Downtown D.C. BID seeks arts director to mold a theater, entertainment district

Warner Theater.

Article in the Washington Business Journal. 

The Downtown D.C. Business Improvement District hopes to mold the city's arts, culture and entertainment community into something akin to London's West End theater district, playing into a larger effort by the Bowser administration to recast the perception of D.C. as more than just home to the nation's capital.

The BID began accepting applications last week for a new director of downtown arts, culture and entertainment, with an advertised salary range of $105,000 to $125,000 and a start date as soon as Dec. 22.

The selected candidate will be charged with helping to position downtown D.C. as the region's premier destination for arts, culture, entertainment and sports, a move it hopes will boost visitation and position downtown as an appealing backdrop for companies looking to attract and retain workers. The individual will also be responsible for coming up with funding sources to sustain the effort, which could take the form of a dedicated fund, grants, sponsorships or even the creation of a stand-alone nonprofit to lead those fundraising efforts. In short, it's a big job, and somebody's got to do it, said Gerren Price, the BID's president and CEO.

Building and sharing audiences.  Interestingly, 20 years ago or so I applied for a marketing position at the Warner Theater in Downtown DC. 

At the time I didn't realize they were/are managed by LiveNation, the international arts management group, so I had no chance.

One of the points I made in my cover letter is that even if they compete nightly against the National Theatre for audiences, the reality was they needed to work together to build the audience for theaters in Downtown DC collectively. (E.g. + Landsburgh Shakespeare Theatre, Ford's Theater, Wooly Mammoth, etc.)

I later repeated this in my talk to the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs national conference in DC in 2009, summarized in my entry, "Arts, Culture Districts, and Revitalization." 

The overall point that it was up to theater as a discipline "to make their own plan(s)" that they shouldn't rely on real estate developers and even culture planners to do it for them.

And I made the point they need to share audiences and build the overall audience of people willing to go to Downtown DC to see theater.

Playhouse Square.

Pittsburgh and Cleveland as models.  For years, I've made the point that the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust and the Playhouse Theater Foundation in Cleveland are models for how the city could address development and operation of cultural facilities.

-- "The Howard and Lincoln Theatres: run them like the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust/Playhouse Square Cleveland model," 2012
-- "Pittsburgh Cultural Trust maintains diverse real estate portfolio to support arts," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
-- "How the Arts Drove Pittsburgh's Revitalization," The Atlantic

London's National Theatre.  The recent entry, "Theater Roundup," about theater developments around the country, mentioned the trials and tribulations of the Kennedy Center, comparing it to the great success of the National Theatre in London.  

Director Indhu Rubasingham leverages the national and international place of London in the theater discipline ("National Theatre director Indhu Rubasingham: ‘If I wasn’t scared, I wouldn’t be doing my job’" "Indhu Rubasingham: the National Theatre’s new artistic director takes centre stage," Financial Times) and focuses on innovation and providing a diverse array of programs in part to reach a variety of demographics.  Also see "How to get National Theatre tickets for £10," IanVisits.

 “You can’t be all things to all people, but you can try to offer as broad a range as possible — whether that’s a western classic, an international classic, international new writing or promoting the brilliance we have around the country. The National is a flag-bearer as well as an innovator. It’s a provoker as well as populist. It’s brilliant when it’s doing all those things at once.”

The Kennedy Center hasn't really taken on this kind of role vis a vis the national theater ecosystem in the US. 

Graphic from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Theater as presentation versus theater as production.  The roundup piece also references discussion in Pittsburgh about the difference between theater companies that actively produce plays, versus organizations that present plays from the national circuit, like Hamilton, Cats, etc. 

-- "'Cultural coffin': Pittsburgh's thespians and universities react to theater woes," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
-- "Survey Shows Chicago Small Arts Sector Thriving," American Theatre

Theater production companies contribute to the development and maintenance of the local arts ecosystem, by hiring and paying playwrights, actors, musicians, and back of the house production. 

A showing of Cats does not have the same kind of local impact.

If local colleges and universities have active theater programs, all the better.  For example, in Pittsburgh Carnegie-Mellon is particularly well known.  But DC has a great program and on campus theater at Catholic University too.

The Washington City Paper has reported on an element of this in how cutting back on house staff reduces the pool of local talent and economic benefits to the local economy ("What’s Lost When Theaters Lose Production Crews?").  

Tourists as an element of the market.  Like NYC and Chicago, at least in the past, tourists, not having access to the same array of programming back home, often took in a show as part of their trip to DC.  Of course, NYC has tourists who come to the city because it is a theater destination.  DC is not quite the same.  Except maybe regionally.  

A dissertation on DC's Arena Stage makes the point that it is the closest theater in the city to playing the kind of role National Theatre does in London ("Performing (Non)Profit, Race, and American Identity in the Nation's Capital: Arena Stage, 1950-2010").  

Another dissertation argued that the city's National Theatre played a more national role, when the city was more of a premier tourist destination, and there was less opportunity to consume theater in their own locales ("National theater or public theater: The transformation of the theatrical geography of Washington, D.C., circa 1970–1990").

In region visitors will matter a lot.  But tourists or DC residents aren't enough to fuel the creation of a larger theater ecosystem in Downtown DC.  Metropolitan area residents will have to make up a big proportion of the audience day in and day out in order to be successful.

London.

Peer cities review.  It behooves the BID to do peer case studies, on cities like London, Manhattan (Broadway Theaters: An economic engine for New York, Broadway League), Chicago ("Loop economy boosted by theatre and investment during fall and winter 2022," Chicago Loop Alliance, "Driven by arts and culture, pedestrian traffic in Downtown Chicago exceeds pre-pandemic levels, report finds," WBEZ/NPR), and Hamburg wrt musicals ("Broadway on the Elbe," New York Times), and figure out if the initiative, even though focused on Downtown, will provide assistance and marketing support to theaters and university programs outside of the core of the city.

Similarly, New York City's segmentation of theater productions as Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway is a useful rubric for recognizing that all "theater" is not the same.  Again, presentation of programs in DC that were originally on Broadway has a different economic impact than locally-produced theater and building the audience for it ("Studies Show Big Impact of Small Theatres in NY, Chicago," American Theatre)

Theater roundup

My entry on arts districts and arts as consumption versus arts as production is about how "the arts" contribute to "local urban revitalization" and "economic development" addresses cultural organization development as an element of local cultural and economic development planning.

I wrote it up as a talk at the national conference of the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs ("Reprinting with a slight update, "Arts, culture districts and revitalization"," originally 2009, revised 2019).  The entry discusses arts as production versus arts as consumption, relying on the writings of John Montgomery, the components of arts districts, and facilities as infrastructure.

Because the conference was on theatre I laid it out in terms of how the discipline of theater, at the metropolitan scale, needs to "develop its own cultural plan," including various elements like facilities, support organizations, and audience development.

My most recent related writing was around the sale of the Source Theatre in DC to a restaurant group.

-- "DC's Source Theater sold: cause for a cy pres review?"

Note: the elimination of arts funding by the Trump Administration has crippled many arts groups across the county ("Pittsburgh's theater community reacts to Trump administration's anti-DEI measures, gutting of the NEA," Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

1.  Pittsburgh theater companies look to merge. A post-covid drop in attendance and therefore revenues is affecting theater groups across the country, many of which are closing.  To prevent some of this in Pittsburgh leading groups are looking at merger as a way to reduce costs ("On the brink of ‘financial failure,’ Pittsburgh’s three largest theaters explore a merger," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette). 

2.  Seattle too, but linking a facility with a theater company ("5th Avenue Theatre and Seattle Theatre Group form alliance," Seattle Times).

The 5th Avenue Theatre and Seattle Theatre Group have forged a strategic alliance in which STG has taken over the lease of the historical downtown theater space, owned by the University of Washington. STG will also present arts programming in the space, in cooperation with the longstanding musical theater company.

The 5th Avenue Theatre — which will now be known as The 5th Avenue Theatre Company to differentiate it from the physical space — will remain as the building’s resident theater company and present work for approximately 26 weeks of the year, roughly the amount of time required to produce a five-show season. (In recent years, The 5th has usually produced six- or seven-show seasons.)

3.  Theater presentation versus production as an element of arts as production.  The PPG coverage has made an interesting point distinguishing between the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust and the Pittsburgh City Light Opera, Public Theater and City Theatre .  

I've written about Pittsburgh and PCT as a best practice.  

-- "The Howard and Lincoln Theatres: run them like the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust/Playhouse Square Cleveland model," 2012
-- "Pittsburgh Cultural Trust maintains diverse real estate portfolio to support arts," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
-- "How the Arts Drove Pittsburgh's Revitalization," The Atlantic

But I missed a subtle point.  They operate the facilities but they don't produce home-grown shows, instead scheduling plays and musicals developed elsewhere, traveling shows with their own crews.

By contrast, companies like produce their own shows, and employ local actors and production crews in a way that contributes to the local economy more broadly than putting on a Broadway play ("'Cultural coffin': Pittsburgh's thespians and universities react to theater woes," PPG).

Ten years ago, the Steel City was widely regarded as a destination for actors and backstage workers, thanks to a vibrant theater ecosystem offering numerous paid opportunities to perform for multiple companies each season.

... As costs rise faster for performing arts companies and acting jobs diminish, Pittsburgh is finding itself at a crossroads. Do residents — and, crucially, donors and funders — care whether the local theaters hire local talent, or are they content to see touring shows from New York, like those put on by the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust?

Already there are far fewer paid professional jobs for actors and musicians than in previous years, and local theaters and universities are sounding an alarm. The CLO in recent years has reduced the number of shows it produced in the summer from six to three due to budgetary reasons, for example. 

A merger or consolidation of any kind could lead to a further reduction in jobs and opportunities in the city’s creative sector, and that would have economic ramifications that echo outside the theaters themselves. “This is a big threat to our whole ecosystem,” said Chris Brussalis, president of Point Park University, which has ranked in a national “Big 10” list of performing arts schools based on the number of graduates it has sent on to Broadway.

In Seattle, the STG still places a high value on local production despite expansion to and the need to fill other venues ("Seattle Theatre Group remains community-focused despite expansion," Seattle Times).

4.  Cutting back of the house staff at theaters reduces economic impact of "local" theater and reduces the pool of local talent ("What’s Lost When Theaters Lose Production Crews?," Washington City Paper).  Another way that arts as production ceases to better contribute to the local economy is with cutbacks of highly trained back of the house staff.

5.  Massachusetts offers tax credits for theater production, comparable to film credits ("ATG celebrates big win with launch of live theater tax credits," Boston Globe).

Take a bow, ATG. Your yearslong quest to bring live-theater tax credits to Massachusetts has finally paid off. The idea started with Joe Spaulding, the now-retired president of the two Boch Center theaters, around 20 years ago. He saw how the state’s film tax credits were bringing in business, and wanted something similar for theaters. ATG started putting resources behind the push after leasing the Emerson Colonial Theatre in 2017.

By the time the concept gained traction on Beacon Hill in the past two years, independent theater managers around the state had joined the crusade. They pointed to the money and prestige that show launches can bring, and to the fact that so many shows were starting in places with tax credits. Finally, the Legislature in 2024 included tax credits worth up to $7 million a year in a wide-ranging economic bill known as the Mass Leads Act, to help offset production and personnel costs for Massachusetts launches of Broadway, off-Broadway, and touring shows. (In New York, the opposite is happening: A tax credit program worth $100 million a year, designed to help the city’s theater sector rebound from the pandemic, is about to run out of cash.)

Addams Family theater production, community theater in Davis County, Utah, at Syracuse High School.

6.  Youth theater.  I haven't thought much about K-12 delivery of theater productions.  Salt Lake's East High School is the model for the Disney film and tv show "High School Musical."  Even middle schools produce plays that are marketed to the public.

I never claimed that the points in my original "Arts, Culture Districts" entry covered every element that should be in a discipline-focused arts and culture plan.  A key missing element was education, which is not my forte.  

A couple pieces from the Seattle Times illustrate this, "Where are Seattle’s stages for teen artists and leaders" and "Theater education takes center stage in new program."  From the second article:

For students ages 13–20, the Young Rep program offers training, creative exploration and deeper engagement in theater. This fall, young artists can explore stage management, playwriting and comedic improvisation, and for those eager to take center stage, Seattle Rep is launching a new production intensive. Culminating in two weekends of performances of the play “The Outsiders” — based on the classic novel by S. E. Hinton and adapted by Christopher Serge — this inaugural intensive will be Seattle Rep’s first-ever all-youth production to perform on its Leo K. stage.

... “Then Young Rep — tailored to youth ages 13-20 — offers both shorter themed classes (like playwriting or improv) and immersive experiences such as the 10‑week Production Intensive staging of ‘The Outsiders.’ Students work side by side with professional teaching artists in rehearsals and classes to build acting technique, ensemble collaboration and stagecraft in a fully produced environment,” says Martinez.

Although, just as local theater companies close or cut back on staff, resources made available to K-12 theater programs are diminishing as well.

7.  Pivoting to children's theater in the face of audience decline.  Salt Lake's Plan-B Theatre Company has a traveling theater company ("Utah arts organizations look to the future by inviting and educating young audiences," Salt Lake City Weekly).  After the GFC, the Salt Lake Acting Company started a children's program, including teaching theater, which is something they had to learn to do, out of the belief it would add new energy and audiences to the company.

8. National Theatre of London director Indhu Rubasingham ("National Theatre director Indhu Rubasingham: ‘If I wasn’t scared, I wouldn’t be doing my job’" "Indhu Rubasingham: the National Theatre’s new artistic director takes centre stage," Financial Times).  The artistic director is focused on innovation and providing a diverse array of programs in part to reach a variety of demographics.  Also see "How to get National Theatre tickets for £10," IanVisits.

 “You can’t be all things to all people, but you can try to offer as broad a range as possible — whether that’s a western classic, an international classic, international new writing or promoting the brilliance we have around the country. The National is a flag-bearer as well as an innovator. It’s a provoker as well as populist. It’s brilliant when it’s doing all those things at once.”

Her packed first season, opening next month, certainly teems with exciting possibilities. Classics rub shoulders with world premieres, new voices with famous faces, international work with homegrown talent. The most eye-catching prospects include Lesley Manville and Aidan Turner in a revival of Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Letitia Wright in the British premiere of American Tracey Scott Wilson’s The Story, and a return to repertory (once the staple of the National Theatre), with Paul Mescal leading a company in two complementary plays — Death of a Salesman and A Whistle in the Dark.

We’ll see transatlantic partnerships with Brooklyn Academy of Music and The Shed in New York. And, down the line, there’ll be new work from immersive giants Punchdrunk plus a world premiere — as yet undefined — from Stormzy. Stormzy! How much can she tell me about that?

9.  No national theater in the US.  The articles on Indhu Rubasingham made me realize that the US doesn't have a national theater complex functioning the same way. 

Even before the Trump Administration purge at the Kennedy Center ("Trump Takes Over the Kennedy Center," Atlantic Magazine, "Trump Official Gave Free Tickets to GOP Group to Heckle Black Artist," New Republic, "The Future Looks Bleak for Jazz at the Kennedy Center," Washington City Paper, "Kennedy Center cuts dance programming team, as top producers depart," Washington Post, "Kennedy Center’s New Dance Director Criticized ‘Woke’ Ballet Culture," New York Times), it didn't seem positioned as a "national" unifying center of performing arts in the United States.  

Instead it is more of a presenting organization ("At a changing Kennedy Center, the NSO gets back to business," Post), with theater relegated to showing road theater companies, while holding some national events like the arts awards.

A dissertation on DC's Arena Stage makes the point that it is the closest theater in the city to playing the kind of role National Theatre does in London ("Performing (Non)Profit, Race, and American Identity in the Nation's Capital: Arena Stage, 1950-2010").  

I recall a similar argument about the city's National Theatre and how it played a more national role, when the city was a premier tourist destination, and there was less opportunity to consume theater locally ("National theater or public theater: The transformation of the theatrical geography of Washington, D.C., circa 1970–1990").*

* the memory comes from attending DC Historical Studies conferences in the past.  The sessions are definitely a must see, and cover a wide variety of topics.

10.  The lack of a national theater makes the work of Seattle's Living Voices theater company ("Seattle theater company uses one-person shows to tell America’s history," Seattle Times) even more relevant.

Art that connects us to our past — not just intellectually but emotionally and empathetically — is hard to come by. For more than 30 years, Living Voices, a Seattle-based educational theater company, has been creating multimedia solo shows that blend a compelling fictionalized narrative with rigorous historical research, and presenting them all over the country.

Each show, performed by a single actor/teaching artist in front of on-screen materials compiled a la Ken Burns documentaries, is designed to spark curiosity and conversation about the people and events represented. Living Voices can pack a lot of story into these bite-sized shows, all around 30 minutes, which allows time after for a Q&A session between audience and performer.

In 2025 Living Voices is on track to present more than 600 shows, and this sort of access point to clear-eyed historical narratives, conscientiously crafted with a focus on voices underrepresented in history — not to mention performance opportunities for actors including, once upon a time, future Oscar nominee Lily Gladstone — feels more important than ever.