Charles Grippo

I'm worried about the damage this bad economy is doing to the theater. Several well known, long established theaters have already either filed for bankruptcy or are teetering on the brink. Rumors are swirling about others. Donations are drying up. Foundations are holding back on grant money. The states are scraping the bottoms of their treasuries, just to keep out of bankruptcy themselves, so there isn't likely to be much state money around for arts companies. As I point out in my current newsletter half the shows currently running on Broadway will close this month. Commercial producers are having a tough time capitalizing new productions. Several projects previously announced have either postponed or are cancelling altogether. People are losing their homes, their jobs, their retirement savings, their medical insurance. And so far no one - not the Fed, not the Treasury, certainly not Congress, not the financial authorities in other countries -- has been able to get a handle on the global slowdown. It all seems to be getting worse every day. President-Elect Obama's economic stimulus package seems to get bigger by the hour ---as I write this, the latest estimate runs to $775 billion, with a federal deficit, according to the Congressional Budget office, predicted to approach $1.2 trillion. The CBO also predicts 9% unemployment by 2010. And the CBO budget report on the outlook for the next ten(!)years would give God reason to slash his throat. So I ask you: How is your theater company coping with the recession? How are you, as an individual, coping? Got any money saving tips you wish to share with your colleagues? Post them here.