A Curious Start To The Met Negotiations

Given the mountain of negative publicity surrounding contentious labor negotiations at nonprofit performing arts organizations, it would seem that effort to avoid conflict within a broader volatile environment would be paramount for all parities. Nonetheless, The Metropolitan Opera (The MET) negotiations with three of its larger labor unions (orchestra musicians, singers, and stage crew) seems to be pursuing a different course. The New York Times published an article on 4/7/2014 by …

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How Much For The Valkyrie?

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It is day 2/3 for my top secret client work here in NYC so another quick post today inspired by a recent article from Joe Patti at Butts In The Seats on category names for giving levels. Patti wonders about the potential value in branching out from the tried and true category names associated with donation levels such as Donor, Supporter, or Benefactor. It’s a good post and I find myself …

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Where On Earth Is Opera San Diego?

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I’m in NYC for day 1/3 for some top secret client work; as such, just some pointers today to make sure you’re paying attention to the unfolding saga that is the San Diego Opera (SDO). The 4/6/2014 edition of the San Diego Union Times published an article by James Chute that reports that SDO General Director Ian Campbell, the man largely believed to be the driving force behind attempts to shut …

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Viswa Subbaraman Feels “Angry And Insulted” At Proposed San Diego Opera Shutdown

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Just a quick pointer today to highlight a guest author post at Sticks And Drones from Viswa Subbaraman, conductor and Artistic Director of the Skylight Music Theatre in Milwaukee. Subbaraman turns a very keen eye toward recent events at the San Diego Opera SDO and why it is different from other organizations that have recently closed or are going through difficulties. Granted, since Subbaraman’s post the SDO has made and about …

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Service Organizations And Principles

There’s a fascinating article by Lee Rosenbaum in the 3/27/2014 edition of her CultureGrrl column where she discusses the decision by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) to denounce one of their members for selling off key items from their collection in order to pay for debts and build the endowment. According to Rosenbaum, the decision was prompted because the museum in question, the Delaware Art Museum (DAM), violated an AAM …

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