Brendan Kiley - Seattle Theater - The Stranger, Seattle's Only Newspaper: Fifteen years ago, people in Seattle theater used to tell a joke that went like this: "An actor new to town is checking out the local theaters. He stops an old-timer for directions. 'What's the fastest way to get from Annex to ACT?' the newcomer asks. The older actor pauses for a moment and says: 'New York.'"
4 comments:
Well I am glad that it seems that Seattle is leveling out and continuing to grow in the world of theatre. I am also curious to see what effects other cities across the country were feeling. Did other American cities fight the same problems and how are they doing. Hopefully know that the economy is slowly progressing in a positive direction cities like Seattle are moving in a positive direction. I know that our home town here in Pittsburgh is becoming a bigger "arts" city, I wonder where the people are coming from? What cities are they leaving to come here and try to live the starving artist life?
Maybe Seattle is becoming a better place to be a working artist, or maybe the problem that people from Seattle were having is becoming less of a problem all around. The world is getting smaller in the way that it is now so simple to connect with anyone from anywhere. We have developed so many programs for communication across cities, states, and countries, that it no longer fazes people to hire someone from Washington for a job in New York. They can travel easily, or they can even do the job from where they are. Overall, location i becoming a much smaller factor when it comes to hiring the right person. If they are not there, it wouldn't be doing the impossible to get them there.
This sounds fantastic to me, frankly. Who doesn't want theatrical growth in their city?
My own career options are likely moving me west, and I desperately hope for an active theatre community in whichever city I settle in. Growing up in NYC may have given me mildly unrealistic expectations and I recognize that, but I enjoy comparing the communities of individuals who enjoy theatre from city to city.
I agree with Kassondra that communication and transportation innovations may have much to do with the influx in job availability. Flying actors across the country is way more convenient than trying to find "another" perfect fit for a role if a casting director has their eyes set on a certain individual. And electronic communications make it possible for a artist to work remotely with minimal disruption. I think technology's improving theatre for the better, and hope that the skills of the community can keep up!
All artists think that New York or LA are the only places to work after they finish school or when they start in the industry, but for regional theaters to only hire actors from those cities is only pushing the talent out of cities like Seattle. When regional theaters finally need those actors they have been pushing out they will have hard luck finding them. I've been to Seattle a couple of times and have loved everything about it. I would thoroughly enjoy living and working there, but the pressure to work in New York and LA is so pressing in our industry. When talking about regional theaters I think Seattle is one of those up and coming cities; kind of like Pittsburgh.
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