By admin 
TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – A historic Tucson theater is getting a second chance.
The Berger Performing Arts Center on the Arizona State Schools for the Deaf and the Blind campus will stay open another year after a local theater organization stepped in to save it.
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Saguaro City Music Theatre has signed a one-year lease agreement with ASDB to manage, operate, and book rentals at the Berger until June of next year.
The theater’s future was uncertain after ASDB announced the campus would be closing earlier this year.
Berger Performing Arts Center Manager Ruben Rosthenhausler said he faced a dilemma when the campus closure was announced.
“There’s not really a lot of other available theaters for these clients,” Rosthenhausler said.
Rosthenhausler called Drew Humphrey, CEO and Producing Artistic Director at Saguaro City Music Theatre, with an idea to keep the theater open.
“And he was ears open, heart open, eyes open; he’s like ‘yes, yes, how can we make this work?’” Rosthenhausler said.
Humphrey said they worked with ASDB for three months to draft the lease agreement. He said the decision was a big financial risk, but one they felt was necessary for Tucson’s performing arts community.
“We don’t get museums and theaters because they make a lot of money; we get them because we as a community recognize that we deserve them,” Humphrey said.
Saguaro City is one of more than 40 organizations that utilize the Berger for performances, meetings, and events every year. The venue is accessible and can accommodate performers and guests with disabilities, Humphrey said.
For Rosthenhausler, the theater feels like a second home. He will leave his position after ASDB’s closure.
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“It is sad, you know, that this job that I’ve had, you know, my baby here, I’m gonna be passing along to someone, but it feels good that it’s going to be in good hands,” Rosthenhausler said.
Saguaro City will take over the theater’s lease starting July 1 and already has events booked through next year. The Berger has been operating on ASDB’s campus since the 1990s.
Humphrey said the transition will come with challenges and hopes the community will support the theater.
“The challenges are going to be financial, as running a theater always is, and making sure that people are coming, people are making donations, that people are supporting the existence of the Berger Performing Arts Center,” Humphrey said.
Rosthenhausler said he is hopeful and looks forward to returning to the Berger as a patron.
“One of my favorite things about my job is to just hear the laughter, hear the applause, and I’ve been able to do that for 26 years, and to see that it’s going to continue just fills my heart,” Rosthenhausler said.
While the lease will expire ext year, Humphrey said ASDB is open to a longer-term solution that would keep the theater open indefinitely.
To learn more about Saguaro City or to book the Berger Performing Arts Center, you can visit their website HERE.
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