Stu Hamstra on Mon. Night's MAC Gen Mtg
Stu Hamstra on Mon. Night's MAC Gen Mtg
Stu Hamstra on Mon. Night's MAC Gen Mtg#0
Posted: 5/18/06 at 5:32pm
Here's what Stu wrote in today's cabarethotlinonline newsletter.
Milla
"Probably some NYC entrepreneur is already selling t-shirts that read "I Survived the MAC General Meeting on May 16, 2006" but I hope he only printed 1/2 a gross, since there were only about 75 folks (including MAC Board members) who showed up. Surprisingly there were only a few brief flare-ups in the 4-hour long session held at JUDSON CHURCH in the Village - in a room reportedly able to handle 300 guests. Apparently expecting a large turnout, the meeting organizers limited each speaker to 2 minutes (later expanded to 3 minutes) after which time they would have to go to the back of the line at the microphone if they had more to say. For some this meant having to quit before they made their point and they had to reintroduce their remarks when they retuned to the mic, making for a lot of repetition. Some thought should have been given to allowing speakers 5 or 6 minutes their first time up, and the 2 or 3 minutes for subsequent remarks - but that is moot at this point.
There are a few fine and detailed comments about the meeting written by attendees on the CABARET HOTLINE ONLINE website that present more about the meeting and the feelings of those present than I have time and space for here. (Just click on the gold button marked CABARET CHAT at the top of every page on my website.) I came away from the meeting hopeful that the MAC board was more aware of the breadth of dissatisfaction on the part of many passionate cabaret performers and that this is not just a one issue problem. I also know that many present were made aware of some of the history that brought us to this place - past events that are the root cause of a lot of dissatisfaction among the membership, some events and actions of even four or five years ago when the membership was nearly triple its current size.
In commenting on the reasons for the steep decline in membership (about 45$ in just the past 2 years alone) once again remarks were made from the board table placing much on the blame on a "hostile press that likes to spin information against the board" and "a few people who do nothing but attack the board on message boards and chat rooms." Hopefully, the MAC board will take a look at the decisions and actions they have taken these past two years - many important ones - without ever consulting or informing the membership in advance, as being a major part of the dissatisfaction.
In spite of the admission that it was a mistake not to inform the membership on the decisions regarding the balloting for the MAC AWARDS, it was still not made clear at this meeting if this mistake was intentional or if it was an oversight - and either way it points out the incompetence (or is it chicanery?) on the part of the board and its advisors. If the secrecy was intentional, anticipating opposition by the membership, some resignations would be in order. It was pointed out that 1/2 the board positions would be elected in September (no one was quite sure who on the board this applied to and who would be running for re-election), and the board promised that those running should make their positions clear on the issues presented at this meeting. It was also quite evident that the so called "unanimous decisions" long touted by the board, were probably not as unanimous after all.
There was a rather strong sentiment in favor of possibly skipping the MAC AWARDS event in 2007 so that the board could get a little breathing room to "get their act together." With a major change in the makeup of the board last September, including new top officers, it was pointed out that the new board suddenly found itself involved with planning the MAC AWARDS and had little time to really organize efficiently for several months. It was brought up again and again how hard everyone on the board was working - and this resulted in more than one speaker from the floor remarking, as Julie Reyburn says in her letter to the board published on the CABARET HOTLINE ONLINE message board: "Yes, you are working hard, but are you working hard on the right things? Work smarter, not harder."
As to the matter of MAC attempting to increase influence and membership by allowing nominations to be made on behalf of those in the jazz and comedy fields without requiring membership dues and without the eligibility/nomination/election process that cabaret performers had to go through (the board admitted that in come cases jazz and comedy performers were nominated even without their knowledge), there was a strong resentment on the part of many cabaret performers at the meeting.
If any unity was achieved, it was the fact that everyone in the room is passionate about making MAC a better organization. Vast differences of opinion as to how that should be accomplished still remain. There is a MAC Board of Directors meeting scheduled for mid-June and it remains to be seen if the meeting on Tuesday night will make any difference in the way matters are handled."
Updated On: 5/18/06 at 05:32 PM
re: Stu Hamstra on Mon. Night's MAC Gen Mtg#2
Posted: 5/19/06 at 12:58pmI still think that somebody should form a new organization completely. Cabaret just doesn't exist in NYC the way that it did when MAC was initially formed.
re: Stu Hamstra on Mon. Night's MAC Gen Mtg#3
Posted: 5/19/06 at 6:04pm
Let's discuss:
I think it should be a 501c(3) not-for-profit, tax deductible org. that is pro active for performers, lobbies, does pro bono work the community at large, & more.
MB, your thoughts?
Milla
Broadway Star Joined: 11/2/04
re: Stu Hamstra on Mon. Night's MAC Gen Mtg#4
Posted: 5/19/06 at 7:31pm
I think MAC should dump the awards entirely.
It's not that I think cabaret performers shouldn't be recognized -- they should -- but let's face it, the MAC award has never been an award of excellence, because all of the members vote on them, and the vast majority of those members haven't seen a single one of the performances they're voting for, which reduces it to a simple popularity contest.
In fact, the only person actually qualified to give out a cabaret award is probably Stu himself.
(Keep shaking them up, Milla, it's good for them.)
re: Stu Hamstra on Mon. Night's MAC Gen Mtg#5
Posted: 5/20/06 at 11:56pm
We'll see what happens re the MAC Awards. Whatever it is, it should be decided by the MAC mbrshp NOT the MAC BOD.
Meanwhile, am very interested in know your thoughts re a new org.
Milla
Videos
