The demise of CTM Madison Family Theater (formerly Childrens' Theater of Madison), a community- based theater group with forty years of history in Madison, should not come as any surprise. In fact, its demise was ordained from the moment the concept of the Overture Center was advanced.
I have tremendous respect for my friend Corkey Custer, the President of CTM, but he is just plain wrong in saying that the financial problems which forced the closing of the theater company were independent of Overture. There is no question that better management of CTM might have forestalled the demise of CTM, but short of a massive infusion of cash, it was inevitable.
In the simplest terms, Overture is not the old Civic Center. The Madison Civic Center was designed to bring balanced programming to the Madison community within a realistic budget.
In part, that meant hosting touring versions of Broadway shows, concerts, dance and comedy. It served as a less than perfect home to dance companies and the symphony. It was also a nutruring place to grow and house community-based theater, which included CTM and the Madison Rep.
Financially, the facility was structured to balance a reasonable taxpayer subsidy, with rents affordable to the local performing arts organizations.
Overture is a different facility in concept and cost. It was first designed as a symphony hall for classical music and dance, then for stage productions, and finally for community theater. There is nothing wrong with that, so long as it is understood that it does not serve the purposes and goals of the Madison Civic Center.
Halfway through the design and development period for Overture, when the costs first went from $50 million to $100 million, and then to over $200 million dollars, it was realized there was no way the resident companies could afford to perform there. That is why the Overture Fund for the Perfoming Arts was established as a grant of $25 million that was to be matched to create an endowment of $50 million.
Into this stepped CTM, and then the curtain came down:
To maintain Overture there must be a steady stream of Broadway shows like last year's Phantom of the Opera. If those shows sell out, there are very few recreational or entertainment audience dollars left for the local community theater companies. Certainly not the ticket sales they need to survive in Overture.
The cost of the 'hall' in Overture is more, particularly when moving from the small, almost intimate Isthmus Playhouse to the larger Capital Theater. When CTM was told of how it would be moved from the Isthmus to the Capital Theater fashioned from the old Oscar Mayer, they were told it would be 400 seats, then 800 seats, and it finally opened with 1200 seats. The Rep will not have as serious a problem but will still face similar issues as it moves its productions to the newer, larger venue.
The cost of productions also go up in the new Overture. This is no longer small theater, this is big stage production, and to attract audiences, everything costs money.
The content itself changes. There was no way the old Christmas Carol could be produced in the Capital Theater as it had been in the old Isthmus Playhouse. As the years go by, whatever remains of community theater in Overture will be significantly different from what we have seen in the past.
Finally, the extrordinary fundraising that went into the Overture Performing Arts Fund took away from the abilty of companies like CTM to maintain their regular fund drives.
What is done is done. The Oscar Mayer Theater is gone. The Isthmus Playhouse is gone. People like me have to accept that and move on. It means that if we want to support community theater, both to nourish young performers, technicians and writers, as well as enjoy the content, community theater needs a new home. The Bartell is a good start, but it is not as good as what we had.
There is another alternative but I find it unacceptable. Find a source of an additional $25 million to provide the kind of endowment to keep CTM and the other small companies in Overture. I find that unacceptable for two reasons. First, we have already seen what large sums of money can do to change the content and fare in terms of the balance between the performing arts in a community. Secondly, it does not solve the problem of providing adequate and appropriate space for CTM. Just as CTM and the Rep had to share the Isthmus with each other and others, they would have to do the same at Overture.
Enjoy the touring Broadway musicals and the big name middle-of-the-road concerts.
Paul, I'm not sure I agree with all that you write here, but you make some strong arguments. I have come to truly enjoy the Overture Center and am glad for it. I am not, however, indifferent to legitimate concerns about the impact the facility has had or will have on local arts groups. My question is this: what would your alternative have been in 1997? Should the community have turned down the donation? Should other steps have been taken at that time to assist and protect local arts groups?
When I hear about "the problem with Overture", I frankly find it to be a bit ungrateful. It was a staggering donation to provide such a palace to the arts. Do you really mean to suggest implicitly or otherwise that our community is worse off for the Frautchi’s generosity? If that's not your assertion, I'd prefer a specific discussion of what mistakes were made or what corrections can take place, rather than to broadly tarnish such an act of charity.
With respect and thanks for you continued contribution to the public dialogue,
dfk
Posted by: Dan Kanninen | February 06, 2006 at 02:27 PM