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My Turnby Dmae Roberts |
 |
From The Asian Reporter, V20, #9 (March 9, 2010), page 6.
Everywhere there’s art
Growing up in isolation in rural Oregon, I believe the arts saved my life. My family was struggling to make ends meet and we were stuck on a two-acre farm in the countryside. With no neighbors or friends around me, I credit the school arts program for giving me hope. I was in band, choir, and drama and thrived in creative writing classes. The fact that this little school had what seems now a wealth of arts contrasts with the lack of arts opportunities for kids today. These classes allowed me to dream and to see a future outside of being poor and depressed.
I moved to Portland 20 years ago primarily because I wanted more diversity as well as opportunities to be an actor. What I found was a thriving theatre community that welcomed new actors to enliven a multitude of exciting work.
I’m still fortunate to live in Portland and to be a working artist. Here we have more artists, performers, writers, musicians, and visual artists per capita than many cities of the same size. The quality of life draws artists to Portland, though arts groups fight a seemingly uphill battle to attract audiences even for low-cost or free events.
Yet I’ve heard from countless people who have ventured to go to an art event how much they enjoyed it. Patrons love being exposed to art, although very few want to pay for it.
According to a national survey done by Americans for the Arts in January 2010, the number of arts organizations has grown in the last decade, but audience demand has not kept pace. In a 2003 study by the Urban Institute, 96 percent of Americans value art in their communities while only 27 percent believe artists contribute "a lot" to the good of society. It’s true in Oregon, where for decades state funding for the arts has been traditionally lower than other states. And in these hard economic times, it’s even more difficult to convince the public of the need to support arts programs. The lack of value in the arts is also reflected in the lack of coverage in mainstream media locally as well as nationally.
As the host of Stage and Studio, a Tuesday morning arts show on KBOO radio, I receive dozens of e-mails each week from artists and arts groups wanting to be part of my half-hour program. Every week, I engage in enlightening conversations with artists who have dedicated their lives to creating work that is their personal legacy to the world.
I recently witnessed Minh Tran dance his last performance via White Bird Dance in the intimate wood-beamed lodge of the World Forestry Center. I went to the First Presbyterian Church and heard Stephen Marc Beaudoin sing a haunting 12th-century music piece with some of the best singers in town while the sun streamed through stained glass and a gigantic pipe organ heralded. As part of Fertile Ground at Artists Repertory Theatre, I saw Susan Banyas perform a moving personal theatre piece on desegregation in her hometown of Hillsboro, Ohio with two stellar African-American actresses (LaVerne Green and Jennifer Lanier) I’d never before seen on stage. The same month, I watched international films from Asia, Africa, and Europe I wouldn’t have known about had the Northwest Film Center not produced a festival that’s been going on for more than 30 years.
A majority of the offerings I mentioned cost around $10, which is cheaper than most movie theaters nowadays, without the temptation of overpriced popcorn and drinks. Many small performance theatres offer Thursday pay-what-you-will nights, which means exactly that. And with the need to fill seats, most high-end arts organizations offer cheap rush tickets 30 minutes before the show or more affordable group rates if you have nine friends join you.
It’s astonishing when even the middle class says it doesn’t use art so why pay for it? Art is everywhere. We hear music on the radio and wear clothing designed by people with artistic flair. We’re moved by novels we read, we buy greeting cards and calendars, and pass by murals or drive cars created to be visually appealing. And every week in Portland, if we choose, we have an opportunity to attend an arts festival of our own design simply by going to a play, dance performance, concert, First Thursday event, or reading at a neighborhood bookstore.
In March and April, I’m interviewing members of several small- to mid-size independent theatre companies on Stage and Studio. These groups, however, are only a drop in the bucket of what’s available on stages and in clubs, theatres, and concert halls throughout the Portland metropolitan area. What a wealth of opportunities to be entertained, enthralled, and truly changed!
As a kid, I thought it was exciting to travel to Eugene to see a high school production of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. I could only hope to one day experience the artistry I watched on the "Masterpiece Theatre" television show. Now I feel blessed to be an artist in this remarkable arts com- munity and also to be one of its patrons.
Editor’s note: Stage and Studio airs Tuesday mornings on KBOO 90.7 FM. The show is also found online at <www.kboo.fm/stageandstudio>.