Thursday, September 06, 2007
The Next Stage: How much closer we are to getting the cultural wonderland we imagined 10 years
The Austin Chronicle: "Between 1994 and 2002, plans were hatched for nine new or newly renovated museums, two new performing arts organization headquarters, one new theatre and one renovated theatre, a new cultural center, and a new three-venue performing arts center – almost all of them within a few square miles in the heart of the city. By the end of 2003, they would transform Central Austin into a cultural wonderland."
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2 comments:
I definitely remember the excitement a few years back when all these big plas were hatched. I was still at Ballet Austin when the Long Center and Butler Center were begun and I remember seeing the construction on the Carver Museum everyday on my way to junior high. These are all beautiful facilities now, especially the Carver Museum and the Blanton, and I feel so lucky to have been in Austin long enough to experience them, although never as often as I would have liked. It does make me sad that so much is happening in the arts just as I leave home, however, it's really exciting to see such big initiatives taking place in a city. I love that the arts are gaining so much respect and resources and that the tech boom money is going towards art facilities. It makes me hopeful for other cities as well, and that this might just be the general trend that guarantees me a job! If only theatre in Austin would grow some--UT, Zach Scott and the Opera do some great work, but if you're a student looking for a job don't count on finding anything. That's the next step, I think, in Austin--ways for younger kids and high school students to get involved with more professionals and see how art works in the real world. If there's to be another generation of even better artists, they need somewhere to learn from practicing professionals and opportunities to see what it's like and how its done.
It's really an exciting thing to see in the city you grew up in. Especially, when for the past couple of years, the majority of things have taken place in parts of the UT campus buildings, such as the Erwin Center and such. It's also pretty cool because I've gotten to a pretty close look at one of the developing spaces as one of my old teachers just moved there to become the Facilities Manager, and we've talked a lot about the construction and dealing with all the local theatre companies as well as the people who donated the money for the refurbishing of the Long Center.
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