Behind the Curtain: Examining the Complex Challenges Faced by the Arts Industry

Explore the diverse facets of the arts industry as ISPA members share insights on fostering generational collaboration, navigating funding challenges, and addressing the impact of climate change through innovative approaches. All unveiled in the special feature, "Behind the Curtain: Examining the Complex Challenges Faced by the Arts Industry."

Quicklinks:

• Natalie Lue, Vancouver Civic Theatres
• Magnus Nordberg, Nordberg Movement

What do you do to foster better communication and collaboration between different generations in the workforce, addressing potential generation gaps? What are the initiatives in your region that encourage mentorship and knowledge transfer between older and younger performing arts professionals? How does the varying approach to work-life balance among generations impact your organization’s culture?

We have at least three generations represented on staff here at the Vancouver Civic Theatres (VCT). Our longest serving colleague has continued to make an invaluable contribution for over 45 years on the front of house team. At the same time, post-pandemic, we have been in constant recruitment mode and have onboarded many who are relatively new to the workforce.  It makes for a very dynamic environment with a mix of staff who don’t have a smart phone or only communicate on their smart phone; those who prefer conformity to a formal, classic dress code to those who want to express their individuality not only through piercings and tattoo art but also through what they wear; those who thrive on punctuality, deadlines, strict adherence to policy versus those who see a meeting start time as a suggestion and procedures as negotiables. Work–life balance is also a construct that resonates more with previous generations where work equaled success therefore work superseded having a life outside of work. Now we have gig-economy workers with side hustles blurring the line between work and life while commitment to one organization just isn’t an option anymore.

So, we strive to communicate more regularly on various platforms (yes, we call staff on their landlines). And while health and safety come first, we’ve also looked at our policies and procedures through a broader, more inclusive lens. Mentorship opportunities are formal and informal with an emphasis on team building exercises that include every area and level of our staff and are structured around exploring potential solutions to issues that impact our organization. And mutual respect and reciprocal support is garnered from programs such as our P2P initiative within our training of our front of house employees. New staff are paired with experienced peers so that they not only learn the job but benefit from the experience and lessons learned from their more seasoned colleagues.  It in turn is a constant refresh for the experienced peers as well as a way for new ideas or considerations to be raised by the incoming staff.         

Can you think of a situation where your organization faced a significant loss of funding (or a venue or a collaboration partner) and describe how you navigated this challenge to find alternative resources or solutions to continue your artistic projects?

The Vancouver Civic Theatres (VCT) is made up of four city owned and operated theatres: the Queen Elizabeth (2,765 seats), Orpheum (2,672 seats), Vancouver Playhouse (668 seats), and Annex (191 flex seats).  While most programming is based on a rental grant model (arts and culture groups receive a grant specifically to present in our theatres), the VCT also presents on its own and rents to commercial clients. Having to lay off approximately150 staff and close all four theatres after delivering a banner year in 2019 with over 850 events, 800,000+ attendees, and generating an unprecedented Capital Reserve contribution and net surplus was catastrophic.  

While the theatres were closed during the pandemic we did find a little ray of hope. The Orpheum is an almost 100 year old vaudeville house, then cinema, and now live performance space that boasts a grand heritage lobby. When Vancouver City Hall launched micro-weddings ( 30-minute ceremonies that are intended to be short events for couples, officiants, and witnesses only) outdoors in May 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, the VCT saw an opportunity and advertised the Orpheum lobby as the ideal place to have wedding photos taken. These bookings brought in  a trickle of rental revue, but more importantly, provided some work for a few staff.  Due to popular demand, the micro-weddings are now a permanent indoor program at Vancouver City Hall and the VCT continues to receive wedding (and now proposal and engagement) photo shoot bookings in the Orpheum. 

How is climate change impacting the financial and artistic models of the performing arts industry, and how are organizations innovating to reduce their environmental impact while also ensuring accessibility and equity for all audiences?

Our response to the climate change imperative is a combination of government regulations compliance and aspiration to a leadership role in at least stopping if not reversing the environmental damage we’ve contributed to in the past. This is a multi-year commitment that will have a significant financial impact on our operations and will require a complete rethink of the life cycle of creating and presenting work.

The business decisions will be difficult. For instance, waste at the theatres is primarily through our concessions operations.  On any given night, all four theatres could be operating at near capacity which means over 6,000 patrons purchasing food and drink from multiple locations.  It’s fast pace service in a very short period of time - an hour before the show and less than 20 minutes if there is an intermission (not including receptions and catered events). In 2022 alone we generated approx. 68,500 empty plastic bottles which represents almost 10% of our concessions revenue. The same year, Vancouver city council introduced a series of by-laws to reduce or eliminate single use plastics including plastic bags, plastic straws, foam cups and containers, plastic utensils, and plastic cups. Although the requirements around plastic cups were repealed in May 2023, we have continued to explore how we might reduce the number of plastic bottles. Considerations could be installing refillable water bottle stations or making self-serve pitchers of water available in the lobbies.  But post pandemic, audiences are suspect of anything that is not packaged and sealed. And the impact of complimentary water service would clearly make quite a dent in our sales. As well, those refilled personal water bottles have the potential to be projectiles in the theatres during some of our more animated music events.  

Another practice that has been embraced as having a positive impact on the environment is that many organizations have stopped printing hard copies of house programmes.  Instead, they are encouraging their patrons to access the programme on their smart phone, if they have one (see my answer to the first question). Pre-show announcements, however, generally ask patrons to turn off their phones during performances.  We’ve taken the complaints that it’s hard to read the programme on phones, that programmes are souvenirs of the patron’s experience at the performance, that with more challenging work the programme provided context and insight to what they are hearing or seeing and in formatting for smart phones, a lot of that doesn’t exist anymore. As we work to bring more and new theatre goers to our spaces, we have to consider if what we do is environmentally friendly and patron friendly. 

While we look for those operational solutions, we’ve noticed other promising responses in the touring and staging of events with creative teams taking their projects on tour but using local production crews and local performers in each of their stops. Sets and lighting design are pared down without losing production value. And sets are rented from other companies rather than built new in each locale. This is something opera companies have embraced although the resulting challenge is the considerable cost of shipping and maintenance of the sets.  

One of the really interesting projects that the VCT has become involved with is the Sustainable Arts and Green Ecosystems (SAGE)  initiative launched by the Museum of Vancouver (MOV) earlier this year.  Recognized as an innovative cultural institution, MOV is among the museums and galleries committed to shifting to new models of sustainability and climate action, focusing on the design and building of exhibitions and other types of staged environments in the cultural sector.

SAGE  aims to engage the museum, gallery, and theatre sectors to collaborate on initiatives and solutions to advance the environmental performance, reduce greenhouse gas (GhG) emissions, and design and manage for circular materials use.

The work informs exhibition development through the five elements for circular and low carbon solutions: planning, design considerations, material selection, building staged environments, unbuilding/disassembly.  As a result, the belief is that recycling is actually the last resort, not the first objective.  For more information on the project, visit  https://museumofvancouver.ca/sage

What do you do to foster better communication and collaboration between different generations in the workforce, addressing potential generation gaps? What are the initiatives in your region that encourage mentorship and knowledge transfer between older and younger performing arts professionals? How does the varying approach to work-life balance among generations impact your organization’s culture?

We strive to collaborate with artists from different generations as much as possible and support both more established and younger creators. To engage with less established artists, we've fundraised to conduct coaching projects, offering support to those with fewer financial resources. In our recently concluded project, "Music and Movement Management," where dance and music artists received hands-on production support for 12-16 months, participants spanned different generations. We also executed a smaller coaching project, facilitating interactions between young and experienced dancers to share knowledge. These initiatives showcase how generations can learn from each other, challenging and evolving established ways of working. Recently, we engaged with dancers during their education, delving into discussions on sustainable work models, structuring work-life balance, and involving choreographers and producers to share experiences—highlighting the fruitful exchange of ideas across generations.

Can you think of a situation where your organization faced a significant loss of funding (or a venue or a collaboration partner) and describe how you navigated this challenge to find alternative resources or solutions to continue your artistic projects?

Nordberg Movement, our organization, has not been eligible for substantial support, as agencies and production offices are rarely recognized in European funding systems and limitedly in Sweden. Despite this, during the pandemic, we were fortunate enough to secure funding for artists and their work. Anticipating the end of this pandemic, we prepared by establishing a temporary structure and team, requiring extensive planning. Although faced with uncertainty, smaller companies we work with demonstrate resilience to cuts and adapt creatively to the challenges. Artistic leaders exhibit remarkable skills in scaling operations up and down, showcasing adaptability developed over time.

How is climate change impacting the financial and artistic models of the performing arts industry, and how are organizations innovating to reduce their environmental impact while also ensuring accessibility and equity for all audiences?

For independent artists and companies, environmental impact is a widely discussed topic. In the independent field, artists are reducing the use of heavy rigs, reusing materials for costumes and props, and minimizing transportation during touring. Touring organizations, like Dancenet Sweden, opt for train travel within Sweden to reduce their carbon footprint. Some artists choose to work locally, while others plan tours more strategically, scheduling performances closer in time and geographically. However, these decisions are influenced by circumstances and financial constraints. Despite the desire to reduce touring footprints, viable solutions are still evolving. The challenge of making performing arts accessible beyond major cities is a common concern. Riksteatern in Sweden is a great example of an organization that, through trains, distributes work which would never have previously reached cities around the country.