The business of theatre

I confess, I laughed reading Amy Barratt’s article last week [“Saving Shakespeare”]. But after the laughter, I felt that a more real and important story was not told: that of the ridiculous business of putting on theatre.
My businessman uncle once told me that any “good” business runs with its expenses at 30 per cent of its income. Most theatre companies’ door receipts cover about 30 per cent of the cost of the production, leaving the additional 70 per cent or so to government grants and good old fundraising, and that’s just to break even. Most professional shows cost between $50,000 to $70,000 to produce. If a play runs three weeks, six shows a week at a 200 seat venue, $18/ticket to 40 per cent capacity (which is pretty good for English theatre in Montreal), that play will gross $25,920. That play would be considered a hit and that hit would still be around $25,000 to $45,000 short of breaking even.

Higher ticket prices would create more revenue, but would alienate audiences. Theatre is not a self-sustaining enterprise, far from it; it’s at the mercy of the business community and the Canada Council jury. It is on the life-support of the generosity of others and there are increasing examples in this city that this life-support is not as dependable as it once was, and that’s pretty scary.

So whose problem is this to solve? It would be unfair to say that the business community is not being generous. What do they have to gain from the arts, really? Most corporate sponsorship is dressed-up advertising, and for the most part there are far more efficient ways to spend that advertising dollar. Is it fair to heap all the responsibility on the government when the health-care system is in such a shambles? Should more people make an effort to take in some theatre? The story is starting to sound like the Expos. I, for one, hope the ending will be different.

—Howard Bilerman

No peace in the Middle East

This is in reference to last week’s letter entitled “Israel’s bills.” Israel is the undisputed military might of the Middle East. It receives $3-billion (U.S.) yearly from the United States, no strings attached, and it’s plain to see that much of it is spent on state-of-the-art military equipment. Their best friend, the United States, is the world’s undisputed military might.
Compare this to the Palestinians, who have a few guns, grenades, nails, rocks, Velcro, curfews, checkpoints and slave labour wages. These destitute people, I assume, would probably rather be fighting the war from a shiny new tank rather than blowing themselves up with nothing to win or lose. What they don’t seem to have are tanks, planes, rockets, satellites, intelligence service, control over electricity and water, humanitarian aid, access to media, $3-billion (U.S.), and most importantly, a country.
It’s plain to see that Palestinians are living in abject misery, poverty and under racist violent military oppression and occupation. Their population and remaining territory are being systematically reduced. This latest military invasion has demolished even larger portions of their communities, leaving hundreds murdered and injured in Israeli military tracks. How will they ever be able to rebuild? Or is that the point?

As apologists for Israeli aggression blame the genocide on other countries for not “absorbing” the Palestinians, they unwittingly admit to the genocide by saying, “It’s your fault, we have to kill them.” It’s the people pulling the triggers that are the killers, and these are the Israeli military.

—Johanne Patry

When the United Nations is called an anti-Israeli organization, as it was last week by a reader, it is a perfect example of the paranoid, self-victimizing and fact-twisting attitude Israelis and their supporters have been taking through these events.

When the UN wants to send a team to inquire into Jenin, the head of the team is called an anti-Semite by a spokesperson for Ariel Sharon. When journalists, human rights organizations and the Red Cross want to enter occupied Palestinian territories, they’re blocked and called anti-Israeli. Hell, that reader will probably read this and call me an anti-Semite!
I think it’s time for someone to loudly state the facts about what is going on in Palestine. The number of Palestinians dead is three to four times the number of Israelis. Who’s terrorizing who?

—Leon Varela