A strike by Arts on Jan. 20?

I'm surprised there are no comments from those for whom the art of theater is of utmost importance. And from those who are so vehemently against the president elect and all he stands for.

There are no opinions of the closing of theater and all other art on Jan. 20? No one cares? I guess you'd all rather post what the worst musical you ever saw was, than what could happen to the arts under this president to be.

pity

Updated On: 12/17/16 at 09:56 PM

I think some people are just sick of hearing about politics, I know I am.



I don't know what Broadway shows would actually participate on this but I'm sure not every single person, actors / stage hands / theatre crew all voted for the same person anyway.



Also almost all of the shows on Broadway right now have nothing to do with politics anyway, what would Wicked and the Lion King, etc etc etc have any reason to do this.



Nothing is going to happen to the arts anyway and this "strike" would do nothing but lose money for these shows for the day. Pointless to me.

Updated On: 12/18/16 at 12:59 AM

I'm not familiar with the author or his website but I'm going to go out on a limb and say the call for a general strike is not going to go anywhere. There doesn't appear to be any momentum here, just one or two people on the fringes of the arts community saying there should be one and they'll circulate the idea.

Some people just like to call for protests for the sake of protesting cause it makes them feel like they are "doing something". I'm not saying protests are not effective. The folks in North Dakota as an example are clearly having an impact but you protest because you have a specific cause or issue and are asking for a specific outcome. These general "Trump is a bad guy and we're protesting him taking office cause we don't like him" protests are a waste of everyone's time. If anything we've seen these types of public challenges only embolden him.

Also telling was the author's remark that one day's loss of salary shouldn't be a big deal for anyone. Easy for him to say. I didn't see him saying he would shut down his site for the day and forego any profits or income for the day.

Thanks so much for your replies! I can understand your reasons, but if you read the piece, it mentions that closing down of all arts for one day would point out how important they are, and how much of life is affected by art. This is not a political statement as much as a wakeup call for some people.

Do you know that the first thing that's cut out of an educational curriculum is art?

As for the complaint that artists would lose one day's money, well, I don't think money is paramount to making the statement of how important art is to life.

Also, as you all know, most artists do not make any money from their art. They keep doing it because it's in their blood. So one more day of not making any money, but making a statement, is important.

Would you say that doing nothing is a better idea/

Updated On: 12/18/16 at 10:43 AM

It's legend that the GOP is not in favor of supporting the arts in general. I keep remembering Giuliani's campaign to ban the art of Ifili.

And so what if it is political? Should the anti Trump rallies not have taken place? Should we just stand by and stifle ourselves?

Updated On: 12/18/16 at 11:56 AM

Broadway Joe said: "Also almost all of the shows on Broadway right now have nothing to do with politics anyway, what would Wicked and the Lion King, etc etc etc have any reason to do this. "

Wicked is all about politics. Think how easy it is to see Bannon as the Wizard and Conway as Madame Morrible,

I guess it was a slippery slope from "we won't be silenced" to "oh look, we are silent." All the guy had to do was win an election to shut us up?

Jane, I promise I'm not trying to give you a hard time....but support of the arts from whom? The government? We've never had a lot of funding from that arena. And I don't mind that we don't -- with federal funding comes federal strings - especially with this admin.



Those of us that DO support the arts don't need reminders to do so. Those that don't, aren't going to care or notice a one day strike.



I guess, I'm not really sure what this hopes to actually "say". As an educator OF the arts, I'm fully aware of how quickly funding gets hit in times of budget issues.

Don't mistake this for support ofthem, but Mike Pence's wife, Karen, is an artist and supporter of the arts.

Taken from a Cosmopolitan (I know) write-up about her:

"She formed the Indiana First Lady's Charitable Foundation in 2013 to promote individuals and organizations that encourage children, families, and the arts, the IndyStar reports. The foundation offers grants and scholarships to these individuals and organizations, and the foundation first benefited Riley's Art Therapy Initiative, an art therapy program for hospitalized children."

I'm pretty sure they're at least a little aware of the importance of the arts.

Yes, notice -- I didn't say NO funding, I said we don't have a lot. And never have.



But I'm not sure how this would make a difference to those that have no interest in the arts, They already AREN'T noticing.

Just like no one will ever be able to entice me to watch WW Wrestling or a monster truck rally, there are some that just don't WANT to have art in their lives. I'd only notice things I care about going missing. If there was never another wrestling or truck rally, I wouldn't even KNOW.

adamgreer said: "I think a better response would be to create art that provokes and challenges this new "president" rather than shutting everything down."



Hear, hear.

adamgreer said: "I think a better response would be to create art that provokes and challenges this new "president" rather than shutting everything down."

That's what art does and has been doing since the beginning of time. It's all around. And because of provocation and challenge, some art is banned by the wrong administration.