The Hayes-McCausland Raise the Stage campaign has achieved nearly half of its million dollar goal as of January 2016. The campaign will fund the furnishing of the black box theatre, an upcoming installment in the revamped theatre wing.

The theatre is named in honor of two alumni who were heavily involved in the performing arts while at New Trier, Mary Catherine Hayes (‘10) and Sarah McCausland (‘13). Hayes passed away in 2013, after a battle with cancer. McCausland was killed in 2014 by a drunk driver while attending Bard College in New York.

“Together they represent more than individuals, they represent excellence at New Trier,” said Katie Seigenthaler, mother of Hayes.

The two families joined forces to finance what will now be the first privately funded project at New Trier as a way of saluting their daughters. Contributions to their cause have almost entirely come from supporters of the Media, Speech and Theatre department, as well as members of the community who knew the two girls.

“It’s been great to see their friends work so hard in order to give back to their alma mater and also their friends,” said Seigenthaler.

On Aug. 17, friends of McCausland and Hayes launched the campaign with a kickoff event hosted by Nick’s Bar and Grill in Wilmette. The event featured live music from local musicians, including senior Jordan Xidas, a series of silent auctions with items donated by local businesses, and a crowd of supporters. The event raised over $20,000.

If contributors donate more than $5,000, they secure a spot for their name etched into the glass wall of donors, to be placed outside of the theatre. “If your whole family has gone here, this is an opportunity to have a permanent place at New Trier,” said campaign manager, Dale West Wyant.

The fundraising has spread from Wilmette all the way to Syracuse, New York. In December 2015, students at Syracuse University started a GoFundMe campaign to raise over $5,000 in order to have their name etched on a glass wall of donors. Though Hayes attended the university for only a short period of time, she left a positive impression on the university’s drama community.

The goal was reached by the end of December, and the GoFundMe page thanked its donors “for being a part of that wave of love that we all felt so deeply while M.C. was with us, and now we’ve been able to bring that back in some small way.”

Other key contributions to the campaign included a celebration after the Fight Night Showcase in December, proceeds from sales of “Winnetka 60093” by local author Holly Maihugh, and a Post-Thanksgiving spin class at Spynergy in Winnetka.

The next fundraiser for Raise the Stage will be on March 12 at the Winnetka Community House. An all-girls acapella group, Whim N’ Rhythm, from Yale University will be performing a benefit concert for the Raise the Stage campaign.

Nina Lynn, the Media, Speech and Theatre department head and theatre teacher said her current students are interested in contributing to the Raise the Stage campaign in any way possible.

“The parents of our current students working with the New Trier Fine Arts Association are also looking to take some ownership of the project and contribute,” said Lynn.

Lynn described a black box theater as a space with endless possibilities.

“You can put the stage and the audience wherever you want, and therefore you can do whichever play you want,” Lynn said. “It just opens up so many possibilities for our designers as well as our actors and directors.”

Griffin Weller, a junior enrolled in theatre, said that the response from his peers have been positive. Weller said the only complaint is from juniors and seniors, who aren’t going to be around to take advantage of it.

Sally Kozminski, a sophomore who has previously worked in a black box theatre, described the experience as more intimate than a performance in a typical proscenium theater, like the Gaffney Theatre of New Trier East’s campus.

“With a black box, it’s a lot more realistic,” Kozminski said. “You feel like you’re ‘in’ the production, instead of just watching it.”

The Hayes-McCausland black box is expected to be up and running by fall of 2017.

For more information on how to get involved, or to donate to the Raise the Stage campaign, visit raisethestage.org