The Philadelphia Orchestra is in the final stages of lease agreement negotiations with the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, the final step which may enable the orchestra to emerge from reorganization. Philadelphia Orchestra president Allison B. Vulgamore says much is at stake.
"We can either have a world-class orchestra and a regional performing arts center, or a regional orchestra and a national performing arts center," Vulgamore said in a November article in Philadelphia Magazine. "There isn't enough money for both. And I didn't come here to run a regional orchestra."
Kimmel's chairman, Paul A. Tufano, doesn't see it that way. "I don't think the community needs to make a choice between the two," he said in a recent interview. "I think we should strive to keep both." Meanwhile, Kimmel's penciled-in season is on hold until a deal can be worked out with the orchestra. Read Much Uncertainty Amid Kimmel's Lease Talks with Orchestra (Philly.com)
Struggling Arts Organizations Might Find answers by Going South...WAY South
Arts organizations in the United States and around the world struggle more and more each year to find funding. One country, however, has figured out a way to thrive in the midst of global economic chaos. Danilo Miranda, director of Brazil's leading arts financing entity, struggles to find ways to spend his budget.
âOur fundamental guiding principle is to use culture as a tool for education and transformation, to improve peopleâs lives, and weâre in a position to fulfill that mission, thank God,â? Mr. Miranda said. âOver the last decade our budget has been doubling every six years or so. Itâs incredible, no?â?
New York Times writer Larry Rohter says Mr. Miranda's organization is a "private, nonprofit entity whose role is enshrined in the national Constitution. The organization derives its budget from a 1.5 percent payroll tax imposed on, and collected by, Brazilian companies, so as the workforce in this nation of nearly 200 million people expands, so does the organizationâs budget." Read Brazil's Unique Culture Group Stays Busy Sharing the Wealth (NY Times)