NEWPORT (KY.) – Thompson House Newport – Greater Cincinnati’s live music and creative hub – is pleased with its position after three official months in operation.
“We had our soft opening May 18 and the official grand opening June 1,” said Kirt Lee, Thompson House operations partner. “We put some things in place early on and are trying to build our brand and grow our audience. It seems to be working so far. We’re happy with where this first quarter has taken us and are very excited about the new projects on the horizon.”
Thompson House has developed several standing theme nights – including a Sunday open mic night in its 60-seat Rockstar Lounge, and a Tuesday Broadway show tunes night, a Wednesday creative jazz workshop and a Friday jazz series in its 100-seat Heaven Parlor – to build an audience and pave the way to larger productions and concerts in the 650-seat Tommygun Theater.
Other fine arts options are on the way, beginning with the Sept. 20 kick-off of WordBeat, a monthly spoken word creative writing series for poets and authors to share their works. Thompson House has gallery space and is exploring possibilities to showcase visual artists, local filmmakers and dance.
“Greater Cincinnati has such a diverse community of artists, and we’re in a position to celebrate and serve them all,” Lee said. “We want to be the place people think of when they think about a vibrant arts community.”
Lee hired Cathy Creason as artistic director for the venue, and she quickly assembled a creative advisory board to help focus the direction of the creative and performing arts at Thompson House.
“We have some extremely talented and passionate people on our board,” Creason said. “And we’ll soon have Broadway veteran and Tony nominee Pamela Myers joining us (see release dated Sept. 17). We have a bright future.”
In addition to Myers, the board includes Danny Davies, a longtime Greater Cincinnati theater educator and performer. He may be best known for his several turns in the riotous two-man “Tuna” plays performed in multiple venues around town.
Douglas Haman is a local attorney and veteran technical theater artist. He has been mentor to the lights and sound crew at St. Xavier High School’s award-winning Theatre Xavier for more than two decades.
Jessica Hendy is a CCM graduate who recently won raves for her work in Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati’s production of Next to Normal. She has appeared on Broadway in Cats, Aida and Amour and regularly tours the country in concert and with her cabaret act.
Mark D. Motz, a former journalist turned PR specialist, is owner of 1500 Media. He is an award-winning writer, photographer and filmmaker and served on the original board of the Greater Cincinnati Cappies, the organization which celebrates high school theater in the region.
Doug Schmutte is the music director at St. John the Baptist Parish in Dry Ridge. He has played and conducted in the pit of countless theatrical productions both locally and around the country, including performances with the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra.
“We’re ahead of where we planned to be at this point, both in terms of revenue and in terms of people coming through the door,” Lee said. “It’s an exciting time for us.”
For more information on Thompson House Newport, please visit www.thompsonhousenewport.com.
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