Actors and techies: Buck up

Charles McNulty delivers a pep talk to theater-lovers in the L.A. Times — bloated musicals, yes, but also innovative ones; more than half a dozen promising young playwrights; and a warning that times only seem to be bad because, you know, so did the Panic of 1893 at the time.

It's time for an end-of-year shout-out to all those Spokane-area theater artists who labor on and on for less and less and nothing. When has it ever NOT been a time of crisis in the theater world? Your contributions keep a 2,000-year-old international venture going. Keep putting on the eye liner and God bless you.

[ photo: playwright Rajiv Joseph (Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo); from secondstagetheatre.com in New York City ]

Not a crisis but an opportunity

An L.A. Times article suggests the economic meltdown may provide a chance for theaters to draw in more of their lukewarm customers by offering "Pay What You Can" nights out.
(photo: La Jolla Playhouse at UC San Diego)