Creative economy

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Women dancers in black pose on a black stage. Two lie on their sides; one rises w/ arms lifted, & one stands bending an arm

A rebrand at the Annenberg Center is true to a move beyond the building

Welcoming Penn Live Arts

The arts presenter headquartered at the Annenberg Center goes back to its roots with a new name: Penn Live Arts. Camille Bacon-Smith explores the update.
Camille Bacon-Smith

Camille Bacon-Smith

Features 4 minute read
A beneficiary of the Cultural Fund: Theatre in the X’s 2019 production of ‘The Beast of Nubia.’ (Photo by Johanna Austin.)

City Councilmember Isaiah Thomas launches the Philadelphia Arts and Culture Task Force

Will a new task force give arts leaders a voice in future city budgets?

Following a successful citywide fight to restore some of the Philadelphia Cultural Fund, City Councilmember Isaiah Thomas helms a new task force to boost the arts sector in future. He spoke with Camille Bacon-Smith about what’s next.
Camille Bacon-Smith

Camille Bacon-Smith

Features 6 minute read
An anonymous donor provided dance surfaces to homebound artists, like the PA Ballet’s Jermel Johnson, here practicing at home during the pandemic. (Image courtesy of PA Ballet.)

How are leaders of the Pennsylvania Ballet weathering the pandemic?

Jumping into life at home

Just as it was poised to transition its contemporary ballets to the Perelman, the Pennsylvania Ballet hit the same crisis that every other live arts producer did. Camille Bacon-Smith spoke with the organization's leaders about how dance can survive a pandemic.
Camille Bacon-Smith

Camille Bacon-Smith

Articles 5 minute read
How long until we can breathe in the same space? Kun-Yang Lin in class before the pandemic. (Photo by Ellen Rosenberg Photography.)

How are Philly dance companies surviving the COVID arts lockdown?

Hearts, minds, and bodies

Perhaps more than many other art forms, dance relies on the physical energy between dancers and their audience. Adapting to life in a pandemic is a special challenge for these companies. Leaders at Kun-Yang Lin Dancers and Koresh Dance spoke with Camille Bacon-Smith.
Camille Bacon-Smith

Camille Bacon-Smith

Articles 5 minute read
It’s out there, if you know how to look: nonprofit arts funding. (Photo of Azuka Theatre’s ‘Boycott Esther’ by Johanna Austin/AustinArt.org.)

Scrambling to understand nonprofit arts funding? Here’s what you need to know

The creativity to survive

Nonprofit arts funding can be confusing and daunting, especially as City Council debates eliminating the Philadelphia Cultural Fund in a COVID-19 austerity budget. But there are possibilities and resources. Alix Rosenfeld busts the myths and provides the facts.
Alix Rosenfeld

Alix Rosenfeld

Articles 6 minute read
Edward Pettit, Mary Going, and Lauren Nixon bring Dracula to Zoom every week. (Image courtesy of the Rosenbach.)

Seven tips for transforming in-person conferences into irresistible online experiences

If you stream it, will they come?

Conference veterans and networking mavens Neil Bardhan and Marta Rusek have your guide to organizing virtual gatherings that don’t suck (unless they involve Dracula).
Neil Bardhan Marta Rusek

Neil Bardhanand Marta Rusek

Articles 6 minute read
The cast of EgoPo’s ‘Curse of the Starving Class,’ together before the pandemic descended. (Photo courtesy of EgoPo.)

EgoPo faced disaster once before. How is the company coping in the pandemic?

The day they left

EgoPo Classic Theater relocated successfully to Philadelphia after hurricane Katrina destroyed its former home in New Orleans. Artistic director Lane Savadove talks to Jill Ivey about surviving a second disaster.
Jillian Ashley Blair Ivey

Jillian Ashley Blair Ivey

Articles 4 minute read
Jacqueline Constance is feeling the blow from the pandemic, but that isn't stopping her creativity. (Photo courtesy of the artist.)

In the pandemic shut-down, Philly's musicians find creative ways to keep playing

The gigs we lost

Philly's music scene has taken a hit as clubs and restaurants have shut down and gigs have been canceled. John Morrison speaks with a few local artists on how they are coping, how they are adapting creatively, and what this means for the future of music in the city.
John Morrison

John Morrison

Articles 4 minute read
The show will go on: People’s Light artists gather to film one more run of ‘Shakespeare in Love.’ (Photo by Alix Rosenfeld.)

Theater artists are at work during the COVID-19 lockdown. Here’s how—and where to find them

Quarantine has never killed theater, and it’s not about to

With theaters all over the country going dark indefinitely because of the coronavirus, how will live art continue to thrive? Dramaturg Alix Rosenfeld has news for you.
Alix Rosenfeld

Alix Rosenfeld

Articles 6 minute read
The organ at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in University City is one of many in Philly that need preserving. (Photo by Margaret Darby.)

The Playing and Preserving project aims to save Philly’s endangered historic organs

Organ-ized support

A national nonprofit is combining the forces of several music organizations to help 10 Philadelphia congregations preserve historic organs, launching a three-concert series to engage the public with these important instruments. Margaret Darby considers.
Margaret Darby

Margaret Darby

Articles 3 minute read