At a time when executive director Adam Bright describes arts funding as being in “dire straits,” Double Edge Theatre is navigating the storm by expanding its horizons. The company is currently prepping a poignant revival of “Rainbow Exodus” — a story of queer survival and love — while simultaneously cementing its role as a civic leader in Ashfield.
Following the conclusion of their summer spectacle — which earned state tax credits through a new program under the Office of Travel and Tourism — theater company members still had plenty to do to keep busy with their booth at Ashfield Fall Festival, community projects and preparations for upcoming shows. Beyond the stage, the company has continued to collaborate with town officials on a Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness plan to address climate change.
Co-artistic director Travis Coe said Rainbow Exodus first premiered in 2022, and was created in collaboration with Karol Matuszak. The one-man show explores Matuszak’s journey to break free from his conservative homeland during a time when “LGBT-free zones” were appearing across municipalities and regions of Poland.
“It’s a very personal story about being gay in Poland,” Coe said. “There’s no separation of church and state there and these LGBTQ free zones were popping up in cities and towns, saying that gays were not welcome… It’s really about his (Matuszak’s) upbringing and what’s happening with this mass exodus of queers from Poland.”
“Rainbow Exodus” will be shown at 7 p.m. Feb. 11-14 at the Double Edge farm at 948 Conway Road. Ticket prices range from $28-81 and can be purchased at eventbrite.com
Coe said it felt like a good time to revisit “Rainbow Exodus” as there have been updates in Matuszak’s life. Since 2021, when Coe and the Double Edge team first met Matuszak in Norway, Matuszak has moved to America, where he fell in love and married Coe.
“We’re excited to bring it back. In theater and storytelling, nothing ever feels complete; you’re always feeling like there’s more to say, adding on what happened next,” Coe said.
Coe added that with the current political climate, it felt important to keep sharing queer stories.
Last month, Polish lawmakers passed a bill introducing “cohabitation contracts,” allowing two partners of any gender to file joint tax returns, share access to health information and health insurance, however, Poland does still not recognize gay marriage. In November, the European Union Court of Justice, the union’s highest court, ordered the nation to recognize same-sex marriages that were registered in other countries.
Meanwhile in America, hate crimes against LGBTQ individuals have been on the rise, according to Department of Justice data. In 2024, 17.2% of hate crime incidents reported were motivated by the victims’ sexual orientation; a few years prior, in 2021, 15.9% of incidents were motivated by sexual orientation. However, despite rising calls for the U.S. Supreme Court to revisit its landmark decision to allow same-sex marriage, in November the court turned down an appeal from a Kentucky court clerk who refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples in 2015.
“We felt it was even more pressing in this context,” Coe said. “There’s a lot of censorship in the arts going on right now and there’s still a lot of attempts to create feelings of otherness in queer people.”
In addition to working on “Rainbow Exodus,” Coe said the Double Edge team has been busy working on a docuseries exploring the history of the theatre company — which celebrated its 40th anniversary last year — and promoting “In Alchemy of Living Culture,” written by founder Stacy Klein. They have also begun preparations for this year’s summer spectacle.
Coe said that the 2026 summer spectacle will be a show titled “Once a Blue Moon – Cada Luna Azul,” another show previously performed that the company is bringing back to audiences this year. The show brings audiences to a small Argentinian town and explores the impacts of military dictatorships and large-scale industrialization.
Executive Director Adam Bright said the summer spectacle is Double Edge’s largest performance each year, bringing thousands to their home base in Ashfield.
Last summer, Double Edge’s spectacle “The Heron’s Flight”— a production where mythological creatures gather for a Midsummer Feast — was selected for the Office of Travel and Tourism’s inaugural tax credit program.
In its inaugural year, the program selected 28 live theater productions to receive tax credits equaling 35% of qualifying payroll costs, 25% of production and performance expenditures, and 25% of transportation expenditures.
Double Edge’s “The Heron’s Flight” was one of five productions in western Massachusetts and the only one in Franklin County selected.
“It was a nice surprise to receive it, and it helped offset a lot of personnel costs,” Bright said. “This is key for us.”
Bright said that while this program is different from the typical arts grant, as it is focused on driving tourism through theater, every dollar put towards the arts is appreciated.
“Arts funding is in dire straits right now; it’s not looking good, so for Massachusetts to say ‘yes, we’re going to do this, we’re going to find a way to fund theater’ it’s really important,” Bright said.
He said Double Edge has never received funding for the summer spectacles, and the shows are typically just included in the theatre company’s annual budget. He hopes the state chooses to continue the program in the future.
“It was a good one,” Bright said of the program. “They found a way to fund theater during a time when funding for theater and the arts is drying up.”
Beyond their artistic work, Bright said, creative funding sources help Double Edge pursue its other work to better the community. The theatre company has also been working with the town of Ashfield and other partners to support clean energy, climate sustainability, and affordable housing.
Double Edge just wrapped up overseeing the town’s Municipal Vulnerability Project, which explored what climate resilience should look like in Ashfield and what residents want to see in terms of actions to mitigate climate change.
Bright added that this year, the Double Edge plans to continue work and hopefully finish construction of the new Community Design Center, which will be open to the public, offering open workspaces and design rooms for puppet-making, visual arts, textiles, beading, sewing and costuming, as well as Indigenous practices such as traditional woodworking.
“We’re really working beyond the traditional scope of what theater does,” Bright said.