ex ? och: W. Van resident keeps Arts Club in the blac BILL MILLERD leads you down a narrow hallway to a dark, musty back room in Granville Island’s Arts Club Theatre. He pulls his chair away from a big oak desk in order to see over the mountain of dusty old trinkets and papers. A former West Vancouver high school student, Millerd smiles behind a pair of thick, black- rimmed glasses. As artistic and managing director of Vanccuver’s most successful theatze operation, Milferd has plenty to be happy about — especially on March 12, when the Arts Club celebrates its 25th birthday. Millerd’s supernatural sense of what plays will capture Van- couver’s attention and imagination combined with his shrewd knack for balancing books has kept the Arts Club out of the red for nearly 16 years. . “I’m not a particularly shrewd businessman,” he says modestly, but few other Canadian theatres can match the Arts Club’s success story. Since he took the nelm as artistic director in 1973, the Arts Club has gone from a single, creaky old theatre, to a $3.5 million annual budget operation that runs three stages with seats for 900. Unlike most theatres, the Arts Club manages to pull in 80 per cent of its funding from ticket sales. And Millerd and staff, notably Arts Club aublic relations director Marlene Dixon, have created a huge following of staun- chly loyal fans. “Even when they don’t like a play they’ve stuck with us,” says Millerd. Part of Millerd’s ability to attract One coupon per customer. One soupon per order. Valid Mar. 2 - Mar. 15 successful plays is due to the club's policy to keep a play runn- ing as long as there is a demand for it. That can be weeks, months or even years. Talking Dirty, Canada’s longest-running play, ran for four years. EVELYN JACOB feature writer Most of the plays, since Millerd came on board, have been light, contemporary and Canadian. “In the old days we survived on doing comedies. When | got involved, | said that we had to do Canadian work — which had never been done before — and that the Arts Club should produce a wide range of plays and use local performers.”’ He also believed that theatre should be as accessible as possi- te. “We took away the idea that theatre was just for snobs.” The club’s informal atmosphere has undoubtedly worked in its favor. But not everyone likes the Arts Club’s populism. Local playwright John Gray said the Arts Club has ‘grown like McDonald's,” but Millerd refuses to accept this comparison. 4 & BILL MILLERD has been the brains behind Vancouver’s most suc- cessful theatre operation, the Aris Club Theatre, for the past 16 years. Once a 200-seat theatre, the Arts Club , now celebrating its 25th an- niversary, boasts three stages and an annual budget of $3.5 million. “We're not denying that we’re well-known for our hits, but at the same time we're not a cookie cut- ter cperation. if you go to the Arts Club on any given night you'll see three differant plays. | defy you to go to three McDonald's and expe- rience z difference.” Millerd was born and raised in West Vancouver. He graduated from UBC with a degree in politi- cal science and went to Japan to study Far-Eastern politics. “L always had a passion for theatre,"’ he says, and, on a trip to London, he got permanently side- tracked with theatre and returned to Montreal to study at the Na- tional Theatre School of Canada. But admitting “I was a lousy ac- tor,’” he explains he decided to concentrate on production in- stead. in 1968, he returned to Van- couver and became stage manager at the Vancouver Playhouse, then Vancouver's only major theatre. In 1979, Millerd and staff opened the Arts Club Theatre on Granville Island, and the Arts Club Revue Theatre in 1983. For Millerd, running a theatre in, Vancouver means always trying to keep your head above water: “We don’t have millions of dollars to throw around,” he says. Thus far he has managed to keep the Arts Club in the black. But even on its silver anniversary, Millerd is leery of taking ali the success for granted. ‘The failure of the VSO was a big red flag to all of us. We can’t just assume that we're always going to have an au- dience.” PARK & TILFORD CENTRE 333 Brooksbank Ave., N. Van. and at all participating locations a Bitinch atop the Naw Work 19 - Wednesday, March 1, 1989 - North Shere News “Your t-stop Rental _ Entertainment Stor VHS & BETA 988-3 1431 Marine Dr.;;North Van, Norga Vistas on the Bay serves gold-medal meals accompanied by live music between ir hte Iam and 2pm. tor a meastoi handy”, ‘ p Reservations suggestea. Y ew wort HARBOURSIDE 1133 West] fastings Street Vancouver. B.C. Canada VOE 313 Telephone: (604) 689-9211 Fax: (604) 689-4358 AUMUMBER OF NEW WORLD HOTELS INTERNATIONAL » og Harbourside Hotel: > ee, Entertainment & Solid: - Gold Cards do not>. apply to specials. La Belle Sole, RESTAURANT 235 - 15th Street, West Van 926-6861 Lunch Monday-Friday Dinner Monday-Sunday 11:00-3pm 5:30-71pm