I am the general and artistic director of the Espace le vrai monde?, a multidisciplinary space that I created three years ago. (You’re talking about a timing to start a place of distribution…!) Until today, I managed to ride the waves by finding a certain meaning in my commitment to my environment.
When the theaters first closed, I obediently reinvented my job as a broadcaster by acquiring robotic cameras to improvise myself as the master of recording. Like everyone else, I tried to maintain the link with the public while allowing artists to perform. Some great experiences have come out of it, but let’s be clear, live arts webcasting is not a replacement solution.
I have also, like all my peers, tamed the sad art of deprogramming… Queen postponements and cancellations, I too played the sometimes illogical yo-yo of health rules, postponing shows, adjusting the gauges and tirelessly redoing my room plans. I called the spectators one by one to postpone their tickets, to discuss with them the measures in place, telling them that the risks were minimal since there had been no notorious outbreaks in our sector. My room being affiliated with a CEGEP, I tried to convince teachers to continue to include shows in their lesson plans, even if we know that it risks closing, even if the vaccine passport was required of their students… We are far from the type of audience development that I dreamed of three years ago.
I also consoled artists on the verge of despair. So much work postponed… or forever. So many speeches that evaporate in silence.
But above all, I made innumerable grant applications and often complex, sometimes inconsistent reporting. My body therefore finds itself, according to the waves, variations and sanitary measures, on the artificial respirator.
sense lost
The support measure for the ticket office of the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec came, during the first wave, to respond to an emergency situation. This measure was well suited, allowing broadcasters to honor the fees of postponed and canceled productions. It aimed to support artists who were already programmed.
The programming for the 2021-2022 season being made up of postponements of shows canceled (often two or three times) in 2020, the measure often concerns the same show team. Overall, it supports a minority of artists, and very rarely supports designers and technicians. The teams of shows that were not yet scheduled find themselves completely abandoned by this measure, not to mention the fact that it involves immense logistics for small and large theaters alike. It monopolizes the teams and puts the mental health of the employees at risk. Moreover, the measure does not cover all of the expenses incurred by the presentation of a show and absurdly contributes to the deterioration of the financial health of certain venues.
I am not saying that this measure should be abolished, quite the contrary, but we must realize that it amplifies the inequalities and disparities present in an ecosystem weakened by the pandemic.
Since the return from the Holidays, my tongue is on the floor, with the fear that the members of my technical teams will let me go to change jobs, with the sadness of seeing the bond of trust with the public crumble, and with the feeling of being used by the government, which should urgently review its way of supporting the living arts community, starting with artists. All this while continuing to program for subsequent years, without really knowing what type of calendar to follow…
In short, I lost my senses.
I think we’ve all kinda lost our way.
Collective reflection
This pandemic will have raised major fundamental questions, on the business model of theatres, on the impact of funding, on risk-taking and boldness in programming choices, on the type of links we want to forge with our audiences, on the social safety net of artists, on the necessity of art in our lives and in our education system.
Just being able to name it is an advancement, as my shrink would say.
I don’t know if the worst is behind us, but I know we still have a long way to go, even if theaters are reopening soon.
Now, where to start?
Let’s give ourselves a little predictability first. But please, let’s take the time to put these thoughts on the agenda. The pandemic will have served us at least for that. This collective reflection, I am convinced, will only make us bigger, more united, more solid, more united and more essentially necessary.