I’ve been away from the States for a year now and I can’t help but wonder how the dwindling US economy is affecting every facet of American life. I don’t have a TV here in my apartment in Montreal. I get news through the internet: cnn.com, nytimes.com, and the like. I watched the presidential and vice-presidential debates through YouTube and (live on) NYtimes.com.
So… things aren’t lookin’ so well.
I just wanted to know…
1. How is the current state of US economy affecting you as an independent artist or company?
2. What can we do, or need to do, as a [dance] community to maintain and preserve our activities (ie. creation, commissions, touring)?
I would love to hear your thoughts!
Source: Stuart Carlson, Slate, January 29, 2008.
Nichole
Director and playwright Marion McClinton sent this to me when I asked the same question.
Be bold and mighty forces will come to your aid - Goethe. Be agressive going after new funders or the old ones. Show the ticket buyers something they cannot get anywhere else. Not something they have seen enough to tire of it. Be exciting. People need theatre especially when times are rugged. It is time for us to behave like Giants. Titans of the … Read Moretheatre. If we know what is coming, fight it! Become necessary. Make it impossible to live without you. Energize the city with brilliance and the funding community with a ferocious tenacity. No surrender. No prisoners. Fight back.
Oct 13, 2008 @ 22:35
Nichole
This also is of interest:
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=691862&c=hp
Oct 13, 2008 @ 22:37
Nichole
And lastly…
Minneapolis’ reaction:
http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/art/30714819.html?elr=KArksD:aDyaEP:kD:aUt:aDyaEP:kD:aUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU
Oct 13, 2008 @ 22:44
A Little Tea or Something
Here’s the thing: the performing arts world (in the West, anyway) depends on deep-pockets benefactors. If the next (American) administration raises taxes on the rich, the performing arts world will feel it. You can be bold, behave like giants, and be necessary all you want; that may sell some tickets. But the bottom line is this: in the face of a tough econony, will your benefactors continue to cut you a big check to help keep you afloat? I have a fledgling ballet school and think about this every single day.—Deb Young
Oct 15, 2008 @ 02:30
tonya
Regarding A Little Tea’s comment, look at this: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/talkingamerica/2008/10/best_foot_forward.html
(Philip / Oberon’s Grove) sent it to me.
This kind of goes back to the issue we were discussing with Kristin’s post about Atria, corporate versus government funding. I would hope there is more government funding for the arts, as some bloggers have noted Obama calls for. We can’t have a system where the arts are dependent solely on wealthy corporations.
Oct 17, 2008 @ 17:42
A Little Tea or Something
I looked at the link; it was interesting. There has to be a balance, to be sure. True—we can’t have a system where arts are dependent solely on wealthy corporations. But by the same token purely state-sponsored art can be an abomination. I opened my school in 2006 as a “for-profit”—not for any particular reason—that’s just how it was set up initially (and that nomenclature makes me giggle, because I have yet to cut myself a check!). Currently a private interest handles my big expenses (and I have a handful of kids out of about 25 on full scholarship); I go back and forth about switching to not-for-profit status. What mainly bothers me about switching is the amount of time I’d have to spend on paperwork (instead of teaching); I’ve also seen colleagues whose not-for-profit schools/companies suffered at the hands of their board of directors, who at times made disastrous decisions that ultimately damaged the quality of the product being offered. I really do prize my autonomy.
It’s an old debate, I suppose: raise taxes, and then redistribute that wealth, or leave it up to those who earned it to decide how it should be spent. It would be interesting to hear what exec. directors of big companies and schools would have to say about this subject..—Deb Young
Oct 17, 2008 @ 19:15