"More and more, I am realizing that we need art to survive. The phrase worked in two ways: We need art to survive for our personal enrichment and enjoyment. We need art to survive for its own longevity, so it can be around for us and those who come after us."
"Once you hit that high standard, it's a signal to other funders that you've made it. His theater learned their grant was cancelled on opening night of a show. An even larger theater, Portland Center Stage (PCS), is still trying to close the gap, trying to raise $9 million by June."
"This spring, both Playhouse and PCS will team up to stage a Tony-nominated Broadway show which reimagines Hamlet-Shakespeare's sulky prince of Denmark-as a queer, Black southern kid at a backyard cookout. Fat Ham is a test to see if this sort of collaboration can prove profitable for both companies and if audiences can accept endings that celebrate joy over tragedy."
Art serves dual purposes: enriching individual lives while ensuring cultural longevity for future generations. Recent federal funding cuts to the National Endowment for the Arts have severely impacted arts institutions that relied on government support. Portland theaters, including Portland Playhouse and Portland Center Stage, faced grant cancellations and funding gaps requiring millions in alternative fundraising. These institutions are collaborating on productions like Fat Ham, a reimagined Hamlet, to demonstrate collaborative viability and audience appeal. The survival of art depends on recognizing its fundamental importance to society and securing diverse funding sources beyond government programs.
Read at Portland Mercury
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]