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Friday, April 24, 2020
Pearls with pajamas: Arts companies re-envision galas in the coronavirus era
Datebook: Before Berkeley Repertory Theatre‘s annual Ovation gala officially began on Saturday, April 18, swanky jazz by Marcus Shelby played as a slideshow cycled through images of donors. Guests chatted about their drinks: “Piña colada over here!”
This is such a great read. I love hearing about the persistence of humanity in a time like this. As I began reading this article, I wondered if the gala still served its core purpose: to raise money. Learning at the end that ninety-five percent of their artwork was sold proves that love for the art truly is not something you can cancel, just as you can cancel a theatrical performance or a museum exhibit. Galas have always seemed a little superficial, given their true purpose. Do not get me wrong, though. I am seldom opposed to getting dressed up whenever I can, but the money that goes into the throwing of these galas sometimes counteracts the purpose of raising money in the first place. Therefore, the comment in the article that people just do not feel like partying right now, and that people would much rather gravitate towards the absolute priority, art, is a reassuring notion.
I really like this idea for this kind of event, especially because it is a way of toning down the seriousness of gala events to relieve some of the stress that people are feeling with quarantining. I also think that this is a great way to ensure that these kind of groups are able to sustain themselves through this crisis, especially because a lot of people who have the means to are being generous right now because they understand the stakes. Its like how people in my town have been ordering more food from restaurants that do safe delivery/pickup and tipping more as a town-wide effort to sustain local businesses. Though it is unfortunate to read that some of these events didn't make as much as they were hoping to, I think that considering the circumstances it is still pretty amazing these events are doing as well as they are, and I hope people will continue to host these events so that we can continue to participate in the arts through the rest of this crisis.
Being able to adapt is so important as a human being. I really appreciated that not only did they switch the event to online, but also found a way to make it fun. When you think about galas, a part of the excitement is being able to get all dressed up and be fancy while socializing with people you may not have seen in awhile. Whilst they couldn't replicate this, I think the idea to have a lounge wear dress code was pretty smart. I think as we are switching things to be online, we should highly consider how to make it more engaging and entertaining. There are some cases where this isn't necessary but I think we've all found ourselves struggling at some point to be 100% into online discussions. Switching things up and adding a little bit of fun is definitely a good start to having people be fine with doing things remotely.
This is actually quite hilarious, and in another way quite horrifying. While I think it is fun to think of these fancy galas occuring in every attendant's personal living room, this article actually made me incredibly uncomfortable. I understand that the arts are currently very vulnerable and need support more than ever, but thinking of those people attending those virtual galas also makes me think of the thousands of people who are unemployed, or homeless, in abusive situations, or in any of the countless other situations that would make this quarantine a living hell, rather than just an inconvenience that keeps you from the annual gala. But I suppose the division between those who can attend galas and donate thousands of dollars to charities and those who rely on charity to live has always been there. This division is only made more visible when all our lives have started to look quite similar and we have the opportunity to peek behind the curtains for almost everyone.
I honestly think that these adapted galas are great ideas. About two months ago (right before the US started shutting down), a museum in Houston that I have worked at had their annual gala as planned. Nearly two weeks later (after the city had pretty well been shut down), they reopened the online auction platform (a platform that exists normally for the real, in person gala) and posted the link to all of their social media platforms and their website. Auction items that had not sold this year (or, I believe, in previous years) as well as some previously unlisted pieces were put up on the site and made available to the public and, wouldn’t you know, people bought them! I think that part of the advantage to actual auctions is that, right now, people are sort of stress buying things and the idea that that money will go to an institution instead of some giant retailer is a nice, fuzzy way to justify the money leaving their accounts. The idea of “donating a theatre ticket”, though, is also really nice and that the only thing changing hands is money is a rather more “charitable” feeling, I guess.
5 comments:
This is such a great read. I love hearing about the persistence of humanity in a time like this. As I began reading this article, I wondered if the gala still served its core purpose: to raise money. Learning at the end that ninety-five percent of their artwork was sold proves that love for the art truly is not something you can cancel, just as you can cancel a theatrical performance or a museum exhibit. Galas have always seemed a little superficial, given their true purpose. Do not get me wrong, though. I am seldom opposed to getting dressed up whenever I can, but the money that goes into the throwing of these galas sometimes counteracts the purpose of raising money in the first place. Therefore, the comment in the article that people just do not feel like partying right now, and that people would much rather gravitate towards the absolute priority, art, is a reassuring notion.
I really like this idea for this kind of event, especially because it is a way of toning down the seriousness of gala events to relieve some of the stress that people are feeling with quarantining. I also think that this is a great way to ensure that these kind of groups are able to sustain themselves through this crisis, especially because a lot of people who have the means to are being generous right now because they understand the stakes. Its like how people in my town have been ordering more food from restaurants that do safe delivery/pickup and tipping more as a town-wide effort to sustain local businesses. Though it is unfortunate to read that some of these events didn't make as much as they were hoping to, I think that considering the circumstances it is still pretty amazing these events are doing as well as they are, and I hope people will continue to host these events so that we can continue to participate in the arts through the rest of this crisis.
Being able to adapt is so important as a human being. I really appreciated that not only did they switch the event to online, but also found a way to make it fun. When you think about galas, a part of the excitement is being able to get all dressed up and be fancy while socializing with people you may not have seen in awhile. Whilst they couldn't replicate this, I think the idea to have a lounge wear dress code was pretty smart. I think as we are switching things to be online, we should highly consider how to make it more engaging and entertaining. There are some cases where this isn't necessary but I think we've all found ourselves struggling at some point to be 100% into online discussions. Switching things up and adding a little bit of fun is definitely a good start to having people be fine with doing things remotely.
This is actually quite hilarious, and in another way quite horrifying. While I think it is fun to think of these fancy galas occuring in every attendant's personal living room, this article actually made me incredibly uncomfortable. I understand that the arts are currently very vulnerable and need support more than ever, but thinking of those people attending those virtual galas also makes me think of the thousands of people who are unemployed, or homeless, in abusive situations, or in any of the countless other situations that would make this quarantine a living hell, rather than just an inconvenience that keeps you from the annual gala. But I suppose the division between those who can attend galas and donate thousands of dollars to charities and those who rely on charity to live has always been there. This division is only made more visible when all our lives have started to look quite similar and we have the opportunity to peek behind the curtains for almost everyone.
I honestly think that these adapted galas are great ideas. About two months ago (right before the US started shutting down), a museum in Houston that I have worked at had their annual gala as planned. Nearly two weeks later (after the city had pretty well been shut down), they reopened the online auction platform (a platform that exists normally for the real, in person gala) and posted the link to all of their social media platforms and their website. Auction items that had not sold this year (or, I believe, in previous years) as well as some previously unlisted pieces were put up on the site and made available to the public and, wouldn’t you know, people bought them! I think that part of the advantage to actual auctions is that, right now, people are sort of stress buying things and the idea that that money will go to an institution instead of some giant retailer is a nice, fuzzy way to justify the money leaving their accounts. The idea of “donating a theatre ticket”, though, is also really nice and that the only thing changing hands is money is a rather more “charitable” feeling, I guess.
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