A HUGE Win For Theater

I always believe it is important to celebrate big news in a big way. Today, we all need to go out and toast a hiring that could potentially play a significant role in the future of live theatre. The New York Times reported today that Rocco Landsmen, Producer and President of Jujamcyn Theaters, has been nominated as the next Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts.

For theatre artists and audiences, Landsmen’s hiring at the NEA poses the opportunity for the theatre to have a strong advocate on the national level. I have been following the potential hiring of this position since outgoing chair Dana Giola announced his resignation to continue his writing career. My hope was that the new chair would be sympathetic to theatre and lead the charge for a reimagining of the “contemporary model” for producing theatre in the United States. Landing a respected Broadway Producer like Landsmen immediately brings theatre into the forefront of the national arts conversation.

So as Mr. Landsmen will need ideas of what to strive for during his time in Washington, I figure I can suggest some ways that theatre can be aided on a national level.

1. National Theater: Although it has been discussed to death in various mediums, the United States absolutely needs to have a National Theater. How wonderful would it be if, for sake of argument, there was a national theater in residence at Lincoln Center that played 12-16 week runs of classic plays and musicals? The fiscal model would have to be developed so that unions would be happy, actors could be paid suitable to Equity standards, and that ticket prices would be extremely low. A good goal should be $10 tickets; or the same price as seeing a film. Even more interesting, what if the productions originated in New York and then put on NEA funded national tours? This would give an opportunity for the classics to be seen at reasonable rates all around the country. I’d love to hear some more comments from you all about what a National Theater should look like.

2. Development Program: How about a nationally run new play/musical development program? This would give writers a safe place to bring their work at various moments in development. The program could be multi-tiered, with pieces going from sit down reads, to music stand reads, to fully staged readings, to eventually workshop productions. This program could be a “stimulus package” to writers who need to make a living wage while creating new work.

3. Incentives Program: The NEA should fund “rewards” for theatre companies who are pushing the boundaries artistically and fiscally. Here’s an example: a theater like Paper Mill Playhouse should be rewarded for their new initiative of teaming up other arts organizations, like the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. The NJSO plays engagements throughout the year between productions, giving the Orchestra another venue to perform in and brings a different audience to Paper Mill. The NEA should award the vision of theaters that can share space and vision to complete their artistic goals. (For full disclosure, I frequently work in various capacities for Paper Mill so forgive me if this opinion seems biased. Their new model for operation seemed a fitting example.)

4. National Theater Events and Occasions: The NEA has reached great success with such programs as American Masters and Shakespeare in American Communities; initiatives that reward theaters for joining the NEA’s national agendas. Landsmen should introduce new and more specific initiatives that give theaters the opportunity to benefit from government support. Here’s the first one: Stephen Sondheim: Master of the Musical Stage- A Celebration of the Musicals of Stephen Sondheim in celebration of his 80^th birthday. Let’s challenge every theater that produces musicals to produce a Sondheim musical (and play. Yes, someone should do Getting Away with Murder). Imagine seeing everything from Saturday Night to Road Show hitting the marquees of theaters from San Francisco to New York. Let’s show the public the breath of a musical artists work. Other examples of themes could be initiatives by era (1950s musicals, George Abbot), Pulitzer Prize winning musicals, musicals originally produced Off-Broadway, NEW WORKS FESTIVAL, etc.

5. Your ideas! Comment to this post with your thoughts and revisions of my ideas and give me your ideas. I’ll take everyone’s thoughts and write a letter to Mr. Landsmen (remember when people wrote letters?). Thanks in advance for your input and look forward to reading your responses!

For more information about the hiring, please see the New York Times article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/13/theater/13nea.html?_r=1&ref=theater