When the curtain falls Saturday, the Subscription Series at Pike Performing Arts Center will go dark.

The Pike Township School Board, which operates the center, voted in February to eliminate the six-show series because of low attendance and revenue loss. The final show is “Riders in the Sky” on Saturday.

“It’s a deep loss,” said Don Steffy, Indianapolis Children’s Choir executive director and the former Pike center leader. “Some people might see it as six performances, but it’s so much more.”

Steffy, who was the Pike center’s first executive director from 1996-2007, compared the loss to a mall losing an anchor store.

Some performers in the series would put on special shows for students and spend time in classrooms, Steffy said. The series also helped to attract artists who would rent the center.

The School Board made a difficult decision in a financially tough time, but Steffy said they acted too quickly and the reputation of the arts center is at stake.

“Sometimes you end up throwing the baby out with the bath water,” Steffy said.

Center director Jeff Maess declined to comment on the end of the series.

The district will combine two positions, including Maess’, that operate the center into one and change the source of tax dollars used to pay that person, a move that will save three teaching positions, according to a news release from Superintendent Nathaniel Jones.

Washington Township resident Ray Mitchell, 74, has been a Subscription Series season ticket holder for five years. He attends shows with at least 10 other people.

“The offerings have been unique and almost always highly entertaining,” Mitchell said. “It was like an adventure.”

Mitchell goes to shows at Beef&Boards Dinner Theatre and Indianapolis Civic Theatre, but he felt like the Pike center offered distinctive performances that broadened his appreciation for theater.

“I personally believe that that anything that cuts linkages between the schools and the general community is a mistake,” said Mitchell.

Instead of just a School Board vote, Mitchell wished ticket holders and community members could have voiced their opinions about the Subscription Series. He said he would’ve even helped solicit grant funding.

“I have been shocked and dismayed that the community was not part of the decision-making process,” Mitchell said. “I have been making modest contributions to the (center’s) foundation over the years and would have found a way to contribute more if it would help save the series. I would have also been willing to pay more for tickets.”