Drew McManus on the orchestra business.
On one hand, it’s great to see orchestras hiring back staff members who were laid off or furloughed over the pandemic. At the same time, when I speak with a number of executives it is clear they are having a difficult time not only hiring back those workers, but attracting new employees to fill those now vacant positions and the single most common reason is uncompetitive pay. It’s no secret nonprofit …
For the first time since the pandemic, I’ll be traveling for work so when combined with an already deadline filled week, I decided to play it safe and take the week off. Having said that, if anything big transpires, I’m sure to write something. In the meantime, I’ll step up on posting items of interest at my Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn feeds. And yes, I do cherry pick which content goes …
Anyone who has purchased a choose-your-own seat ticket to a performing arts event has probably seen the obligatory “Best Seats Available” option. In theory, its purpose is to assist ticket buyers who aren’t familiar with the venue to select good seats, but the reality is it’s a way to push seats an organization wants to unload or to keep people from being spread out too much in an undersold hall. From …
The 8/3/21 edition of The Baltimore Sun published an article by Mary Carole McCauley that reports on the orchestra’s decision to dismiss Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) principal flutist Emily Skala. This situation appears to be one of those rare instances where a musician employee is dismissed for non-artistic reasons. Skala has made headlines a few times over the pandemic as a result of her decisions to speak out on social media …
While it’s heartening to see nonprofit performing arts organizations demonstrate an ability to roll with the punches throughout the pandemic, it’s good to see municipalities begin to step in and provide guidance in the wake of the latest variant,. New York City will become the first city to require vaccinations for indoor activities, which include concerts. According to an 8/2/21 article in Rolling Stone by Jon Blistein, NYC’s plan is to …