Maine State Music Theatre is embarking on a $450,000 effort to bring more housing to its performers and staff this summer.

The company, which produces Broadway-esque musicals in the heart of Brunswick, will be renovating the second floor of its 22 Elm St. headquarters. The goal is to add 10 new bedrooms, three bathrooms, a kitchen and living room to its inventory of staff housing as rentals in town become more scarce.

Maine State Music Theatre will renovate the second floor of its 22 Elm St. building to add housing options for its summer staff. Courtesy of the Town of Brunswick

“Every year, we struggle trying to house our out-of-state company members,” said MSMT Artistic Director Curt Dale Clark. “Pre-pandemic, we were hiring as many as 240 people. That number is not as high post-pandemic, but it’s still suffocating to try and find beds for.”

He said the theater desperately needs housing for just three to four months out of the year for as many as three shows at a time, which is a “nail biter” of a process. MSMT has nine buildings in addition to the Elm Street property, which currently has 10 bedrooms, but given the volume of work staff, it’s not enough, especially with “rentals drying up,” he said.

John Perrault of Perrault and Daughters Construction, the contractor on the project, told the Brunswick Planning Board at a permit approval hearing that MSMT brings a “huge amount of business” to the downtown area.

“It also helps the Town of Brunswick in ways that they will not be out renting rooms and homes from other people, which other Brunswick renters can — with the housing shortages — use,” Perrault said. “With these added 10 bedrooms underneath their own roof, it’s a win for the whole town.”

The project will be partially paid for with some of the housing budget that is typically set aside for finding rentals. Clark added that the company has received close to $100,000 in private donations and $50,000 from the Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation.

“I can safely say this is a game changer for our MSMT singer program,” Clark said.

This new project will likely wrap up early to mid-April — just in time for the musical season to begin.