Inviting Conservatives to the Arts Advocacy Table

Posted by Bruce Miller
I had a lively and informative conversation this afternoon with a conservative Republican party delegate who also happens to be an arts supporter. I have always believed that, on principle, funding Virginia's nonprofit arts organizations should be on the conservative agenda. It was wonderful to have a full-bodied discussion with a Republican who agrees.

The Commonwealth's nonprofit arts organizations are all about conserving appreciation for and presentation of art forms that have been around for generations. If this conservation ceases to take place, the great art experiences that so enriched the lives of our parents, grandparents and great grandparents will be all but lost to modern temptations such as bar hopping, video gaming, the Internet, and social media. Nonprofit arts organizations conserve the arts in the same way that parks conserve nature and libraries conserve literature. Doesn't everyone want to keep these great resources alive for our children and grandchildren?

The Commonwealth's nonprofit arts organizations are a vital engine of economic development and sound fiscal planning. Healthy and accomplished arts organizations lure major employers to relocate to Virginia cities. Nonprofit arts organizations themselves, like all small businesses, generate thousands of jobs, thereby boosting the economy. In fact, nonprofit arts organizations tend to be uniquely labor intensive. We've yet to reach the point where robots paint our pictures, dance in our ballets, play in our symphonies, sing in our operas, or act in our theatres. We are not a mechanized industry; we're a people industry--the best kind to have in a flagging economy.

Unique among most businesses (small or otherwise), the Commonwealth's nonprofit arts organizations are integrally tied to education. Many if not most perform in schools, welcome students into exhibits and performances, and, when involving students in performance or production, teach the 21 Century workforce skills that are so in demand: creative problem solving, teamwork, critical thinking, etc.

The Commonwealth's nonprofit arts organizations bring money from out of state into Virginia. Much like the film industry, for which Gov McDonnell sought and won increased funding, our nonprofit arts industry has an overall economic impact that greatly exceeds that of most small businesses. We attract audiences from neighboring states into Virginia to see our exhibits and performances. We develop artistic products in state, spending millions in labor and production expenses, and then pay back that investment by touring the programs to paying audiences living throughout the nation.

My new conservative Republican friend could not have agreed more with each of these points. Together, we are going to be assembling a small committee of like-minded conservatives to meet one evening at Barksdale to develop a list of talking points that will encourage other conservatives to begin to appreciate the common sense importance of public support for the arts. In a second meeting, we're going to invite the chairs of various local Republican committees to discuss the issue with us, and allow us to speak to their memberships at their monthly meetings.

If you or anyone you know is a conservative, politically active Republican who understands the value of public support of the nonprofit arts, please get in touch with me. We would LOVE to have you join us in our effort to find common ground between Republicans and Democrats, arts supporters and arts novices, all of whom want the same thing--an economically healthy, educationally vibrant Virginia--ready to meet the challenges and opportunities of this no longer new 21st Century.

--Bruce Miller

Actors Don Festive Finery to Lobby for VCA

Posted by Phil Whiteway
Yesterday was Arts Advocacy Day at the Virginia General Assembly. Representatives of over 200 nonprofit arts organizations from throughout the Commonwealth joined forces to lobby the House and Senate for increased funding for the Virginia Commission for the Arts. Whereas many of our neighboring states fund their nonprofit arts industry at $2 per capita or more, Virginia funding still falls far short at less than 70 cents per capita.

The goal of Arts Advocacy Day is to increase Virginia’s public support for all of the Commonwealth’s nonprofit arts organizations to $1 per capita. That’s right, we’re working strenuously, and have been for years, to convince our elected officials that all of the arts in the entire state are worth one tax dollar per citizen.

We at Barksdale and Theatre IV did our part in this lobbying effort by providing each legislator with a voucher for two free tickets to the show of his or her choice, and by asking two of our handsomely costumed characters to help escort elected officials into the House of Delegates.

Above and to the right you'll see Jennings Whiteway escorting Del Riley Ingram from Hopewell. Del Ingram is a GREAT guy and a longtime friend. He entered the chambers through an alternate entrance, and when he noticed the performing artists escorting the Delegates in, he left his seat, worked his way around back to the main entrance, and re-entered with Jennings as a way of showing respect and support for Virginia's arts community.

The photo above and to the left shows Del Chris Saxman from Staunton, and the photo to the right shows Del Tom Gear from Hampton. In keeping with the theme of the Jamie Brindle blog post, we offer the photo below and to the left. When we were getting set up to begin the ushering, an eighth grader came racing in to say hello. Turns out it was Jake Boon, veteran child actor of Theatre IV's Santa's Toyland Adventure and The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, now serving as a page in the General Assembly.

Great work, Jake!

After the escorting was done and the House had convened, Del Jennifer L McClellan, District 71 Richmond (the district in which the Empire is located), introduced our actors to the assembled body as follows:

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the House of Delegates –

It is my pleasure to recognize our two escorts today – Ms Jennings Whiteway and Mr. Eddie Tavares, representing the cast of The True Story of Pocahontas, produced by Theatre IV – The Children’s Theatre of Virginia.

Created and presented in association with the Virginia Historical Society, The True Story of Pocahontas toured to hundreds of elementary schools statewide throughout all of 2007, reinforcing the instruction mandated in Virginia’s Standards of Learning. In fact, Theatre IV, headquartered in my district, is the largest school-based, professional children’s theatre in the United States. They have performed in every school district in the Commonwealth, and currently reach over 500,000 Virginia children, parents and teachers each year.

Theatre IV is only one of over 200 nonprofit arts organizations in our state that are participating today in Arts Advocacy Day, in support of the Virginia Commission for the Arts. With you, I applaud all of our state’s nonprofit, professional arts organizations, and thank them for their invaluable contributions to education, tourism, economic development, and the quality of life we all enjoy throughout the Commonwealth."

Thanks to Jennings and Eddie for their efforts on behalf of Theatre IV and Barksdale Theatre. Special thanks to Del Jenn McClellan (pictured to the right with Gov Tim Kaine and Barack Obama) for her gracious introduction.

--Phil Whiteway