Normally, at this time of year, we would be packing our bags and heading to New York for our first big casting session of the season. Instead, we are staring at our empty suitcases and wondering how long it will be before we can go back to New York.

The actors union has yet to greenlight in-person auditions. In fact, only two theaters in the country have been able to meet the union’s safety standards required to perform live, which includes the additional cost of weekly testing and the facility changes necessary to take care of everyone’s safety.

We are in uncharted territory. We know we’ll be back; we just don’t know when. Recent audience surveys in Maine and throughout the country tell us that more than 50% of our audiences may not return in person until a vaccine is possible. And when reopening is finally possible, some of us will need to make extensive structural changes to our venues.

Maine’s entire not-for-profit performing arts sector is in trouble. When the pandemic hit, performing arts were the first to close and will be the last to return. Many of us will not be able to reopen in a sustainable way until we can fill our houses to at least 75% capacity. Socially distancing performers as well as audience members is inherently at odds with the fundamental experience live theater offers.

Maine’s performing arts organizations are economic hubs, adding $1.5 billion to Maine’s gross state economy. They also provide essential financial injections into their local communities and create upward of 17,000 jobs. About 50% of The Public Theatre’s audience comes from outside of Androscoggin County. Additionally, we raise tens of thousands of dollars every year from national and regional foundations that goes directly back into the community we serve. Data show that every $1 spent on cultural tourism results in $46 spent in the local economy, including restaurants, hotels and retail.

At The Public Theatre we have used this “long intermission” to expand our programming — especially for children. We have partnered with our libraries to virtually read stories and bring children’s literature to life. We have also taught several pay-what-you-can online theater classes for children 9-17.

As we expect the arts programming in schools this year will suffer, we are looking for ways to partner with schools, teachers and parents to help keep our children’s creativity alive. Studies show that theater skills are valuable life skills and we are committed to improving the lives of our children during this difficult time.

Speaking not just for The Public Theatre, but also on behalf of a consortium of major performing arts venues throughout the state, what happens next is critical to our survival. There are specific actions state and federal authorities can take to help us through this dire time.

In Maine, the State Economic Recovery Committee needs to allocate funding specifically designated for the arts in its distribution of the state’s $1.25 billion in CARES Act funding. Many states have created a recovery category specifically for their arts and cultural sector, proportional to its economic impact in the state, cognizant of the uniquely long path to reopening we face.

At the national level, Congress must fund a new round of the Paycheck Protection Program, extend the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program and provide more emergency funding to be dispersed by the national and state arts agencies. The recently created Save Our Stages Act has bipartisan support in both the House and Senate as it works its way through Congress.

Maine’s congressional delegation needs to support this critical Save Our Stages legislation. Maine’s Performing Arts stages and concert halls are spaces to build empathy, promote teamwork and creativity and unite communities.

We are asking you, our audiences, to advocate for relief funding for the arts. We also invite you to consider donating directly to any and all arts organizations that are meaningful to you. The future of the arts in Maine needs your support.

Christopher Schario and Janet Mitchko are the artistic directors of The Public Theatre in Lewiston.