efforts of the board to ensure that the residents of Queens have a theatre they richly deserve now, and well into the future,” said Rosenstock.
“Until the $2 million goal is raised, the money is unavailable for use by Queens Theatre,” Vanessa Bamber, the theater’s managing director, explained. “So the urgency is great to close this campaign and make the funds available to better the guest experience at Queens Theatre.”
According to Rosenstock, now is the best time for supporters to come forward with donations, because one of the theater’s sponsors, the New York Community Trust, has offered $250,000 to match donations made before Oct. 31 — an arrangement known as a challenge grant, since its receipt depends on the theater’s own fund-raising prowess in the community.
“If that deadline is missed, it is even more pressing to raise what could have been earned had it been matched,” Bamber noted.
Donations to QTIP are 100 percent tax-deductible and can be made via the theater’s Development Office at 347-472-3706 or lcolangelo@queenstheatre.org. For additional information, contact Nayelli Dispaltro, associate director, at 347-472-3725 or ndispaltro@queenstheatre.org.
The bulk of fund-raising so far has come from corporations and private foundations, beginning two years ago with $500,000 from Bank of America. Another $500,000 was arranged for by longtime QTIP supporter Joseph Ficalora, CEO of New York Community Bancorp — including $400,000 from the bank and $100,000 from his foundation.
“Our long-term commitment to Queens will ensure that the borough’s residents have access to the best,” Ficalora said.
The fund-raising campaign was chaired by Dom Ciampa, Claire Shulman and Rose Ciampa, a vice president of QTIP’s board of directors.
Queens Theater in the Park opened in 1993 after taking over and fixing up an abandoned structure from the World’s Fair in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. Each year the theater plays host to a slate of 300 performances by both homegrown and nationally touring acts from all genres of the performing arts. It also produces new plays, with a concentration on up-and-coming directors and playwrights.
