Subject: Re: the Arts in Singapore
Hi, Sherrie,
It's too bad that the arts have taken a back seat in Singapore, but I can understand it from what I've read and that you confirmed in your column.
But I think that the arts community will grow if someone takes a chance and continues with it. Here in the US, there will be towns and cities that grow up as meccas to the arts. Minneapolis is an example of a city that went forever without any theatre and because of the Guthrie Theatre back in the 60s, it has become a bright spot for theatre. And Chicago is a wonderful example. I just opened a production of Harold Pinter's Betrayal in Chicago last Friday. The city has 117 theatres and probably 200 theatre companies, >ours being one of the newest.
We could have gone to St. Louis, but there is a blight of theatre there. Only a couple of companies exist and most of what is pulled in is touring show, such as Les Miz. As a result the audiences aren't educated to go to the theatre and the newspapers don't have reviewers trained to review.
By contrast Chicago has a number of newspapers and a dozen reviewers. Reviews bring in people and educated the public and set the tone of "what's happening" out there. I think that Inkpot could go a long ways in improving >the arts situation there.
Perhaps Singapore will learn (as unfortunately the US has forgotten) that if they are looking to business as the driving force for the economy, then they should looked to the arts. For every $1 spend on the arts, the city gets $3 back (through restaurants, cabs, hotels, etc.). So if it a financial consideration, eventually (hopefully) Singapore will understand the business >sense that the arts make.
You have a nice column--and a good website.
Jerry
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