Twin Cities theatre closing
I noticed this while on vacation (so sweet!)
That a longtime Minneapolis theatre had closed its doors dues to debt. This is a very sad situation, especially considering the strong stature of the theatre. They won a tony award three years ago for outstanding regional theatre and have been producing in the twin cities for 30 years.
I have to admit that I fear for arts organizations in a US economic downturn. I know that entertainment has traditionally done well in tough economic times - but I wonder how it will be this time around. "Entertainment" is a much broader field than in the past. My fear is that regional theatres have a lot of competition for dollars these days. I wrote a few weeks ago about the New York City opera's decision to take a season "off." We have also seen this situation in Madison - where local theatres are competing more actively for dollars against the poor economy and the influx of broadway tours to the arts center in town.
Does anyone have a take on this? There are alot of comments at the star tribune site about the fall of this regional theatre.
David