Bright Side for the Broadside?
Given the layoffs in arts journalism - a 50% decline in four years - is there any light up ahead in a life spent writing about theatre? Well, it's hard to argue with those terrible numbers. But a few things recently have made me wonder if we're simply in the hard part of an important transition that will leave us stronger than we were before.
Thing #1: A Managing Director reaches out to fans of a critically panned show to voice their own opinions. The result? 30 responses on his blog, 80 responses on the paper's comments section, and all sorts of discussions about the pros and cons of the idea of the effort, its execution and the results.
Thing #2: A fascinating impromptu discussion between two critics about a director's work on a production in context of not only the director's body of work, but the director's contemporaries, as well. (Read down to the comments).
Thing #3: An organization dedicated to theatre bloggers begins to figure out what all these online advocates of our theatre might do together.
Thing #4: One critic engages another about the unspoken politics of their reviewing, and a discussion with strong voices from the Right and Left engage in the comments section.
Taking these 4 things together, it is possible to see a silver lining through all the economic flat lining: critics are now able to engage more immediately, more substantively and more openly with other critics, artists and audiences; with those others now able to respond immediately, substantively, and openly. A discourse about what theatre criticism should be functionally, aesthetically, organizationally and politically is happening; a conversation that anyone with a computer and idle hour can contribute to; and while it may be terribly wishful thinking, I think it is possible that professional theatre journalism may emerge stronger from this process.
We may be reaching a time where a critic gains power because of the quality of their reviews, not the pedigree of their masthead. Audiences will feel a greater connection to that critical vision because they will able to engage with it directly. The advertising dollars that supported arts journalism in print media may find a logical home in that dedicated following. Supported by that revenue, and with that audience engaged, we may be reaching a time where a theatre journalist, solely through a persuasive critical vision and a computer, can help lead our theatre to higher ground.
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I'm actually looking forward to the death of print media because I think this type of thing is the direction we're headed in with arts criticism. I for one am really excited about the prospects.
I am excited about how fast this helps word gets out and many more voices are heard.
There is one enormous problem with the future of theater criticism. Future critics will be hobbyists, not professionals, because there is no way one can buy a new car, buy a house, raise a family and send kids to college with the income a writer derives from the web. The money is not there, and at this point, there is no indication it ever will be there.
Huh,
It is simply way too soon to know that. Advertisers will continue to need to target demographics, and online-savvy theatre-goers are a desirable demographic. The difficulty of generating revenue from online advertisement is indeed a huge question mark, one that extends far beyond theatre journalism, but where there is supply and demand it is reasonable to assume there will be commerce. I think we're so accustomed to exponential growth on the technical side of the internet revolution that we are impatient with the linear growth of the social/practical impact. It is still very early in this particular revolution.
There are additional possibilities for generating revenue. A theatre journalist may use free online content to create an audience to sell a book or public appearances, much the way that myspace functions for bands.
I'm not saying theatre journalism as a paid profession is guaranteed. But I'm saying it is possible, and becomes more possible with every audience member emboldened by the internet to engage directly with theatre journalists.
Interesting article you got here. I'd like to read a bit more concerning that theme. Thanx for posting that info.
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I strongly believe that any kind of writing - objective and unbiased, of course - is welcome. It is something that give information and unites like-minded people. There is no anything bad in either theatre criticism or any other criticism and writing.
Great post! Really enjoyed reading. Keep up the good work!
Thanks for sharing this information. It's always helpful to learn something new.
I appreciate the thorough research and analysis you put into your posts.
I love how you blend personal anecdotes with informative content. It makes for a compelling read.
Interesting read! I'd love to see more posts like this in the future.