This being the Fall Arts Guide, it may seem odd to devote space to a behind-the-scenes look at Theater Artists Olympia (TAO), a group which may or may not have any art on the boards this fall. But the real story about TAO for 2011-2012 is that there is a TAO at all. By no means was that a foregone conclusion in fall of 2010.

It's a story we're hearing a lot these days. Sucker punched by a shaky economy and a rapidly evolving audience, theater companies all over America have been circling the wagons, huddling over dwindling bank accounts and scouring the public domain for scripts they can realize for chump change. Pug Bujeaud, TAO's artistic director, talks about TAO's crisis a year ago.

"We were in a very challenged space. Finances were not good. We had recently had a large changeover in the board, which happens ... We started off with a show that did not do very well for us, the Lizzie Borden show (Blood Relations). And then we did (The) Goat, which did not do well financially. And then we had a long talk to get ourselves together, because we had committed to Oleanna."

Desperate for funds, TAO revived their most successful previous effort, Cannibal: The Musical. "Cannibal not only risked every penny we had, our president put in a chunk of his own money... Having done Cannibal already, I was convinced it would do well by us, even with the budget that we had. And it did. We have over twice the amount of money that we had at the bank at the end of last year."

"I am really pretty proud of this last season at TAO," Bujeaud continues. "The response we got from Goat artistically was amazing ... There were not a lot of bottoms in the seats, but I'm really proud of that product ... Cannibal was exactly what we wanted ... We went questing and found basement space at the Eagles (Ballroom) ... We're hoping it's going to be a semi-permanent space for us."

Bujeaud is still worried about the cost of a permanent home, but it's on her to-do list. "I would like to know that we have a place to live. I hope the situation at the Eagles works out for us, as a mutual benefit. We've been gypsies for a long time."

As for the upcoming season, "We have a line on a three-person comedic show based on The Hound of the Baskervilles, and we're trying to get the rights. It's up in the air. Bujeaud says TAO also plans to present, Bucket of Blood, a horror comedy based on a Roger Corman cheapie from 1959. That show will go up in March, followed by Bujeaud's take on Titus Andronicus.

"We're in limbo on the (fall) show ... It would be nice if we could get it in November. It depends on what spaces are available, so it may be as late as January," says Bujeaud. "We were trying to find two shows that were public domain. That was the financial consideration."

Bujeaud credits TAO's board and promises its devotion to controversy and camp will continue. "That's innately who we want to be. We want to do the stuff other people don't do. I think by the time we get done with Titus, it might be a little controversial. It's pretty black, and bleak - and right up my alley."

Bujeaud feels "parental attachment" to TAO's scrappy little troupe. "It's my passion. It's my craft. You ask me who I am, that's who I am ... When we're on our game, I'd put us up against anyone."

Theater Artists Olympia

(360) 357-3471
olytheater.com

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LINK: 2011-12 Theater listings