You get what you need!

Contributed by Guest Blogger of the Week, Jon Stancato.

There’s an alarming statistic that’s oft thrown about: there are nearly 1,000 theatre companies in operation at any given time in NYC. Let’s assume that a quarter of them have already called it quits but have remained on the books like so many Japanese centenarians. Let’s assume another quarter will, alas, not likely make it to their second production. That leaves us with 500 active professional companies, all scrambling to carve up the same pie, at a time when performance spaces are turning into condos, traditional media coverage is either losing relevance or word counts or both, presenters are finding their own resources too strapped to offer much to presentees besides space, and recession-weary audiences may be less than willing to count “supporting indie theatre” among their charitable priorities (or even their frivolous luxuries).

Bleak, eh?

We all want the Times review(s) and the sold-out houses (packed with donors!) and the chichi venues and the fancypants presenters. But what do we need? What do we really need to feel like that to which we’ve dedicated our lives to is a profession, not a hobby?

Here’s what I need:
1. I need to keep making theatre until I die (or until it kills me).
2. I need to have complete freedom to tell whatever stories I want to tell as an artist
in whatever aesthetic I choose
3. I need people (both collaborators and audiences) to understand my work and
find value in it.

Three simple things. So instead of aspiring for the same generic pie piece that everyone else is clawing for, I tried to find a path which could guarantee these needs. And, after 8 years with my brethren at Stolen Chair, I think (fingers tightly crossed!) we’ve laid the groundwork for them to be realistically achieved. In 2009 (with the support of many many people but most importantly The Field and its ERPA grant), we launched PlayGround, the country’s first Community Supported Theatre program, an innovative new play development model (adapted from Community Supported Agriculture) which offers audience-investors a “share” in Stolen Chair’s entire journey creating one of our original works. Our PlayGround members join the fray when the “new play” is merely a title and research packet, following the roller coaster of highs and lows as we figure out what the material means to our collective and prepare it for its world premiere. And as we attract wider audiences interested in such an experience, we can project to a not-too-distant future when our new play development process will pay for itself. Of course, that might not happen…but at least we’ve found a “path” (one specific to our company’s needs) worth pouring our efforts into.

So, if all goes according to plan, I’ll have everything I need: a sustainable platform to create and share the work I feel compelled to create. Am I going to stop sending press releases to theater[at]nytimes.com? Nope. Give up on our “Spring ask”? Niet. Forego invitations to the city’s most powerful presenters? Non. Resist the temptation of $3k+/week space rentals? Nit.

Because at the end of the day, I still want what you want. But I also want you to get what you need. Figure that out…then set up the programs and infrastructures necessary to secure it. We had to take nearly 16 months off of producing in order to do that. That’s okay: theatres were still waiting to take our rental dollars when we returned and there will still be butts willing to plop down in our seats. So…go forth!

Oh, if you wanna get a peek at this here PlayGround us Chairs have concocted, join us for the free launch of the program’s second year this Sunday, Nov 21 (7pm, Space on White). Freely flowing wine, food, and theatrical discussion. In the words of those creepy not-twins from The Shining, play with us….

Maintaining ensembles

Contributed by Guest Blogger of the week, Brad Burgess.

Yesterday, Judith was talking to John Strasberg in her apartment about the highest artistic aim of maintaining an ensemble. I’m glad I did not write the blog yesterday, even though it was completely unintentional. Sometimes things just workout I guess. It ain’t called The Living Theatre for nothing! haha, Come on down to Clinton Street if you haven’t, this place is out of this world let me tell you. Never know what you are going to find.

Anywho, this blog is gladly stealing from those two technique tycoons and their minds who have been developing ensembles with their legacies for well over 100 years combined. Holy moly is right.

A true ensemble has one essential quality that cannot be taught or come from natural talent: they know each other. Being on stage with Judith during The Connection, we had a whole personal relationship to draw on. She’s my roommate, she’s my mentor, she’s one of my best friends. We share almost everyday with one another.

Tom Walker, is a company member of ours who has performed in 39 seasons with The Living Theatre. To put that into perspective, Mickey Mantle played 16 seasons for The New York Yankees. Judith and Tom have been on stage with each other for almost 40 years.

These examples are just a couple of dozens and dozens of similar stories. The profound effect these real relationships have on our ability to make our art together, is very present for us. It’s what makes being a pacifist anarchist political theatre group even possible.

Our art can’t help but manifest itself from these experiences. Our thoughts and feelings as people are developed this way. It makes sense then that our ability to relay translations of reality from the writer/director/actor/thinker as artists and produce something that has a connection to reality that is clear to the audience.

One balance we have is the problem of not being involved enough with our audience, as strange as it sounds. We are such a culture unto ourselves, that we need to be careful to keep our every day reality a part of the culture we are living in. We are very fortunate to be a part of the academic culture, so that much of our audience, theatre students and professionals especially, know something coming into the show about what to expect. Well, in our case I suppose its more of what not to expect.

When I see the experienced ensemble here working together, the company members who have been doing it for 10, 20, 30, 40 or in Judith’s case 65 years, I feel connected to the development of the culture. I see an ability for compromise, an ability to find a common ground, an ability to move forward in the midst of crisis.

I think we are able to accomplish this because we are really able to be who we are to one another. It’s part of the vibe and message from the moment you arrive here, from Judith to the babies that are born into the company. It’s a real family, in all the wonderful clichéd sense of it.

This adds a reality to the work for me personally that I have not been able to find or see in many places other than the theatre community at large. I think the connection we have to each other here at The Living Theatre, but also industry wide helps us communicate and relate to people who love their friends and families. That’s most people in the world.

It’s certainly not always perfect as again is the norm, but I feel theatre and its ensemble nature can be a real example for societal structuring. People should be working together with people they love on something they care about that says what they believe, in their deepest, and most elevated selves. Hopefully our work as an artistic community is doing so. I believe it is in this city.

Happy World Theatre Day!

BB

Community Board Responds to NYSCA Cuts

On April 1, 2009, the Theatre Task Force for Community Board 4 put forward a letter to Governor Paterson addressing the cuts to the 2009 second round of New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) Funding. The letter calls on the Governor to "restore the NYSCA funds" and says that smaller theatres "enhance New York's competitive edge."

The letter to Governor Patterson cites two studies from the New York Innovative Theatre Awards and the Alliance for the Arts.

The full letter and more info are here.

Good News! CB3 Arts Task Force Resolution Passed Unanimously March 24th

A resolution composed by the Community Board Arts Task Force that was the result of the CB 1-5 Public Forum on small theatre in NYC & a March 10 Arts Task Force meeting, passed unanimously last evening by Community Board 3, paving the way for other Community Boards to use this language to adopt similar resolutions.

The community board can now bring the resolution to elected officials, requesting further support:

WHEREAS: Arts and Entertainment is one of the largest industries in New York City with the economic impact of non-profit estimated to be $5.8 Billion and 40,460 jobs (NY Alliance for the Arts, 2005);

WHEREAS: Small to mid sized theaters and other arts organizations are an integral part of the Arts & Entertainment industry: A) as an entry point for actors, playwrights, and other artists, B) for the expression and exploration of the diverse culture of New York City communities, C) sites of creativity, experimentation and innovation, D) jobs;

WHEREAS: Small to mid sized theaters and other arts venues are a closely tied to their local neighborhood small businesses, for instance one theater in CB3 had 70 restaurants contribute food to a recent festival;

WHEREAS: Small to mid sized theaters and other arts venues are economic drivers of local neighborhoods, and are a crucial to the cultural and economic resilience and diversity of our neighborhoods;

WHEREAS: A cyclical economic downturn is the TIME TO INVEST in our neighborhood economic drivers and NOT TO DISINVEST in local economic drivers;

WHEREAS: The proposed disinvestment by the City and the State in community based arts may have an adverse multiplier effect on the small businesses and neighborhoods that they are based;

WHEREAS: Foundation funding and government funding are down by 20-40 percent, yet small to mid sized theaters and other non profit arts venues have fixed real estate costs;

WHEREAS: Government funders recommendations to small to mid sized theaters and other arts organizations to cut back on programming in this time of crisis will not work, as programming constituted the revenue for fixed costs and employment;

WHEREAS: CB3 has been a historic incubator and concentration of Off Off Broadway theaters and has lost much of its small theaters in the late 90s and other performing arts venues in the last decade due to real estate competition and speculation, resulting in spaces constructed for performance to be repurposed and irretrievably lost;

WHEREAS: Areas (CB2, CB4, CB5) surrounding CB3 have recently lost 25-30 percent of their small to mid sized theaters in the last five years predominantly due to real estate competition (New York Theatre Innovative Theatre Awards study, Dec 08);

WHEREAS: CB3 remains an important viable center for theater and performing arts;

WHEREAS: There exists innovative policies (land use, tax, public buildings) to sustain and retain theater and other performance venues that other cities and states have successfully used;

WHEREAS: The New York State Assembly member O’Donnell, and NYC Council member Alan Gerson’s office are proposing bills to create a property tax abatement for commercial landlords that rent to non-profit cultural groups;

WHEREAS: CB3 Art Task Force Town Halls, and the recent joint Community Board Forum on small to mid sized theaters have been well attended with extensive expert and public testimony on the loss of theater and arts venues, the importance of theater and arts venues for local communities, and the severe financial crisis hitting small to mid sized theater.

THEREFORE IT BE RESOLVED: CB3 calls on its elected officials to acknowledge small to mid sized theaters and other arts organizations to be crucial to the cultural and economic resilience and diversity of our neighborhoods, to recognize the arts as economic drivers and integral to local small neighborhood businesses;

THEREFORE IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED: CB3 call on its elected officials to develop and adopt land use , tax and other governmental incentives and policies to retain and secure theater and other arts and cultural venue spaces and to retain arts and cultural organizations in our district and the City of New York.

THEREFORE IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED: CB3 calls on its elected officials, and the Governor, to act in order to restore the 100 percent funding cut from remaining funds of the New York State Council of the Arts (NYSCA) for Fiscal Year 2009, to restore NYSCA funding to sustainable levels in Fiscal Year 2010, and not to discriminate against small to mid-sized theaters and arts organizations.

THEREFORE IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED: CB3 calls on its elected representatives of Congress to include small to mid-sized theaters and other arts organizations in job retention and economic stimulus funding, and not to discriminate against the arts and non-profits in urban stabilization, job retention, and other funding and policies assisting other small businesses.

THANK YOU to all who have attended meetings leading up to these events! It's because of our community that our voices were heard loud and clear through these otherwise distracting and difficult times. And THANK YOU to Shay Gines, John Clancy, Paul Nagel and Tamara Greenfield, who all spoke last night in support of CB3's Arts Task Force's recommendations

The next CB3 Arts Task Force Meeting will be April 7th; stay tuned for more information.

Public Forum UPDATES & ACTION ITEMS (FULL CB3 Board meeting TOMORROW!)

In case you're not receiving updates from the Theatre task force, most recent update with action items:

"Thank you for being one of more than 300 activists who attended the
February 17th Community Board Congress on Small to Mid-sized Theaters
and/or have recently asked to be included on this list.

We told you we would take the ideas from that night and work to put the
power of the Community Boards behind them.

That process began on Tuesday, March 10th. The Arts Task Force of
Community Board 3 met at Theater for the New City to discuss the forum and
events that have occurred since that night.

In attendance were approximately 30 outside observers. Invited guest
Caron Atlas kicked off the meeting speaking about opportunities for
combined community organizing and arts advocacy.

The task force drafted and unanimously passed a resolution in support of
our goals. Resolutions are the community boards’ mechanism for formally
conveying their concerns and policy initiatives to elected officials. A
resolution must first be passed by the appropriate committee. It is then
sent to the Executive Committee for comments and tweaking; and a final
resolution is crafted for presentation and vote at the full board’s
monthly meeting.

Action Steps You Can Take:

Come to the CB3 full Board meeting on Tuesday, March 24, 2009 at 6:30 p.m.
at PS 20 at 166 Essex Street (E Houston & Stanton Streets).

Sign up to speak at Public Session between 6:00-6:30pm. You will be given
approximately 2 minutes in front of the mike.

Submit an impact statement if you were a victim of the NYSCA 2009 100%
funding cuts and bring copies to submit the individual board
members(approximately 40).

This resolution can be used by the other community boards as the basis of
similar letters or resolutions, so that small to mid-sized theaters can be
advocated for on a common basis and at the same time across all affected
Community Boards.

The State Legislature is meeting at the end of this month to specifically
discuss NYSCA Funding and its restoration. They read their mail. Our job
is show them that small to mid-sized theaters demand their support.

If you agree with the idea behind basic resolution (specific wording is
still being worked on by the CB3 Task Force), please considering coming
and showing support at this meeting. And if you were caught in the NYSCA
funding debacle, please consider sending us a one page impact statement
about how your organization was affected.

We will present these to policy makers as a compendium of (anonymous if
requested)documents.

When further resolutions are taken up by the other Community Boards, we
will let you know about those meetings as well.

Thanks again for your interest and support.

David M. Pincus, on behalf of the theater/arts task forces of Community
Boards 1-5."

Check out our resources as well. Hope to see you tomorrow!

Thoughts on Presidential plans for the Arts, contributed by Shay

Presidential Plans for the Arts

President Barack Obama is the first-ever president to enter office with a platform and plan for the arts. His website claims that he "uniquely appreciates the role and value of creative expression." This is an exciting change for the arts. His eight-point plan includes a promise to set an example on how to appreciate the arts, more money for the arts and his "arts corps" and agenda to "expand public/private partnerships between schools and arts organizations" resonates his overall theme of service. All of this bodes well for the Off-Off-Broadway community.

However even more than a general awareness and appreciation of the arts, there are two points in his plan that I think will have the largest and most direct impact on our community.

Provide Health Care to Artists: Finding affordable healthcare for independent artists who don't always have a regular employer/regular employment has not always been easy. Anyone paying attention to the campaign knows that President Obama's plan is to create and make available a subsidy healthcare plan similar to the one that Federal employees now have. Will this make it possible for many OOB artists to spend more time working on their art and less time chained to a "day job?"

Ensure Tax Fairness for Artists: This is the one I find really interesting. This will allow artists to deduct (at fair market value) hours of time volunteered from their taxes...... This may mean a whole new game for OOB. How will Equity codes be affected by this? A very interesting proposal.

What are your thoughts?

Go here to see the outline of Barack Obama's plan for the arts.

Also if you haven't heard, Quincy Jones has started a petition to ask President-Obama to appoint a Secretary of the Arts. This would be a Cabinet-level position that would oversee several federal agencies including the NEA. While many other countries have Ministers of Art or Culture but the United States has never created such a position.

Elizabeth Blair from NPR discusses the Secretary of the Arts here.

What do you think? Do you think a Secretary of the Arts would benefit us or do you agree with David Smith?

Go here to sign the petition.

Shay Gines

Have your say: Arts Infrastructure

Adam Forest Huttler of Fractured Atlas is calling for your Arts Infrastructure ideas for possible inclusion in their Arts Infrastructure proposal. Check out the blog post to post your ideas.