tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post5095756922503203284..comments2024-01-17T03:39:48.664-05:00Comments on Full of IT: Ford ToughIT Awards Staffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07261232921332130350noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-32047793227509623962010-05-05T08:59:22.206-04:002010-05-05T08:59:22.206-04:00My Friend Julian wrote this comment and e-mailed i...My Friend Julian wrote this comment and e-mailed it to me. He's promoted theater in the UK and is currently promoting Rock and Roll band: J you know my experience is based on co-producing plays in England and Malta years ago. Not really relevant in these times or is it? With these postings I'm impressed with the initiatives shown, with the nimbleness, with the business creativity, with jonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-52711366294915007032010-04-29T15:25:30.286-04:002010-04-29T15:25:30.286-04:00Heather, Daniel, this is an important conversation...Heather, Daniel, this is an important conversation. Please check out Mercedes Rules and continue...<br /><br />http://nyitawards.blogspot.com/2010/04/mercedes-rule.htmljonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-45153783384201365842010-04-29T07:57:16.090-04:002010-04-29T07:57:16.090-04:00Daniel, I'd love to know what kind of money Ri...Daniel, I'd love to know what kind of money Rising Phoenix Rep is spending. I haven't had the pleasure yet of seeing one of your productions, although I am aware of you guys. The bulk of any Retro Productions budget is space rental... I just find rehearsing in a rehearsal room gets a quality production and is worth the expense when you see the final outcome, then of course rental of a Heatherhttp://www.retroproductions.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-39656218402325712642010-04-28T09:08:14.867-04:002010-04-28T09:08:14.867-04:00Daniel, I knew you'd have something incredibly...Daniel, I knew you'd have something incredibly interesting to say. (Amazing playwright and actor, this guy.)I don't know if Rising Phoenix Rep is ultra Zen or ultra conservative or both with its ethos of frugality. In a Zen way you're looking at everything around you as one big resource to help you express your art. You run your company as a conservative business in that you use your jonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-21818328248556379202010-04-27T23:32:20.727-04:002010-04-27T23:32:20.727-04:00Hey J,
I know you asked me to write a little abou...Hey J,<br /><br />I know you asked me to write a little about our work at Jimmy's and how we started to work there to try to find a way to bust the constant worry about money thing and the recession in the face a tad and turn it into a positive, so here's some thoughts on that hopefully and sorry if this sucks cause I always feel like an idiot with these things. Thanks so much again Danielnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-28584855754797590302010-04-27T16:46:08.569-04:002010-04-27T16:46:08.569-04:00Erin, Yeah, I was passing through the Clemente Sot...Erin, Yeah, I was passing through the Clemente Soto Velez Cultural Center recently and snuck a peek at your set. It looked great. Such a HUGE playing area. My acting days rushed back to me and suddenly I was dying to do Shakespeare again. Now if only I could only bring back how to remember lines again. And your description of how American Bard (Great name) got together may ring familiar with a jonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-55164697515249086422010-04-27T16:16:11.093-04:002010-04-27T16:16:11.093-04:00I manage the American Bard Theater Company. Artis...I manage the American Bard Theater Company. Artisitc Director mary Riley and I created the company in June 2009 as a response to economic downturn. We assembled a group of like-minded classical actors with additional skills (some can sew, some can build sets, some have a knack for PR, some can balance accounts, some have friends with deep pockets...)and we set out to procure performing Erin Gilbrethhttp://www.americanbard.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-49708914508816372312010-04-27T13:10:31.182-04:002010-04-27T13:10:31.182-04:00Kathleen, it just ate mine too! Or maybe it is on ...Kathleen, it just ate mine too! Or maybe it is on delay. Anyway my comment was very profound - you'll have to trust me. No, i was just saying how I love your comment about the recession offering ops to find fresh spaces and perhaps landlords open to lowering rents to improve the quality of his property and neighborhood.jonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-82505080878045437972010-04-27T13:05:48.729-04:002010-04-27T13:05:48.729-04:00Kathleen, AWESOME insights. I love that the same r...Kathleen, AWESOME insights. I love that the same recession that can knock us out of spaces perhaps offers new opportunities to negotiate new spaces. My friend Paul Adams of EAT used to (or maybe still does) habitually tour neighborhoods for unoccupied spaces - not just performance spaces but store fronts etc - looking to get a home for his company. we was successful too. Over a decade and a half Jonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-66521552038696272952010-04-27T10:46:43.660-04:002010-04-27T10:46:43.660-04:00Well, screw that. The blog just ate my comment.
...Well, screw that. The blog just ate my comment. <br /><br />I'll try to reconstruct: I think the recession has made companies more choosy about the work they produce. If they've only got ONE shot in a season, then they have to bring their best. And, times are ALWAYS tough in off-off. Unless you're funding a theater yourself because you are independently wealthy, it's ALWAYS about Kathleen Warnocknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-50334564719638087422010-04-26T17:34:35.856-04:002010-04-26T17:34:35.856-04:00Robert, loved that you mentioned the political par...Robert, loved that you mentioned the political part of the equation to help OOB/OB not just survive but thrive. I'm crossing my fingers with you that the political will to recognize the value of NYC Theater doesn't fade with the recession.<br /><br />Heather, you gotta love where David Pincus and the community boards are going in terms of giving tax breaks to landlords to keep the theaterJonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-29356836703771273452010-04-26T17:00:21.700-04:002010-04-26T17:00:21.700-04:00Robert, thank you for the lovely compliment. I li...Robert, thank you for the lovely compliment. I like to think that each Retro Production is better than the last. So far, anyway, I believe that has been true. <br /><br />Although I will say that what I've seen is RP has been forced into ever larger budgets not just by the material we choose but also by this economy. Rights went up $15 a performance last year and space rentals continue toHeatherhttp://www.retroproductions.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-8210022057114562342010-04-26T16:50:03.668-04:002010-04-26T16:50:03.668-04:00Heather, it helps that your productions are consis...Heather, it helps that your productions are consistently outstanding. Your audiences are building because you continue to do remarkable work. Keep it up and you will see both the flourish in your audiences and your fundraising.<br /><br />Jonathan, it is my humble opinion that due to the rising costs of Broadway and Off Broadway, OOB may have seen an increase in ticket sales to balance their lossRobertnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6946414928332818297.post-14577887312798103212010-04-26T16:20:11.037-04:002010-04-26T16:20:11.037-04:00I can't say for sure if Retro Productions has ...I can't say for sure if Retro Productions has exactly flourished (that implies a great leap in audience and funding at the least), but while our fundraising has suffered visibly from the recession, our audiences have held steady. This time out (THE DESK SET opens in 2 weeks) we've seen a bump up in online TDF ticket sales, which I mostly attribute to the median age of the TDF patron Heatherhttp://www.retroproductions.orgnoreply@blogger.com