Turning to the community for financial support in a last-ditch effort to avoid bankruptcy, the Three Rivers Festival missed its crowd-sourcing goal and will now have to cancel the event that was slated for July 12-20 at Headwaters Park.

Festival organizers set a $300,000 goal that needed to be met by Monday, Feb. 10, to avoid bankruptcy. They were also seeking another $150,000 to plan for the 55th annual festival. In the end, only $1,250 was raised.

On the GiveSendGo website, organizers said they had been “working tirelessly on a new plan that will allow the festival to continue in a more sustainable format, preserving many fan-favorite events while ensuring long-term stability.”

Among those ideas were using volunteers instead of paid staff, turning to a virtual/remote administrative model to eliminate office space rental, decreasing marketing and professional expenses, and booking acts that would help them break even.

“These measures place the festival on a path toward financial stability, ensuring a well-rounded event while avoiding the crippling financial burdens of the past.”

The festival says it’s  filing for bankruptcy. There is no word on what will become of TRF following 2025.

Studio space opens at downtown library

The downtown Allen County Public Library held a grand opening Tuesday, Feb. 11, for their The Studio at Main in the space that was formerly occupied by Dunkin’ Donuts. 

The space underwent extensive construction to support the existing studio operations as well as a new podcast booth, expanded program space, new equipment, and more conducive project workspaces.

This space, joins other system-wide library Maker Spaces which were rebranded as The Studios in August to encompass the full range of activities they support: creativity, innovation, technological advancement, entrepreneurial discovery, audiovisual content creation, and artistic expression.

The expansion is in line with the library’s 2024-28 strategic plan, Allen County’s Window to Lifelong Learning and Discovery, and is funded by operating dollars and grant funding from the Don Wood Foundation.

Tucker presents her first State of the City

Fort Wayne Mayor Sharon Tucker will deliver her first State of the City Address at noon on Wednesday, Feb. 19, at Grand Wayne Convention Center, 120 W. Jefferson Blvd. 

The event is free and open to the public. A small reception will follow the speech. 

Tucker will highlight successes from 2024 and look ahead to plans for 2025. The theme for this year’s speech is Forging New Footprints Together. An ASL interpreter will be present at the speech.

PFW students sell crafts on Feb. 13

Looking for a unique Valentine’s Day gift? Art education students at Purdue University Fort Wayne will be selling hand-crafted paintings, drawings, stickers, greeting cards, and jewelry from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 13, in the Helmke Library Idea Space. 

Celebrate Valentine’s Day with PFW concert 

On Friday, Feb. 14, at 7:30 p.m., the PFW concerto, aria, and composition competition winners will present a concert with the orchestra. 

The concert at Auer Performance Hall features Christian Urizar, piano; Benjamin Eugene Allen Goins, composer; Rudy Ruiz, saxophone; Anna Reichert, soprano; and Alina Brinker, mezzo-soprano. 

Tickets are $8 for adults, $7 for those 60 and older, $5 for university students, and free for PFW students and those younger than 18.

Young actors sought for St. Paddy’s show

Auditions for Ecstatic Theatrics’ Who Framed Lucky the Leprechaun? will be Saturday, Feb. 15, and Sunday, Feb. 16, from 3 -5 p.m. at TekVenture Makerspace’s Artistic Attic, 1830 Wayne Trace, Door 8. 

The show will run the afternoons of March 16 and March 17 at a two-day St. Patrick’s Festival featuring games, craft making, and contests. 

Director Jeannette Jaquish is seeking actors 5 and older for roles as leprechauns, Keebler elves, kidnappers, jailers, senators, the Trix Rabbit, a radio host, TV crew, secretary, tourists, and Lucky the Leprechaun. 

Details are at facebook.com/EcstaticTheatricsFW.

News and Venues covers Northeast Indiana’s music and arts organizations, venues, and colleges, from large to small. Send your news items to info@whatzup.com.