Category: issues

Oregon Arts In Dire Straits

“A torrent of red ink is flowing through some of Oregon’s best-known arts and cultural organizations. The Oregon Historical Society and the Oregon Symphony each posted a six- or seven-figure deficit in its two most recent fiscal years. Oregon Ballet Theatre, Portland Opera and the Oregon Bach Festival in Eugene also booked large losses last year. Arts officials checked off a laundry list of problems causing the disappointing financial results: high costs, executive changes, miserly state support and fierce competition for audiences and donor dollars.”

Whose PAC Is It, Anyway?

St. Paul’s Ordway Center for the Performing Arts is hunting for a new chief executive, and Dominic Papatola says that the center would do well to spend some time reexamining its mission before it settles on a new leader. “The Ordway is the crown jewel of St. Paul’s cultural destinations, but it is a flawed gem. Economically and organizationally, the place was built broken… No one has ever been able to successfully juggle the building’s multiple roles as landlord, presenter and producer.”

England’s Civil Servant Eggheads

Where will you find many of Britain’s intellectuals? In the civil service. “The first consideration is money. Civil servants get paid significantly more than academics, and only the most successful writers are likely to earn more. Those joining the fast stream—many of whom have postgraduate degrees and so have had academia or teaching open to them—earn about the same as junior lecturers or teachers. But on promotion out of the fast stream—which is expected within four to five years, and many do it faster—the starting salary for the next grade ranges from £35-40,000, a figure that academics are only likely to achieve after twice that length of service.”

Abrupt Departure Roils Liverpool’s Culture Plans

Liverpool’s plans for being the European capital of culture in 2008 were thrown into chaos yesterday when Robyn Archer, the director of the city’s 2008 culture efforts, suddenly quit. “Last night officials denied rumours that she had been sacked as a result of growing dissatisfaction among leaders of some of Liverpool’s big cultural institutions. Some complained that it had not been clear whether she was organising an international arts festival or a year-long community celebration.”

Running A Festival? It’s All About The Local Context

“Who is best equipped to run a city’s cultural jamboree? Without being unduly parochial, I’d suggest it is someone with an understanding of local needs. Robyn Archer made a big success of Adelaide in 1992, as Jim Sharman had in 1982, because she was clued in on Australian tastes. But, intriguingly, the American director, Peter Sellars, was invited to succeed Robyn in Adelaide and was eventually forced to quit. In short, it’s a matter of horses for courses: festivals, in my experience, are best created by people who possess not just taste and vision but an awareness of the cultural context.”

Copyright Killing Artistic Freedom?

Canadian artists are protesting plans to revise their country’s copyright laws. “Canadian artists find existing laws restrictive, and most assume that new legislation will only increase constraints — especially if, as expected, it leads to Canada’s ratification of 1996 World Intellectual Property Organization treaties protecting works in the digital environment. Canada took part in those WIPO talks, but unlike the U.S., never ratified. This annoys the entertainment industry, whose executives describe Canada as ‘a piracy haven’.”