An partnership between Bath arts venue and two Midcoast libraries is bringing more ways for people to take in the local arts community.
Starting this month, cardholders at Curtis Memorial Library in Brunswick and the Patten Free Library in Bath can “check out” two free tickets to any Chocolate Church Arts Center shows, with choices ranging from community theater and live poetry readings to storytelling, concerts and comedies.
After the six-month pilot program concludes, both libraries and the CCAC will determine if the program worked and whether any adjustments are needed. The CCAC library passes may be part of the library’s permanent collection, along with plans on bringing in more libraries like the Topsham library or the Portland library.
“It gives patrons that opportunity, if they’ve never been [to the CCAC], to check it out and hope that they continue to visit or tell other folks about it,” said Kelly McElligott of Curtis Memorial Library.
Both libraries already offer passes on a variety of local museums and state parks similar to the CCAC’s pilot program.
Patten Free Library’s Programs and Outreach Manager Hannah Lackoff and Curtis Memorial Library’s Adult Services Librarian Hazel Onsrud plan to present the CCAC model to other libraries to show them how it works and if it’s possible for other libraries to partner with local arts organizations.
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“Our biggest goal is to use up all the tickets at both organizations and to get as many people into the [CCAC] as possible using these passes,” Lackoff said.
The Patten Free Library aims to expand accessibility and affordability so that people who might not otherwise be able to afford arts programs can attend.
After the Library of Things, an assortment of tools, games and knickknacks available for check out, took off, the Curtis Memorial Library looked within the Midcoast community, which led to the Maine GearShare, with library members taking a pass to borrow equipment. However, the Curtis Library wanted to take down barriers, such as paywalls, to access the arts, entertainment and cultural events.
“It also allowed us to make sure we are all equal,” McElligott said. “So not everybody could afford some things that our Library of Things has, and that made it allow to borrow something such as a rice cooker.”
Libraries have always been a place of learning and education, but McElligott wanted the library to be more immersed in the community and have the library members have more opportunities, much like the Maine GearShare at the Curtis Memorial Library.
The libraries are trying to meet the community member’s passions where they are, and the library passes for the CCAC are one way to offer a venue for people to get out into their communities, McElligott said.