Devra Thomas’ Post

Reflecting on my journey with La Crosse Community Theatre's expansion into the old church building, the question "What did I get myself into?" feels particularly relevant. I’ve embarked on something both exciting and daunting. This historic space is full of potential, but realizing it will take more than just optimism and a fresh coat of paint. When we chose this church, it felt like a perfect blend of La Crosse’s history and our theatre’s future. The building has charm and character, but it’s also full of quirks—architectural features that weren’t designed with modern theatre in mind. As I settle in, I’m beginning to grasp the challenges ahead. Walking through these halls, it’s impossible not to feel the weight of what’s ahead. The building is full of potential—to become a hub for creativity and a gathering place for our community. But right now, it’s all just potential. The real work is just beginning. We have big plans, but they’re still just plans—ideas waiting to be transformed into reality. From designing new spaces to ensuring this historic building meets modern needs, there’s a lot to do. It’s a little overwhelming, but also exciting, knowing we're on the brink of something transformative for La Crosse Community Theatre. The road ahead will be challenging, with moments of doubt and unexpected surprises. But that’s part of the journey—navigating the unknown, adapting to challenges, and staying focused on my goals. This project will take time, effort, and collaboration. I’ll need to test ideas and learn as I go, but I’m committed to seeing it through because I believe in the potential of this space. So here I am, at the beginning of a long and winding journey. I don’t know exactly what the future holds, but I’m confident this is a journey worth taking. There’s a lot of work to be done, but also a lot to look forward to. This building has the potential to become something truly special, and I’m ready to do the work to make that happen. In the end, what did I get myself into? A project full of challenges and possibilities—one that I wouldn’t trade for anything. I’ve only just begun, but I’m excited to see where this journey will take me.

"The true power of the arts is the ability to make the invisible visible. It's an immensely powerful thing." Award-winning actor and author Paterson Joseph mentioned this during yesterday's The City Club of Cleveland "Diversifying the Media Production Industry" panel discussion. Paradoxically, we're in an era where the greatest access to information and knowledge is being coupled with a movement attempting to sensor -- and in some cases outright erase -- history and said access. Yesterday's discussion was a powerful display of why the arts continue to be a direct line to culture and history and why they are more vital today than ever before. The importance of elevating and participating in the arts is not only a guaranteed way to experience diverse cultures and backgrounds, but also the quickest and purest way to leverage and celebrate our differences. For example, being in the crowd of an Indigenous performance by Kenneth Shirley (panelist - Indigenous Enterprise, LLC) will circumvent barriers that reading a book may offer and instead directly allow you to experience the culture. There's nothing (and no one) in between you and experiencing Indigenous culture. This was the lightbulb moment for me yesterday while listening to these panelists (Patterson, Kenneth, and Gabriela Muñoz). Yes, the threats against our diverse history and knowledge are real, but the arts afford everyone an avenue to have first-hand diverse experiences devoid of barriers. If you're in the crowd, nothing is coming between you and your cultural experience. BorderLight Theatre Festival's 2024 Festival is live in Cleveland now through July 27. Their mission: to present innovative theatre that inspires, builds cross-cultural understanding, and celebrates the diversity of the human experience. If you're in the Cleveland area, now is the time to participate and celebrate our differences and the human experience. Check out their website for a complete schedule and for more information: https://lnkd.in/gX-jpuVB (Great to meet you, Rachel Costanzo! Keep up the great work!) #Culture #Diversity #Arts #Cleveland

Many arts venues have still not fully recovered from the Covid crisis, and many are stuck with audiences at about 80% of pre-crisis levels. But my analysis of attendance data of some of NYC's most prestigous arts venues indicated that they were drawing audienes with different geographic and demographic mixes. These are steps they have long needed to make. Since then I've come across several articles indicating that arts venues were trying to attract younger and more diverse audiences and using new tactics to do so. This article in the NYT is another of that sort. What this suggests to me is that serious arts organizations are finally taking serious steps to correct the audience attraction problems they had pre crisis for over a decade. I'd argue that this augurs well for a strong renewal in the arts industry within a reasonable periodm of time, and it should be noted, encouraged and supported. These arts organizations, however, also have problems caused by a reliance on a weak business model in which earned income never comes close to covering operational costs, and is farv too reliant on donations. Even here, though some arts organizations are trying to stabilized their financial situations by creating endowments and partnering in relevant real estate development projects. #artsrecovery #artsorgchanges #artsorgsfinallyinnovating

https://lnkd.in/eTXQa9aX from £5 lunch included 🌟If inclusion is needed for excellence, why aren't enough people taking it seriously?🌟Devoted & Disgruntled Satellite is a nationwide conversation about theatre and the performing arts, hosted by theatre company Improbable using a process called Open Space Technology, a simple way for groups of people to think, work and take action together around a shared concern. There is no set agenda and you decide what to discuss.Join Underground Lights Community Theatre as we navigate our way through fundamental questions that need addressing in the arts. We believe that without radical inclusion there is no excellence. But we don’t see that belief reflected by large parts of the arts sector. Why not? How can we change that? When we talk about “inclusion” and “excellence” what do we mean? How can we as a sector bring them closer together?If any of this resonates with you in any way, we need your voice!Tickets for this event range from £5 to £15, on a Pay What You Can system. Please select whichever ticket price you feel you are able to afford. A limited number of a free tickets are available info@undergroundlights.org

All areas of the creative industry provide means for economic growth, regeneration, they are the future of our city centres landscape, culture, tourism, business growth, communication and should be supported. Theatre / Dance / Music / Festivals / Live Events - Dates beyond the Shakesphere era provides fantastic insight into our history, culture and drives creativity, growth and spend within city centres. Vera Lynn’s music empowered soliders during WW2. Radio, Press and TV - Plays an integral role in our democracy reporting on major news stories holding those in power to account, weather which influences consumer spend and support’s communities on travel issues, ads on air which boost businesses and provide strong ROI. Social & Online - Keeps people connected and drives conversation, communication and enables SME’s to have a voice with small budgets. Provides vital services, access to food, meds, clothing via online e-commerce sites now. Out of Home / Sponsorships - provides jobs in technology, supports and enhances city centres, provides local authorities with incremental investment and income through land acquisition and partnerships to use for other public services. Art - supports with creativity in individuals, mental health, well-being, reigniting and embracing public spaces bringing together minority communities. Art helps those most vulnerable impacted by war and conflict get through the darkest of days. The creative industries are an essential part of our communities and should be recognised as such, the creative industries were almost destroyed by the impact of government policy and regulation during Covid-19. It’s no longer a matter of “nice to have” it’s a must, it’s an essential service and we must continue to embrace and support the ever changing landscape that is our incredible creative industries community. 👇🫶

📢 Call for proposal : The #CaribbeanCultureFund will provide comprehensive support for the arts of the Caribbean, by means of regular project grants and programs. Such support has not been consistently or inclusively available to creative producers in the Caribbean and this has been a major obstacle to the sustainability, reach, and impact of the cultural sector in the Caribbean itself and, to a lesser extent, in the Caribbean diaspora. The Caribbean Culture Fund seeks to address this gap, based on a sound understanding of the cultural and social dynamics of the Caribbean, and the needs and potential that exist in the fields of the visual arts, photography, film, music, dance, theatre, literature, the festival arts, and other cultural forms. https://lnkd.in/g9JU9RYD

The transformative power of Theater! Interesting article on how theater is getting communities to think, feel, and begin to understand the nature of the housing challenges we face today. https://lnkd.in/gmxQjiFn

The big news of the day is that Toronto's oldest movie theatre, the historic Revue Cinema, is shutting its doors amidst landlord disputes. This news comes on the heels of the Science Centre closure, the Hot Docs theatre closure, and the closure of Ontario Place. These cherished places are incredibly meaningful to the people of Toronto: public green space, museums and arts venues are not simple gathering places for residents of our city, they each play a spiritual role in fostering spaces for reflection, rest, escape. Especially for poor artists. In the privacy of our little dinner parties, the most common question circling around the minds of young and emerging artists revolves around housing: can we afford to live in the city anymore? When we are presented with such hostility by our provincial and municipal administrations? Without our theatres, where we will screen our films? In the midst of a severe housing crisis, where will we live? Big questions amidst these tragic closures.

Laura Collins-Hughes' review of James Shapiro's book "The Playbook" arrives just in time. "... Ambitious, civic-minded and self-sabotaging, the whole enterprise moved fast, fast, fast. The Federal Theater, which lasted just four years, spent its brief life in that mode. Its final months were devoted to trying to fend off the wild accusations of a Communist-hunting congressman, who in headline-grabbing hearings smeared it baselessly, ruinously, as un-American. With the American theater struggling to regain the vitality it had before Covid-related shutdowns, some creators and critics have called for a new version of the Federal Theater to come to the rescue. The U.S. government is hardly a spendthrift with arts dollars, but what if it were to pony up for the industry again? Well, let James Shapiro’s piquant and resonant history banish any romantic fantasies. His new book, “The Playbook: A Story of Theater, Democracy, and the Making of a Culture War,” is about how messy and compromised the situation can get for artists when Congress is signing the checks, how cynical the politics can be and how familiar — how Trumpian — some of the muddying tactics deployed in the 1930s now seem. To Shapiro, whose previous books include “Shakespeare in a Divided America” (2020), “the health of democracy and theater, twin-born in ancient Greece, has always been mutually dependent.” In his view, then, it was to the joint benefit of democracy and theater that the federal program came into existence in 1935 and to their detriment when it was eliminated in 1939 after having “staged, for a pittance, over a thousand productions in 29 states seen by 30 million, or roughly one in four Americans.” ..." https://lnkd.in/e__MZ_42

24 hours on from UK #theatreconference at Southbank Centre. Here are some thoughts: Firstly, a great event. Thanks Society of London Theatre & UK Theatre for organising. It was an impressive gathering of theatre professionals from across the country, and a great programme to boot. Secondly, the challenge is significant. The cost of making theatre has doubled. The cost of running a theatre has doubled. Theatre Tax Relief has helped and is rightly welcomed, but the cost challenge remains. Add to this the other challenges articulated well at conference: theatre's role as social change-makers, the move to environmental sustainability (#theatregreenbook), and the need to address the UK's aged theatre estate. The scale of the challenge is huge. But, thirdly, great examples were given on how the sector is addressing that by coming together, collaborating and acting as a collective voice. And, in doing so, not becoming victims to fortune, but leading, lobbying and innovating to better outcomes. I came away with the message that collaboration is key. It was clear that barriers to that still remain: commercial fears, some lack of trust and openness, and a possible reluctance to share data. Understandable, but to overcome the considerable challenges above, theatre will need to focus on shared objectives. To wrap-up, here's a quote from the final keynote session which hit home: "Theatre is difficult. There is never enough time or money, but we know we have to do it. We don't shirk challenges. We collaborate and problem-solve". Hear hear.