A Meaningful Approach To Concessions

The 1/15/2009 edition of the New York Times published an article by Dan Wakin about proposed budget cuts at the Metropolitan Opera. Although the article reports the Met’s general manager, Peter Gelb, is approaching the organization’s unions to see about instituting 10 percent pay cuts from the organization’s unions for each of the next two years along with equal pay cuts for administrators, Gelb is only asking principal singers to take an unspecified reduction in fees. This article serves as an excellent example to begin meaningful discussions about concessionary actions…

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Will Hope Impact Cultural Confidence?

The latest Cultural Confidence update indicates attitudes surrounding the current economic situation as well as the economic outlook among cultural institutions are once again beginning to slide. For the first time since polling began, none of the respondents believe the current economic condition at their organization is good. At the same time, the outlook toward economic conditions at the end of the season remained mostly unchanged…

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Dear Mr. President

Dear Mr. President,

As your administration approaches the many challenges facing our country, I hope you will consider a bold program of cultural diplomacy as one answer to the problem of improving and maintaining international relations. In particular, I urge your administration to implement a widespread and fully sponsored international touring and residency campaign along with a variety of cultural exchange programs, all of which would involve a comprehensive collection of professional American orchestras.

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Will Michael Dorf Lead The NEA?

According to the 1/16/2009 edition of the Los Angeles Times in an article by Allan M. Jalon, it appears that Michael Dorf, founding partner of Chicago law firm Adducci Dorf Lehner Mitchell & Blankenship has emerged as a frontrunner to lead the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA). According to his professional profile, Mr. Dorf is a specialist in arts law and is a nationally recognized authority on political strategy and cultural planning at the national and local levels. By all accounts, Mr. Dorf would be a welcome figure inside the Federal arts policymaking machine…

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Expanding The National Arts Office Discussion

There has been some intriguing discussion throughout the blogosphere following the article from earlier this week about the possibility of a White House based Office of the Arts. Ian Wilhelm picked up on the conversation via an article he posted at the Chronicle of Philanthropy and reader response to the idea has been surprising (at least, to me). In general, most of those leaving comments seem to be leery of the idea of a new arts office and/or increased possibilities for redundant spending…

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