Post-election: still doing and seeing plays, living in Hope.

the quieter corner of my desk

With the election behind us, we can return to the issues of the day (running a theatre, serving the public, creating wonder) and even enjoy television a little better (enough with the nasty ads already, I’m looking forward to the good old days of Budweizer, Hot Pocket and Preparation H ads).

For those of us in the not-for-profit arts arena, these are still very crazy and uncertain times. In our hearts we know that our patrons will desperately need hope, wonder, insight and community in this period of anxiety and fear. It’s our calling! But then my brain interrupts the reverie with cat-calls about How!?? – or rather how to pay the costs of serving the public. In the best of times, we scramble to raise the funds to cover nearly 40% of our annual budget (hovering around $1.6 m). Now, with uncertainty in the air, and retailers fearing the worst Christmas shopping season in decades, what’s around the corner for us performing arts organizations?

For now, I’d like to counter fear, the kind that would paralyze our calling, with a full immersion in Hope and the God-given belief in our calling. That in itself isn’t legal tender at the bank, but it puts us in a stable place of certainty and trust from which we can work diligently. It will inform our choices, or the prioritizing, if our funds don’t match our full vision. It will remind us of the reason we faithfully serve audiences, and do everything we can to honor the work of our actors, teachers, technicians, designers and staff.  And it will keep our eyes on the prize, running the good race to completion…since these days will pass and we’ll need to have not sold our soul or lost hope. Hope, Joy and Courage will be in demand!

On the other hand, this past week: I attended the annual meeting of ArtsFund with a co-worker and caught up with a lot of arts organization and corporate friends (while sampling cheeses, sliders, sashimi and wine at the beautiful, new Seattle Four Seasons Hotel!)…Pam and I attended a wonderful Image Journal event featuring Kathleen Norris speaking, with a reception and presentation of her new book, God With Us: Rediscovering the Meaning of Christmas (the book features many contributors including Luci Shaw and Eugene Peterson) … Peter and I attended a rousing HENRY IV at Seattle Shakespeare Company, an adaptation that combined Parts I & II into a single 3 1/4 hour event…and I spent Friday morning at the Fremont Abbey, an arts center in Seattle’s Fremont neighborhood, with its program director Nathan Marion. And I’m still reading “Tribes” by Seth Godin (almost done), The Art of the Turnaround by Michael Kaiser (nearly done) and Everything Must Change by Brain McLaren (hmm, ’bout halfway). And I’m watching Season Two of EUReKA and Season One of TORCHWOOD.

And I’m working on – as is every non-profit manager in November – yearend budgets and fundraising. Much to do!

Back to Matters at Hand

After a very fine dinner...

‘Tis been quite a while since I’ve set down the matters at hand. Quickly:

1. Susan and God had a great run with a great deal more positive email and random lobby “thanks” than normal. We are feeling thankful for all the great audience responses, strong reviews and resonance with the audience.

2a. The economy’s twists and turns are certainly of concern to those of us in the Arts, and especially when we’re dependant on a person or family’s discretionary funds for buying tickets. AND, when we’re needing to raise 34%-40% of our budgets from donations and grants.

2b. Taproot Theatre Company’s resubscription campaign for 2009 is significantly ahead of last year at this time. For the time being, that’s exceptionally good news – but where it ends, how close to the goal or how far beyond, no one knows. Yet. At the moment, you just keep working the plan.

2c. But as for setting the 2009 Budget. The Mainstage season, Road Company repertoire and Acting Studio plans are in motion, so the process of setting income goals and expense limits becomes a dance of faith, smarts and commitment. No one knows the trail ahead, or the ups and downs of this economy’s uniquenesses.

3. But, our time is Now. In a period of anxiety, change and panic, a Theatre of Hope should feel a strong sense of “calling” when its Constituency and City are challenged and maybe even feeling lost in the social, political and economic storm. In midst of a storm my staff is feeling the call and the assurance that we need to be committed and prayerful.

Scott, punching the cap of Cabernet grapes.

4. And, remember don’t lose hope or the connections we have to our families, friends, churches and other circles of friends. We – Pam, Peter, Lisa and I – had a terrific fall dinner at the Mt. Baker Winery. A five course dinner, with a selected wine for each course, plus another tour of the winery while they were crushing Pinot Noir grapes and had three vats of Cabernet grapes in stages of early fermentation.  Really, a very fun and delightful experience of a great dinner and the art & craft of wine-making. And, it was a respite to remind me of God’s gifts of my family and the beautiful bounty of the world around us.

“Susan and God” – nearing tech rehearsals

Susan and God, Lisa Peretti, playing Susan Trexel

Actually we’ve just finished the third week of rehearsals, and the tech and dress rehearsals start Wednesday.

Susan and God is social satire by Rachel Crothers, a playwright who wrote and directed most of her 31 plays on Broadway from the late 1910s-into the late 1940s. The play is about Susan, a socialite who returns from Europe with a new found religious fervor who sets about straightening the lives of her other wealthy friends. Over the course of few months one summer, she dabbles in the lives of others…and loses sight of the goodness of her husband and teenage daughter. In practise, she invokes her beliefs as license to ignore those who love her. It’s a funny play, really (!!), with a Noel Coward banter that turns warm hearted as Susan discovers things about her friends, husband and daughter.

Rehearsals are going very well, with Lisa Peretti, Don Brady, Ryan Childers, Kevin Brady, Nikki Visel, Heather Hawkins, Alicia Anderson and Austin Case. We having a lot of fun with these characters…who wear tennis togs and riding gear then change into tuxes and gowns for dinner! No one seems to actually have a job, except the actor amongst them! Lots of fun for all.

Why this play? I’m enjoying the balance of social satire, several love stories at risk of imploding, and the mixed up invocation of faith as the free ticket out of responsibility. The cloak of religion for selfishness isn’t new territory, but Crothers has done an intriguing job of exposing sham religion and bringing about a series of personal revelations that bring Susan around to reconciling relationships and recognizing her own need for humility and love. And it’s funny too.  Should be great theatre too!

PS: We open Friday, September 26th — pretty soon!

The Olympics & Big River. Next: Susan and God

I’m pleased to say that our Big River got more gold medals than…the Russian Federation, and I think it was much better attended than some of those gymnastic meets I watched late at night. So, despite some mid-run angst, the show went very, very well and exceeded its attendance and revenue goals. We still have thinking to do in the coming years about marketing and connecting with our patrons and yet-to-be-patrons.  But having spoken with a woman on closing night who had attended 5 times in 7 weeks (!!), some of my confidence is restored in the general public’s need for fun, social engagement and wonder which theatre provides by the bushel.

Tonight we begin rehearsals for Susan and God by Rachel Crothers, a play written in the 1930s, and revived Off-Broadway in 2006 by the Mint Theatre and at Lambs Players (San Diego) in 2007. Social satire and comedy were Ms. Crother’s delights, and Susan skewers people who are self-indulgent … whose obsessions even with “good causes” validate neglecting one’s family. The play has several marriages, relationships and friendships that twist and turn according to the distractions of work, affection and religiosity. Interestingly, Susan’s daughter is aptly named Blossom: blossoms can thrive or fail based on how they’re treated. The play has a banter like Noel Coward, but has higher hopes for the characters’ marriages than comic fodder. Susan opens September 26th, and so we have plenty of time – I hope – to explore the play. More to come.

Balance: life, work & art

We’re at Snowater, by Mt. Baker. I’ve been sitting and reading.(Alan Furst’s Night Soldiers and Dark Star, Fast Company magazine, Henri Nouwen’s Sabbatical Journey and  more). Taken a few short hikes along rivers, in the woods and in the snow. We’ve had some great dinners, mostly ones we cooked, with the “finest wine” (from Trader Joes). Taken lots of photos! And even took a nap or two, not to mention getting a full 8 hours of sleep each night. Is this Life?

Back home I get to work with sharp people and create theatre. We help people celebrate and reflect on their lives. I drove back to Seattle on Sunday – 2 ½ hours each way, on the second day of our 1 week vacation – for the Over the River and Through the Woods cast party: great fun and cast! I get to think about, and work toward extending the impact of Taproot Theatre Company with many of the same sharp, fun and adventurous and prayerful people. Is this Life?

At the house, we’re fixing up our upstairs bedroom (improving the closet) and bathroom (replacing ancient pipes, replacing a sink and adding a bathtub). Our kids are young adults, and it’s good to affirm their efforts, listen to their frustrations (Peter and theatre; Lisa and bad-tippers – she’s waiting tables and going to school), and guide or ask questions where needed. I have a vegetable garden with 6 tomato plants, cucumbers, 4 blueberry bushes, a lot of raspberry canes, oregano, rosemary and basil. Is this Life?

What does a Life in BALANCE look like when you enjoy work, family and play? When your work (in the arts, like mine) is seldom on a fixed schedule, 9-5 affair, and you read and see things – even on vacation – that feed ideas for projects. At what point does that underlying thrill or satisfaction actually become stress and a distraction?

My context for questioning . . . Tim Russert passed away two weeks ago of a heart attack. A good friend reflected in his blog on 2 months of ignored chest pains and the stern warning from his wife, doctor…and his body. Another good buddy, a managing director of a peer-theatre and 4 or 5 years younger than me, had a heart attack last Thursday and will need a triple bypass. Hmm, and I’ve had high blood pressure since 2005…

So Balance is of interest to me, or at least up for major review. From the points of view of mental, spiritual, emotional and physical health – how should I rank, or re-rank the things that make me happy and busy? Vacations with no worries about work, the next project, TTC finances, etc. are rare. No answers today…but I’m finally asking the question and it’s worthy of more thought, prayer and correction.

notes from a moving target…

A CPA friend pointed out that moving targets are harder to shoot. A small gem of wisdom for those of us on the move and trying to get something done. No comment on the “shooters” I’m avoiding.

What I find interesting and compelling in a very kooky way, is the challenge of building a community that values the work we’re trying to do. While avoiding the shooters (could be the task of proofing a grant, writing copy for a subscriber newsletter, or filing the 6 inches of stacked rehearsal/finance/box office reports spread across my desk) I’m drawn to a variety of thinkers ranging from Seth Godin (writer/speaker) to ArtsJournal bloggers to the NY Times. While I’m drawn like a moth to the flame when they invoke new technologies, it’s really about 2 changes: the tastes, impulses and interests of Gen & Y (our next wave of attendees) and the sheer chaos in strategies/tools to keep the public informed and engaged.

Do you Twitter? Do you have Picasa or Flickr accounts?  Presumably you do Facebook or Myspace and texting is something you can do without looking at your phone’s keyboard, right?  Did you write a review for Yelp on your favorite theatre in Seattle (hint) …or Washington, DC, LA, Chicago or Philadelphia? What blogs do you subscribe to?

The rules of engagement have changed – again. Or maybe it’s the definition of social interaction. For those of us who remember gas costing less than a dollar (or how about under 30 cents?!), our protocols of meeting friends for dinner and a show have changed and there’s no going back. The newspaper is an irrelevant source of information; heck, I get a morning paper on the West Coast and the East and Europe have been awake and working for hours and hours. So I go online for a restaurant’s review and address, buy theatre or movie tickets, and get driving directions — all from my smartphone. Does this energize you or give you a headache? (I could probably guess your “generation” by your reaction.)

Back to the Theatre. As theatre artists we move somewhat slowly and methodically – I can’t download the script and staging into the actors’ brains. But behind the scenes in the world of marketing, press releases, websites and audience services we do move at 100 mph so that we can get audiences in the door to sit for for two hours in the dark –> and to slow down, laugh, ponder, cry and celebrate the frail and humble live performance of a story. And somehow, amidst the clatter of a wired world, we find the souls who want to stay. The ones who want to be part of the Taproot Theatre audience and family, returning to be filled like a thirsty traveller needing a cool drink on a hot journey. I like them.

TV, Interactive-media, Internet & Theatre: which will collapse first?

The death of Theatre was proclaimed at the birth of Film, which was supposed to die with Television. VCRs were going to kill Film (again) and TV (again); now Tivo? What happens – next – as the Internet is more common and pervasive? I, as a theatre artist and audience member, attend theatre (or a concert) at a time fixed by someone else . . . but I can watch LOST (a normal broadcast show) or Battlestar Galactica (a cable show, and I don’t have cable) on-line virtually anytime of the day or night. I can even pause it and converse, go to the bathroom or get something to eat – and actors will never know. So, the viewing/consuming habits and access choices are changing, and as a theatre producer I need to understand what’s happening.

This is a video of a speaker, Clay Shirky, who wrote Here Comes Everybody, speaking at the Web 2.0 Expo conference in April 2008. He lays out a scenario that places a high value on people doing things online (blogs, gaming, projects, etc.) as infinitely better than their previous use of the free time: watching TV. This is the Good News: people are doing more cognitive work whether blogging, writing a wiki or volunteering. He also articulates 3 desires of the participant, namely to Consume, Produce and Share. The consume part we have down: just watch TV. But the scene is shifting to more user choice or control of what and when to consume. The desire to produce content (wikis, blogs, et al) and to share it is where the playing ground for Big Media is shifting in a massive way. According to the trend that Shirky forecasts, it’s no longer sufficient to deliver entertainment as a one-way communication.

Back to my world. Where does that lead Theatre, the event…the text…the live social setting? With the exception of Improvisation, I can’t quite picture a production without a story (pre-written by someone, even a team), and collection of specifically skilled individuals who can portray Life on stage (the actors) or those who created the physical setting, costumes, lighting and sound, (designers). And the role of the director who tries to lead and integrate the contributions of so many artists and technicians? Watch the video.

Also. I attended a forum hosted by the Wallace Foundation and heard a speaker that had conducted a focus group with a university’s students who didn’t attend live performances of world class theatres, orchestras, etc. on campus – even when the underwritten tickets were dirt cheap. They basically said that they didn’t attend because 1) they had no control of the event and 2) they couldn’t talk with their friends during the show. (At rock concerts they can chat on cell phones or text to a friend sitting elsewhere.) Again, for us in the “tradition-bound arts”, with a copyrighted script/score and some performance protocols (the audience needs to be quiet and pay attention) . . . how do we serve them? It’s not be enough to impose manners – especially if we seem to be irrelevant and they won’t attend to start with. Perhaps the living nature of a performance gives us an angle, but we (i.e. Me) need to think about the social engagement with story unfolding onstage and with friends after. Hmm: is it now essential to have a large lobby, coffee shop or pub alongside to facilitate friendship and pre/post-show hang-out time?

My hope is that Taproot Theatre Company’s next theatre space has a separate coffee shop/wine bar so audiences can linger, unaffected by house managers needing to clear the lobby and lock up after a show. If we can’t offer to let audiences control the show, at least we can get pro-active to serve curious, hospitable, advent people afterwards.

Opening Night, here we go!

We’ve been working on Over the River and Through the Woods since, oh, mid-April, and Opening Night is tonight (May 16). Along the way it’s been a real pleasure to work with these actors (Kevin, Gretchen, Nolan, Kim, Charity and Bill); way too much laughter in the rehearsal room!!! And snacks: this is the munchiest group of actors ever! (Okay, I’m the one who brought cannolis to rehearsal). And plenty of chat about our families, the craziness and the love. Now, it’s ready to hand over to an audience and hope that our work resonates with them. And, personally speaking, that it creates a surge of respect and love for the legacy we carry because of our grandparents’ and great-grandparents’ investment in us. The barriers between the generations, especially between family members, are pretty flimsy and trivial when we pause to recognize many of the same desires for Life…whether the age of adulthood was 1920, 1970 or 2008.

Comments at the previews were very affirming, made with kleenex close by, and blending the big smiles and the tears. The play worked with older adult crowd and the college students “forced” to attend (a theatre class, with reviews to be written and submitted ASAP). Lots of people wanting to return with more family members and friends too.

Rehearsals, again. Laughing, again.

I’m back in rehearsals, in fact tech and dress rehearsals begin tonight for Over the River and Through the Woods! It’s by the same playwright, Joe DiPietro, who wrote I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change. (Both shows have been Off-Broadway hits!!!)  Above is an advance press photo: not the real thing (costumes, hair, the table, & set) taken, maybe, the second day of rehearsals?! So the show and characters look a little different. But when you have press and web deadlines you have to do with what you have!

Very fun show. Really heartwarming and hilarious. We alternate between big laughs and grabbing kleenex. Hmm. A concessions item: little packs of kleenex? Or $1.00 a tissue?

As a member of a very large, extended, three generations of family at every Christmas gathering — the play is a beautiful tribute to the love that crosses the generations, and the blessings we receive from our elders. Likewise, what blessings the elders receive from the from the younger ones’ energy and dreams. Really good stuff.

I’m outta here — to rehearsal…

Is theatre local?

When my production staff and I are choosing a season, we’re very conscious of who our subscribers are, the issues facing them (and us) and even a sense of where we’ll be in a year. No crystal ball or navel gazing – just lots of reading and reflecting on more than scripts and budgets. There’s a real sense of needing to be connected and committed to our patrons’ lives, the community and, in this case, the greater Seattle region.

So it drives me a bit crazy when theatre boards of directors look nationwide for talented artistic directors – with little apparent focus on whether the new artistic director has a heart and vision for being locally-committed. Or whether it’s a revolving door to a better gig. Or a stable gig while working elsewhere too. How do you relate to your community … if it’s not yours? How do you listen to them . . . if you’re not here? Is there a contracted requirement to be a local citizen and participate in the life of your new artistic homeland?

I’m addressing the role of artistic leadership, not the functions of guest directors. The latter are freelancers hired for a particular production, maybe precisely because they’d bring a new perspective to a theatre’s audience, even shake things up. They fly in and out, maybe to work with actors who are also not from the theatre’s home town too.

This isn’t a rag on artistic directors who are moving targets. John Longenbaugh’s article in The Seattle Weekly pays tribute to two ADs and their departures, well at least one of them. The other doesn’t live here. But what’s next for these two theatres? What questions are their boards asking about their theatres’ expectations for artistic leadership and how these leaders are accessible to their constituents?

I’ve tipped my hat, and believe strongly that nearly all arts organizations need to be deeply committed to their city / region. Perhaps in an area with a strong tourist economy (like NYC) you can speak more generically to a broad audience. Otherwise, do you know who you’re talking to? Even as a matter of survival in the present economic strain (!!), we need patrons who know and trust the artistic and management leaders at “their theatre” (or symphony, dance company, etc). The tickets they buy and financial support they send are affirmation that we – theatre and arts leaders – have made their needs primary, and that our missions, visions, budgets and pursuit of vital art are indeed, local.

I’m thankful for people who are subscribers and donors at Taproot Theatre. It’s pretty astounding to have their loyal support, humbling really. There’s not much better than standing in the lobby and chatting with patrons about the show, answering questions, and knowing we play a role in their daily life. And they play a big role in mine too.