September 2007 Field Letter

Written on August 27, 2007

New American Theatre Column: Proposals Needed by September 14

 

As noted in my August Field Letter, beginning with the December 2007 issue, American Theatre magazine will feature a column detailing innovative strategies that theatres have undertaken to address a particular problem or opportunity within their organizations, their communities or the field. Has your theatre—or a theatre you know of—innovated in a way that you think should be shared with others? I am collecting proposals, so please send me yours by September 14. Think about areas such as engaging the audience, utilizing technology, approaching succession, creating artistic work, building reserves, leveraging assets, handling facilities needs, motivating staff, developing new leadership, developing new income streams and season planning/budgeting. Or even a strategy that recasts the business model entirely. You can shoot me a quick e-mail stating the nature of the problem or opportunity being addressed, the strategy (or strategies) that was devised, how it was implemented, what worked and/or didn't work (both possibilities are welcomed and encouraged) and the impact it's had on your organization and/or community.

From Black Swans to the Fall Forum

 

I want to thank John McCann, director of the Institute for Cultural Policy and Practice at Virginia Tech, for his recommendation of The Black Swan by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. The book was first published in the spring and received a fair amount of press, but I hadn't picked it up yet. A "black swan" is described as "a highly improbable event with three principal characteristics: It is unpredictable; it carries a massive impact; and, after the fact, we concoct an explanation that makes it appear less random, and more predictable, than it was." The theory is that human beings concentrate predominately on what we already know, categorizing the information, recounting endlessly, explaining why it is so and using it to predict the future-when in fact we aren't especially good at predicting the future. And it's often the major outlier events that alter the course of history, creating new opportunities and threats. What may be more important to seizing future opportunity is greater attention to the unknown—time spent imagining the impossible and learning to leverage uncertainty. Of particular note, he writes about the historical impact of "scalability" and the impact of sudden appearances of new means of distribution on creative endeavors throughout time. I simplify massively here, but the book is an entertaining and provocative read.

Speaking of black swans, it's no secret that organizations are wrestling with the need to become more adaptable, and to envision new ways of doing business that don't simply replicate past practice. This is a particularly poignant issue in light of vast technological changes and the need to maintain an audience that values the live theatre experience. And as revealed in Theatre Facts 2006, though audience numbers are actually holding steady, the field's position with respect to working capital is declining. We have all faced the hardship of having fiscal pressures placed on our artistry, and those pressures will only increase if liquidity issues and financial strains continue to build. How can we as a field move more quickly to adapt to changes in the environment and the need for new ways of organizing? A theatre trustee recently shared with me the observation that an investment in innovative thinking should extend beyond the artistic process into the areas of governance and business practice.

This year's Fall Forum on Governance, from November 9 to 11 in New York City, will center on fostering a culture of innovation within organizations. We are thrilled that the keynote speaker for the weekend is Peter Gelb, general manager of the Metropolitan Opera. The Met has launched a successful and highly visible strategy of broadcasting opera in movie theatres. This is obviously a big innovation that required a significant financial investment, revised agreements with unions and a culture shift to deal with the risks inherent in such a venture. The program has been successful in generating new audiences for opera, and at the same time, attendance for live performances at the Met has increased—and operas are setting about replicating this new approach. It will be fascinating to hear from Mr. Gelb about how the idea emerged, how he built support within the institution and what he thinks about the future of the program.

As a theatre practitioner, I always found the Fall Forum to be tremendously beneficial. I tried to attend whenever possible—with at least one board member in tow. I encourage you to register as soon as possible. Similarly, I urge you to complete the Governing Boards Survey soon if you haven't already. We aim to publish the survey results in advance of the Fall Forum, but we need sufficient data to conduct a useful analysis. The value of the survey is directly related to the number of participants, so please take the time to complete yours soon. The survey deadline has been extended to September 7.

Travels: California and Connecticut

 

At the end of July, I was invited by the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center to speak with trustees who convene in Waterford, CT, as part of an annual week long residency. The residency is an excellent opportunity for theatre trustees from across the nation to evolve their understanding of new play development and to interact with theatre practitioners from across the field. The O'Neill was having a bustling and successful summer, and I was able to attend the awesome reading of The Ballad of Emmett Till by Ifa Bayeza as well as a moving and at times hilarious tribute to Lloyd Richards, complete with a mock post-play reading discussion.

I was also on the west coast for TCG's annual training Expanding the Theatre Manager's Repertoire, sponsored by Target. This year marked the 10th year of the training session, with over 600 graduates now. It was heartening to see the range of participants, with contingents from theatres across the country representing a variety of departments and positions. In addition to managing and artistic leaders, staff from departments as varied as production, finance, wardrobe, literary, development, marketing, company management and customer service all mingled together in a collaborative environment. It was an impressively diverse group. During my stay, I was welcomed at a reception thrown by Theatre Bay Area and the New Conservatory Theatre Center, and had the chance to meet 60-plus members of that theatre community. Thanks go to Brad Erickson, executive director of TBA and Ed Decker and Jackie Jordan of New Conservatory Theatre. While I did not have time to attend shows during my short stay in San Francisco, I did catch S.F.-based Theatre Rhinoceros' There's Something About Gay Marriage at the New York Fringe Festival the following week. It was highly interactive and approached its subject matter with great energy and humor. Among other things, the audience was ordered to "leave your cell phones on," and subjected to a barrage of $1 contests. I won the first $1 when my cell phone rang 2 minutes into the show. (It was Chris Shuff, TCG's director of management programs, calling from the seat next to me.)

Showcase Your Community at the 2009 National Conference

 

We were thrilled to see so many people in the Twin Cities at the 2007 TCG National Conference and are looking forward to the 2008 conference, which will be part of the National Performing Arts Convention. And even while we look ahead to 2008, we have our sights set on the future! TCG is currently accepting proposals to host the 2009 TCG National Conference. The conference moves around the country each year, and for 2009 we're looking for a site in the eastern third of the country. Hosting the conference is a great opportunity to bring national attention to your community and to engage your local community in the national theatre field. Here are a few things to consider:

The proposal deadline is September 24. More details and a list of eligible states can be found in the Events section of the website. We encourage you to take a look and consider hosting the 2009 TCG National Conference. Please contact Jenni Werner with questions or to discuss your proposal.

Now the Really Fun Stuff

 

It's been around for a few years, and I keep thinking I must be the last to know about it, but the majority of people I talk to about Pandora.com haven't been there. So I pass this gift along to you. A product of the Music Genome Project, Pandora is a free service that allows you to create your own "radio stations" that play songs that are similar to the artists and songs you tell it you like. So enter "Joe Pass" and your Joe Pass radio station will play an endless array of jazz guitar tunes from a range of musicians. What's remarkable is how it weaves into your playlists many new and less known artists. And while you may think that this service is one more piece of competition cutting into music sales, it has apparently had a documented positive impact on music sales through iTunes and other sources.

I hope summer is treating everyone well! Hard to believe the new season is upon us.

My best to you,

Teresa Eyring
Executive Director

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