Just received this announcement from WPPAC. They’re calling the demise of “Dolly” a “postponement” and are still planning a 2009-10 season, to be announced in late May.

Here’s the release, in full:

White Plains Performing Arts Center postpones “Hello, Dolly!” citing fiscal responsibility, announces June 1 fund-raiser.

White Plains, NY (April 20, 2009) – Jack W. Batman, Executive Producer of the White Plains Performing Arts Center, has announced the postponement of Hello, Dolly! scheduled to play April 30 – May 17, 2009, the theatre’s final production of its 2008-2009 season. The company, an Actors’ Equity Association LORT theatre, has produced seven major musicals since November 2007, most recently a highly praised production of Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler’s A Little Night Music starring Penny Fuller and Mark Jacoby.

In making the announcement, Mr. Batman said, “With the economy faltering and in my effort to be fiscally prudent, it is necessary to step back and re-evaluate our plans so that we may continue to produce the high-quality shows that our audiences have told me they want. We’ve built a lot of momentum over the last two seasons – a very short time by anyone’s reasoning. In order to keep on an upward course, while all around us the ground is shaking, we think it best to re-schedule our production of Hello, Dolly!  I don’t want to cut corners and give our audiences a production that is less than it deserves to be or what they’ve come to expect. New playing dates for Hello, Dolly! will be announced at a later time.”

The not-for-profit White Plains Performing Arts Center will announce its 2009-2010 season in late May, or early June. Subscriptions go on sale at that time. “Hello, Dolly! ticket holders will receive full value and may request a refund or apply the unused amount to a new or renewal subscription,” said Mr. Batman, “but it will certainly help our cash flow more if ticket holders apply the amount owed them to a subscription for the new season of Broadway Classics, which we intend to make more affordable than ever as part of our own economic stimulus package.”

Mr. Batman continued, “Over the past two seasons the White Plains Performing Arts Center has enjoyed extraordinary critical acclaim and audience support, with subscriptions growing with every show and our seven major musical productions on budget and selling well.  But the wobbly economy has recently stepped into a leading role here and we find that our contributed income is not where it should be. As I tell our audiences before nearly every performance, ticket sales only cover 30-35% of our annual operating expenses. Every other dollar needs to be contributed.

“To help us over this little bump in the road, we will be hosting a fundraising event, One Enchanted Evening, on Monday, June 1, 2009 as a benefit for the theatre. Part of the evening’s activities, which also features cocktails, dinner and a silent auction, will be an entertainment featuring some of the stars of the musicals that we’ve produced over the last two years, plus other celebrity appearances. Benefit tickets are on sale now at the box office.”

The White Plains Performing Arts Center is located on the third level of City Center at the corner of Main and Mamaroneck in downtown White Plains, NY, just 30 minutes from midtown Manhattan, and there is plenty of convenient parking. For tickets or other information call (914) 328-1600 or visit the website at www.wppac.com.

White Plains Performing Arts Center brings innovative and eclectic entertainment and classic Broadway musicals to appreciative audiences who live throughout the county and beyond. It is Westchester’s only professional regional theatre. Under the direction of Executive Producer Jack W. Batman, the 410-seat, $6 million theatre also hosts local, national and international performing artists whose work reflects Westchester’s diverse population, and operates the Westchester Conservatory for the Performing Arts, a year-round professional theatre training program for youth and adults. The 2008-2009 Season is sponsored by the Louis R. Cappelli Foundation, and made possible, in part, by grants from the City of White Plains, Bank of America, Entergy and other corporations, foundations and individual donors.