Looking at the Guardian website, I found this article that immediately made me think about the state of the world at the moment. We’re in a time when recessions are happening and we are struggling to fund the things that we’ve always taken advantage of. The arts have long been said to be losing money. Schools are struggling. So many more people are being laid off and unable to feed their families. In the Thanksgiving tradition, news stations have focused on local homeless shelters and the like where people come to volunteer and where others go to find shelter and a warm meal because they’ve lost their job. It makes me think about how we all hope to find employment in the world of theatre, but that isn’t possible. So how do theatre companies survive all of these changes? Staying revelvant isn’t always the most difficult part of the job; keeping audiences coming back is the problem. Funding is a huge issue companies of all sizes are facing. For companies that rely almost solely on subscriptions or things of a similar nature, they have to find a way to keep those people coming back and supporting them. Someone can always give you a new direction or idea in which to take a production, but how to do you know that it will keep your audience base coming back? That’s the real testament as to whether or not a theatre company will continue to strive and thrive and survive this ever changing economy and population.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/theatreblog/2011/nov/16/theatre-company-longevity-life
