Arts community bruised, but not broken Arts community bruised, but not broken (May 28, 2003)

by Bill D'Agostino

Empty seats are continuing to speckle once-full opera and theatre auditoriums, as the economic downturn slugs on and art-lovers inspect their checkbooks and make sacrifices.

It's a tough time for the local art community, which is being hit with a double whammy: Ticket sales are down, and so is fundraising, especially from foundations and the government.

Still, no local organization contacted last week is closing its doors or making sweeping cuts to its performance schedules. One uniformly positive sign is subscriptions from enthusiastic supporters remain strong, as the most adamant art enthusiasts continue to sustain their favorite groups.

"Considering the environment and everything else, we're fine," said Geri Actor, the president of the board for the Palo Alto Philharmonic.

The orchestra has, in the past, relied more on grants than individual donors to support the group's seven-performance season. That's something Actor is trying to change to allow the group's budget to be more sustainable.

"We didn't send out an end-of-the year donation letter until this year," she explained.

One positive side of the downturn is that it's easier for the philharmonic to find volunteers, as people who are laid-off have unexpected time on their hands.

In response to "softer" single ticket sales, Stanford Lively Arts is shrinking its season next year, inviting four fewer companies to come to campus.

"We are looking at our budget, anticipating we won't have the same level of enthusiastic support we've had the last couple of years," said Martin Wollesen, Director of Education and Associate Director of Programming.

While the educational portion of Stanford Lively Arts hasn't had to cut any programs, one concern is that fewer students will come to the school-day matinee performances, as some schools cut funding for field trips. Around 1,700 elementary school kids came to those performances on campus last year, but as schools face daunting budget cuts, the arts is often the first red line administrators draw.

"One of the reason it's easy to cut the arts is that the arts, by its nature, is not quantifiable," Wollesen said.

Like many downtown Palo Alto businesses, Hang Gallery, which opened on University Avenue six weeks prior to the Sept. 11. attacks, has seen fewer walk-ins.

"University Avenue itself seems very quiet," Christian Frock, Associate Director of the art gallery, said.

As the downturn continues, painting rentals have become a popular option for Hang's patrons.

"We've noticed people being very creative with their budgets," Frock said

By similarly being creative, Bus Barn Stage Company in Los Altos is not panicking ... at least not yet.

"We're not doing as well as we would like to do doing," said Business Manager Kristin Reams. "However, we're not suffering in a dire way."

The semi-professional company recently announced its next six-show season. For the first time there will be two musicals, as the theatre's artistic director responds to the desires of her loyal subscribers for more escapist entertainment, Reams said.

The theatre has also reached out to those subscribers, asking them to make donations to fill the gap made by the slower ticket sales, down approximately 15 to 20 percent. If things don't turn around soon, though, that might not be enough.

"We're looking at doing everything we can to avoid shutting doors," Reams said. "However, we do need to see an upswing the next year or two so we don't have to make drastic changes."

E-mail Bill D'Agostino at bdagostino@paweekly.com