Opera faces challenge in economic downturn
When the news blares on about the current state of the economy you hear about the financial institutions, the auto industry, credit cards,airlines and of course homes. In fact over the past 3 months you have probably heard about how the credit crunch and/or the mortgage crisis will affect your life in a multitude of ways.
But what you really haven't heard is how it's going to affect your recreation and personal downtime. I'm not talking about holiday gift sales, I mean just enjoying yourself because you deserve it. This economic downturn is hitting us all in one of the most critical parts of any society, the arts and culture.
The Baltimore Opera Company has filed bankruptcy under Chapter 11 on Monday with 2 popular operas that were planned canceled. Porgy and Bess, and the Barber of Seville are common and usually profitable ventures for many operas, so to see the carpet ripped from under them makes a strong statement about the state of things these days. Especially since 3 operas planned for 2009 have also been canceled.
Baltimore Opera is a 58 year old company with a modest $6 million budget. They are hardly importing marble or gold for their productions. Yet the bite of the economy is causing a restructuring that bode ill not just for this one company, but is a sign for all to watch. Just like Opera Pacific did when it closed its doors in November.
But all hope is not lost. There are still some organizations that realize that the arts are too precious to lose altogether. In Atlanta one example came from the Goizueta Foundation, created by the late Coca-Cola CEO Roberto Goizueta in 1992.
The Atlanta Opera, like Baltimore, is a small company with a budget of $6 million as well. But sales have been down. The Goizueta Foundation grant of $1.5 million over 3 years is a major shot in the arm, giving the company time to endure the economic downturn causing this draught in the arts.
The key here is that the arts are too valuable to lose, especially to something as hit or miss as economic prosperity. Some things are priceless because the value should never be attached to it. The arts, and opera, are pare of that priceless essence societies need to have. Without it, history has shown, all great civilizations end. And a booming economy won't prevent that.
But what you really haven't heard is how it's going to affect your recreation and personal downtime. I'm not talking about holiday gift sales, I mean just enjoying yourself because you deserve it. This economic downturn is hitting us all in one of the most critical parts of any society, the arts and culture.
The Baltimore Opera Company has filed bankruptcy under Chapter 11 on Monday with 2 popular operas that were planned canceled. Porgy and Bess, and the Barber of Seville are common and usually profitable ventures for many operas, so to see the carpet ripped from under them makes a strong statement about the state of things these days. Especially since 3 operas planned for 2009 have also been canceled.
Baltimore Opera is a 58 year old company with a modest $6 million budget. They are hardly importing marble or gold for their productions. Yet the bite of the economy is causing a restructuring that bode ill not just for this one company, but is a sign for all to watch. Just like Opera Pacific did when it closed its doors in November.
But all hope is not lost. There are still some organizations that realize that the arts are too precious to lose altogether. In Atlanta one example came from the Goizueta Foundation, created by the late Coca-Cola CEO Roberto Goizueta in 1992.
The Atlanta Opera, like Baltimore, is a small company with a budget of $6 million as well. But sales have been down. The Goizueta Foundation grant of $1.5 million over 3 years is a major shot in the arm, giving the company time to endure the economic downturn causing this draught in the arts.
The key here is that the arts are too valuable to lose, especially to something as hit or miss as economic prosperity. Some things are priceless because the value should never be attached to it. The arts, and opera, are pare of that priceless essence societies need to have. Without it, history has shown, all great civilizations end. And a booming economy won't prevent that.
Labels: Atlanta Opera, Baltimore Opera Company, Barber of Seville, Coca-Cola, Goizueta Foundation, Opera Pacific, Roberto Goizueta
posted by M. Vass | 3:32 PM
1 Comments:
Comment as found at Opera Blog, where I am a contributing author.
Sarah Says:
January 8th, 2009 at 4:36 pm e
Very well-written perspective. I wonder if smaller productions will become more common, as/if the bigger companies (yes, yes I know $6 million counts as small) aren’t able to continue in the manner we are used to. For those smaller productions, money saving ideas for opera event registration might be checking out sites like TicketLeap, etc. This might also be a good place to find those smaller productions.
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