Series ponders state of performing arts

Series ponders state of performing arts
Photo by Deborah Maier

Early on the crisp and sunny morning of Monday, Oct. 23, about 35 people representing regional groups gathered in the recently renovated Stissing Center in Pine Plains, N.Y., to explore the status and future of theater in our region, led by a panel of six.

This first session of the Performing Arts Business Series was organized by Brett Bernardini, the Stissing Center’s executive director, who moderated throughout. As a frame for the morning’s work, Bernardini had shared a recent article from American Theatre magazine titled “Theatre in Crisis: What We’re Losing, and What Comes Next,” which listed a history of theater closures and some pointed questions as to causes, including the traditional nonprofit business model.

Requesting personal definitions of “sustainability” and “regional theater” in the present terms, Bernardini then introduced  the keynote speaker, Harlem-based Jonathan McCrory, artistic director since 2012  of Barbara Ann Teer’s National Black Theatre (NBT). McCrory spoke of both spiritual and practical aspects of sustaining the community and practice of theater-going. 

Addressing the emotional tone of the article and the meeting’s purpose, he spoke of grief and vulnerability—as experienced via COVID-19 and in the circumstances of the field they love. 

Theater’s role, he continued, is to promote clarity of the heart, a softening of humanity, “space to fall in love—with others, with yourself.”

Panelists ponder ‘sustainability’

Panelists present in this first session were New York Assemblymember Didi Barrett; Ron Hicks of Dutchess County Economic Development; Lou Trapani, director of the Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck; Ancram Opera House co-director Jeffrey Mousseau; and Michael Rhodes, artistic director of Tangent Theatre Company in Tivoli. A sixth scheduled panelist had tested positive for COVID and was absent.

A major point of discussion was real estate. Trapani called theater “a landlord’s game,” with the costs of running his own facility “$1,100 a day—to do no theater.” As to possible help from grantmakers, they are not interested in this type of community  theater, he averred.

McCrory outlined how NBT got its start with Teer’s purchase of real estate in Harlem, leading to its present home in a 21-story mixed-use tower on upper Fifth Avenue, with its commercial space fronting on 125th Street—“a place to live, serve and create.” For playwright and screenwriter Darrah Cloud, who was responsible for bringing McCrory to the presentation, this move away from depending on the nonprofit model makes sense, along with other changes to how things are done.

Declining audiences

“Older folks are not coming,” Trapani and others lamented, citing distance, COVID-related concerns, and late-evening performances. By and large, it has traditionally been older, more financially secure patrons who most consistently support live theater. More matinees or earlier evening start times might draw in those who don’t want to travel home at night, some suggested.

To an audience member’s question as to how NBT so successfully attracts younger audiences, McCrory noted that NBT offers student residencies that have so far accommodated 300 young artists, holding 23 readings a year in which playwrights and actors are paid for their work.  

As with other issues, the lack of affordable housing in our region loomed large in this discussion of creative businesses. “It all boils down to jobs,” Trapani said, citing an Arts Mid-Hudson survey outlining the profits generated by the arts for restaurants, hotels and other businesses. Ron Hicks, crediting Barrett’s $3 million affordable housing initiative, pled with the audience to “participate, know what affordable housing is!”

Future sessions in the series are scheduled for January, April, July and October 2024, similarly in each month’s third week, at the Stissing Center unless the group decides otherwise.

Latest News

County legislature candidates lay out their priorities

Contested seats in the Dutchess County Legislature are close to home this election season, with Districts 19 and 25 covering the rural towns across the northern and eastern corners of the county. Though the candidates bring distinct experiences and perspectives, they share common ground on some of the biggest challenges facing local communities, including emergency medical services and affordable housing.

Here’s a look at the candidates.

Keep ReadingShow less
Classifieds - October 23, 2025

Help Wanted

Weatogue Stables has an opening: for a full time team member. Experienced and reliable please! Must be available weekends. Housing a possibility for the right candidate. Contact Bobbi at 860-307-8531.

Services Offered

Hector Pacay Service: House Remodeling, Landscaping, Lawn mowing, Garden mulch, Painting, Gutters, Pruning, Stump Grinding, Chipping, Tree work, Brush removal, Fence, Patio, Carpenter/decks, Masonry. Spring and Fall Cleanup. Commercial & Residential. Fully insured. 845-636-3212.

Keep ReadingShow less
An interview with Bestor Cram: filmmaker discusses ‘Tiananmen Tonight’ and the power of the press
Filmmaker Bestor Cram
Provided

On Thursday, Oct. 30, from 5:30 to 7 p.m., the Norfolk Library will host a free public screening of “Tiananmen Tonight,” a film by Bestor Cram and Michael Streissguth about the 1989 student uprising in China and the daring coverage by Dan Rather and CBS. Director Cram will introduce the film.

A documentary filmmaker whose life was forged in the fire of Vietnam, where he served as a Marine, Cram earned the Navy Commendation Medal. He returned home to become a conscientious objector and leader of Vietnam Veterans Against the War. After working in the MIT Film Studies Program, he founded Northern Light Productions in Boston, producing media for museums, and has made more than 30 feature documentary films.

Keep ReadingShow less
Vincent Inconiglios brings ‘Face Time’ to Hunt Library
Artist Vincent Inconiglio’s show “Face Time” opens Oct. 25 at the Hunt Library.
L. Tomaino

Abstract artist Vincent Inconiglios' love and enthusiasm for color and form are evident all around him at his Falls Village studio, where he has worked for 25 years. He is surrounded by paintings large and small, woodcuts, photographs, collages and arrays of found objects.

The objects Inconiglios has found while out walking — in Falls Village, near his studio on Gansevoort Street in New York City, and in other places throughout the world — hold special importance to him. Appreciation of them, he says, comes from “seeing while exploring. I am always finding things.” His particular delight is finding objects that look like faces, many of which will be featured in the ArtWall show at the Hunt Library.

Keep ReadingShow less