On Canaries and Mineshafts
I had a meeting with a prominent businessman a couple weeks ago seeking support for a project. We had a luxurious 45 minutes with the fellow, and we got to cover more topics more deeply than I supposed.
The businessman had been instrumental in organizing the arts to revitalize his community, and he was a great fan and supporter - though he claimed ignorance of the real ins and outs. He purchased bulk theatre tickets in discounts and gave them to employees as perks.
He also did this with hockey tickets.
This being a recession and all, we talked about the economic impact of the arts on the community. (Remember, this is a guy who spearheaded the location of a theatre in his central business district as a revitalization project).
He said we was pretty sure that the arts (and theatre) had dubious direct economic impact compared to other activities, but that he was just as sure that the existence of the arts in a community was an indicator of a robust economy and a healthy body politic.
In other words, arts are a staple of any good community, but they don't lay the groundwork for their own success. Think about it: if there are no industries capable of sustaining a middle class, there won't be any arts. But if you attract healthy commerce into a clean, well organized community, you should be able to easily generate artistic activity that the community will embrace.
Conversely, if you are in a community where the arts are failing to thrive, or ebbing from a historic high-water mark, it may be the first indication that the socio-economic infrastructure of the community is losing integrity.
Now, when you take to the streets and lobbies to advocate for the existence of the arts in your community, why not talk about them like the rosy flush on a child's cheek - an indicator of health - and work with leaders, business people, and legislators to create the environment in which arts can thrive?
A corollary tale: representatives of the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce once visited me at the theatre and asked what they could do to help my business. I told them to create a sustainable middle-class economy in the region. That would be the best thing for ticket sales I can think of.
The businessman had been instrumental in organizing the arts to revitalize his community, and he was a great fan and supporter - though he claimed ignorance of the real ins and outs. He purchased bulk theatre tickets in discounts and gave them to employees as perks.
He also did this with hockey tickets.
This being a recession and all, we talked about the economic impact of the arts on the community. (Remember, this is a guy who spearheaded the location of a theatre in his central business district as a revitalization project).
He said we was pretty sure that the arts (and theatre) had dubious direct economic impact compared to other activities, but that he was just as sure that the existence of the arts in a community was an indicator of a robust economy and a healthy body politic.
In other words, arts are a staple of any good community, but they don't lay the groundwork for their own success. Think about it: if there are no industries capable of sustaining a middle class, there won't be any arts. But if you attract healthy commerce into a clean, well organized community, you should be able to easily generate artistic activity that the community will embrace.
Conversely, if you are in a community where the arts are failing to thrive, or ebbing from a historic high-water mark, it may be the first indication that the socio-economic infrastructure of the community is losing integrity.
Now, when you take to the streets and lobbies to advocate for the existence of the arts in your community, why not talk about them like the rosy flush on a child's cheek - an indicator of health - and work with leaders, business people, and legislators to create the environment in which arts can thrive?
A corollary tale: representatives of the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce once visited me at the theatre and asked what they could do to help my business. I told them to create a sustainable middle-class economy in the region. That would be the best thing for ticket sales I can think of.
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