“The Phoenix Symphony’s musicians, music director and staff agreed to take 17 percent pay cuts over the next three years to stabilize the struggling organization. The musicians’ pay cut, which will save nearly $2 million over the three years and other cost saving measures will allow the non-profit to keep a full-time orchestra and make about 200 performances a year.”
Tag: 05.19.09
Chicago Lyric, Bucking The Trend, Posts A Surplus
“Lyric Opera of Chicago is in strong financial shape compared with other big-budget opera companies such as the Metropolitan Opera and San Francisco Opera, both of which are facing reportedly serious deficits amid the troubled economy.” Nevertheless, the company, famously careful financially, “is bracing itself for possibly greater fallout ahead.”
What We Think We Know Of Fairy Tales Is A Fairy Tale, Too
In the scholarly debate about the origins of fairy tales, “the latest clash [is] over a new claim that, far from being passed down through an oral tradition, fairy tales actually have their history in print.” Stony Brook University professor Ruth B. Bottigheimer argues that “folk invention and transmission of fairy tales has no basis in verifiable fact.”
Kaiser: Arts Groups Scrimp On Marketing At Their Peril
“[C]utting back marketing and staff is the last thing an organization should do, says arts administration guru Michael Kaiser. However, small-budget arts groups feel they have no option. It’s either cut a marketing position or cut back on artistic product.” Kennedy Center president Kaiser cautioned arts leaders last week: “They don’t think anyone will notice. But marketing is the only way to grow an audience.”
Gardner Museum Trustees Green-Light Expansion
“The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum’s trustees voted unanimously yesterday to proceed with a new building designed by the Italian architect Renzo Piano – a plan that has stirred up opponents who want a carriage house at the back of the museum preserved. … The plan calls for demolition of the carriage house, erected by Gardner in 1907. The museum building opened in 1903.”
Lesson Of Lean Times: Minor Changes Can Better A City
“San Francisco’s newest public space is outlined with planters made of thick paper tubes. Granite slabs turned on their side provide seating. The ‘ground cover’ is asphalt topped by paint the color of weary sand. Oh, and a streetcar runs through it. No matter.” It’s still “urbanity at its ad-hoc best- and a reminder that when the aim is to better a city, small moves can be more fruitful than grand schemes.”
The Box Office Is Great, But About Those DVD Sales …
“DVD revenues have cratered in the past six or so months, dropping off (depending upon whose figures you trust) as much as 15% to 18% overall. … DVD sales, which have traditionally represented the biggest chunk of pure profits in the business, were the real safety net when it came to greenlighting movies.” Also frightening to studio execs: “the realization that audiences are becoming more quality conscious.”
Is 3-D Indie Film’s New Trend?
“The Cannes Film Festival has no shortage of big-budget 3-D spectacles…. But the immersive technology also is attracting a growing crowd of independent filmmakers, some of whom are making — and trying to sell — 3-D movies on a fraction of Pixar’s and Disney’s budgets. They are convinced that the stereoscopic effect can help separate their films in a cluttered marketplace and drive moviegoers into theaters.”
A Chorus Vanishes, But First It Gets To Say Goodbye
“There have been a lot of closings in recent months as the recession exacts its toll on arts organizations across the country. But these closings tend to happen away from the stage, between performances. Seldom do organizations have the luxury of an actual farewell: a final concert that everyone knows is its last.” The Master Chorale got that luxury at the Kennedy Center Concert Hall.
New System Has Tripled Time For Getting U.S. Copyright
“A serious logjam in the U.S. Copyright Office has created a growing mountain of paper applications, more than the staff can process. … The problem has tripled the processing time for a copyright from six to 18 months, and delays are expected to get worse in coming months. The library’s inspector general has warned that the backlog threatens the integrity of the U.S. copyright system.” The problem stems from a new electronic process.