Deadline: California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a “landmark” bill that creates the Performing Arts Equitable Payroll Fund to supply much-needed support grants to small nonprofit performing arts organizations, helping them offset a portion of their payroll costs. Introduced by Senator Anthony Portantino (D – Burbank), Senate Bill 1116 was cosponsored by Actors’ Equity Association and the Theatrical Producers of Southern California.
6 comments:
I think it is really amazing that legislation is starting to get passed to support small theaters, especially non-profit ones. Although, I do think that it is really sad that it has taken this long for law makers to realize the importance of it. It feels as though the only reason they feel the need to support non profit theaters and performing arts is because of the COVID pandemic. Long before COVID, these theaters still needed help and most legislators refused to listen. Sometimes it would be nice to not have to go to the extreme in order to get what you want done. In other terms, we shouldn’t have to go through a worldwide pandemic in order to prove that the arts deserves funding. And I don’t mean that places like broadway should be getting government funding, but small theaters that are nonprofit often bring a lot to communities, but the community’s government doesn’t choose to recognize its efforts.
This is so exciting to see! I truly hope they acquire all the funding (and more) that they need for this bill to succeed. It will be interesting to see who theatre companies that utilize this bill for funding do in terms of financial success. I would love to see a study that compares their profit margins from pre-covid and post-this bill (adjusting for inflation) to see how much of a difference this support makes. One thing I would want to know as an organization is if the funding being givien through this grant provides the government with any artistic rights (think censorship rights) on the production being produced as they are financially investing in the productions. It will also be interesting to see how much the California government invests in it over time, I could see this having a larger investment of government funds at the first year and decreasing each year after as the effects of covid on the economy lessen and as the spotlight is off of this bill, I hope I am proven wrong.
This is great news for the theater world. Unfortunately, in today's world it is incredibly difficult for art to be created for the simple purpose of creating meaningful art. Theater has become very commercialized. While many theaters can stand on their own, many cannot. Many theater companies are constantly in jeopardy of shutting down. Not every theater can be commercially successful enough to support themselves and this bill will support those that cannot survive on their own. It will allow for the creation of works of art that need simply exist, not make money. On top of this, it will allow for many smaller artists to find employment and keep that employment. Surviving in the heavily commercialized world of theater is difficult not just for theater companies and meaningful art but also for individual artists. I hope that in the future, more bills like this will be passed that allow for art to grow everywhere.
I'm glad that this bill was actually signed, since it will help to ensure that theatres in California may be able to weather the remainder of this challenging period of time, however long that may be. I do wish that such aid wasn't necessary and that these theatres would have the capacity to stand on their own, but obviously, the last few years have made that even harder for a nonprofit than it would typically be. As it stands, nonprofits and smaller regional theatres are the backbones of the theatre industry, allowing for art to be produced even in smaller towns and communities far away from the lights and glamour of Broadway or the big cities. Should they fail, not only will the arts suffer as a whole, but thousands of theatre professionals, be they actors or technical workers, would be out of jobs, bringing even more challenges to an already struggling economy. Once this bill actually gets funding, hopefully that will be a good indicator of things to come.
Out of all of the articles I have chosen this week, this one highlights one of the most substantial movements towards solidifying the arts within the public atmosphere. With Senate Bill 1116, the state of California hopes to aid the spheres of public non-profit arts organizations. Out of most businesses hit hard by the pandemic, it is often stated that the arts industry, specifically performing arts, was hit the hardest, with the inability to hold in-person performances massively impacting most organizations' abilities to keep their doors open to the public. They are hoping that this bill will help create jobs and opportunities within the arts to revitalize the arts within the smaller communities of the state. This act will also inherently work towards highlighting the social justice advocacy often seen within the arts, as well as the voices of marginalized groups that would otherwise have been silenced due to lack of funding and accessibility.
This bill is important, especially for cities like Los Angeles where theatre can be overshadowed by the film industry. More funding for the arts can have such a huge impact on the well-being of a city and its people. This summer, I was working on a play with an actor from Los Angeles who shared some insight with me about the theatre scene out there. He explained that there are a lot of smaller theatres where film and TV stars perform in to get their start. The focus of these venues is not necessarily to put on big elaborate productions; but rather to get people onstage, working, in front of an audience. I hope that Governor Newsom and other elected officials have the chance to engage with local theatre makers to understand where their money is going and how to best serve the people of their community. I hope more states can begin to have these conversations too.
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