Working on notes during Team Afterlife’s tech rehearsal

The HBMG Foundation aims to change the way artists think about themselves and money

In these turbulent economic times, there’s been a lot of discussion about new models of funding for artists, and better ways to organize institutions so they can better serve the artists, and not themselves. Most discussions on this have approached the problem as if art and business are distinct entities, and their relationship is (mostly) adversarial. Rarely do you find someone advocating inserting more business language into the creation of art—yet that’s exactly what Manuel Zarate and the HBMG Foundation try to do.

Janine Paver of Broadway by the Bay (a moment of their production of Crazy for You shown here) recommends reaching beyond subscribers, to patrons who visit infrequently but still have the “urgency to save the arts. “

You can’t spell “fundraising” without “fun”—though there’s little joy in it, especially in these trying times. But successful theatres are blessed with an abundance of creativity, and more than ever, some of that creativity needs to directed toward sustaining the organization.

“We’re always retooling and reworking to come up with different ways to support the theatre,” says Janine Paver. “These economic times just make it tougher.”

David Alvarez, as Billy Elliot, dancing in front of mob police in the “Angry Dance” number from Billy Elliot: The Musical

Tony-Nominated Sound Designer Paul Arditti talks about getting the sound right, fight dances and all

When the Tony Award nominations were announced,  Billy Elliot: The Musical tied The Producers with the  most Tony nominations ever. One of those Tony  noms came for Sound Design. Luckily, Stage Directions had  already caught up with sound designer Paul Arditti, who has  worked on the show faithfully since it was first launched in  London four years ago.

New books for directors, actors, teachers & writers

Theatre is all about words—whether we’re talking about the playwright’s script, the director’s work with the players, or what comes out of the actors’ mouths in performance. This month’s round-up of new books and DVDs emphasizes the communication process in all these areas.

Although the borders were tilted on West Side Story there was plenty of room in the wings for side lighting, a boon for lighting the dance numbers.

LD Howell Binkley lights West Side Story and Guys and Dolls on Broadway

Lighting Designer Howell Binkley is enjoying a period in his career that most designers dream of and he has certainly worked hard to achieve it. He has no less than five shows on Broadway at the moment, including Avenue Q, Jersey Boys (for which he won a 2006 Tony), his 2008 Tony-nominated work for In the Heights, this season’s Guys and Dolls and finally West Side Story—for which he received a 2009 Tony nomination. It is an impressive range of design work, but to see Binkley’s design versatility one only need look at the two recent revivals of Guys and Dolls, directed by Des McAnuff, and West Side Story, directed by Arthur Laurents, which opened within 19 days of each other. Though both are revivals of well known musicals, Binkley’s two distinctly different designs are appropriately current in approach while still serving the needs of the shows’ books and beloved characters.

Audrey II in its fourth and largest incarnation, plus the “blooms” from the finale of Little Shop of Horrors, present by La Sierra High, Spring 2007.

I appreciated the suggestions given by Lisa Mulcahy in “Design on a Dime” in your great April edition. I agree that there are many ways for smaller theatres to achieve a more professional appearance. My high school students and I were especially intrigued with the plants shown on your cover and inside the magazine . . . because we made them. Enclosed are pictures of our plants from our Spring 2007 production. We were lucky enough to have the help of a friend who builds costumes for a local theme park. Kelly Hagan helped my high school drama students and I build the four puppets from foam and fab ric, air-brushing the stretch velour covers, very much like the suggestions in your article. They were much too large to keep (high schools, like most theatres, have very limited storage) so we sold them to a small the atre group in Fullerton who often rents props. We have had a wonderful time recognizing them in photos through out Southern California. However, your photo was the most exciting!

Willow Creek Church’s production of Imagine where several T1100 snow machines were used.

Making the case for special effects

Jacob Coakley

Malcolm Gladwell didn’t know it, but in his latest article in The New Yorker (“Annals of Innovation: How David Beats Goliath”, May 11) he was talking about theatre. At first I took his article to be a standard “it’s not talent, it’s effort” pep talk. I agree with that philosophy—I think sustained effort and focus are much more important than any innate talent or ability. The smartest people didn’t always start out that way. They kept at it, kept learning, and kept growing. It’s the same thing with talent—more rehearsal equals better performance.