Shutting Down, and saying Goodbye.
3014 Packard hasn’t been our home since the end of September 2020. Tori, myself, and our kids went through the pain of saying goodbye to the space that had meant so much to us for the past six years. A space we had spent so much time in and put so much energy into. Tori and I were a team, a true Mom-and-Pop Shop with both of us wearing multiple hats. We had hoped to get through Covid and reopen in a new space, but the pandemic stretches on and Tori’s passing has greatly impacted our radical survival plan.
In January and February of 2021, things were changing for us at home too. I had stopped brewing and knew returning to it commercially would be difficult. Tori wasn’t feeling well and was having a harder time catching her breath. We had only just begun thinking about a more extreme plan for Pointless when a lung infection signaled the end of what had been an eight year cancer journey. She said her goodbye’s to us as a family, and passed away on February 23, 2021.
Since Tori and I were very much a team it makes it extremely difficult to simply carry on without her. Plus, the fact that I’m no longer brewing and won’t feel comfortable opening a live theater again until we’re past this pandemic makes this the right time to wind everything down.
We haven’t performed live shows since March of 2020, no in-person classes since then either, and no beer or physical theatre and brewery space since September of 2020.
We will not be reopening, the current online class term will be the last, and it is time for Pointless to say goodbye.
Thank you, Ann Arbor. Thank you, improv community.
Thank you, Gary Lehman, for being an amazing Education Director and fellow mind in the room with Tori and I. Thank you to the bar/house managers and staff that worked for us through the years and made Pointless special. Thank you casts—The League of Pointless Improvisers, Forte Factory, Community Garden Party, Finance Camp, This Is A Quiz, and Brenda for your energy and hard work. Thank you teachers and coaches for all you do.
Thank you all for all of your support through these years.
We are so thankful for the time we’ve had with you.
All the Pointless laughter, and cheer were truly wonderful.
For Tori and I, this was one dream. It wasn’t our only dream. Prior to cancer, the plan was for her to pursue her dream of being a theatre professor and I was the stay at home parent that was going to write and audition as I was able. Also, there are other stories and dreams we talked about, so who knows what’s to come in the future, but for now it’s time to say goodbye.
I trust that you will respect, honor, and understand this decision as our family goes through this difficult time and continues to adjust to our new reality. For now, we need to grieve and heal.
We all still have a pandemic to get through too. Get vaccinated!
Now, go, dream, be brave, and do amazing things.
Stay Pointless.
Jason Tomalia
Co-founder, Artistic Director, Brewer, Managing Member