Show(s) must go on: Local arts groups go online amid financial worries

One of the main purposes of the arts is to bring people together, both literally and figuratively. That’s why the coronavirus pandemic, with its mandate for social distancing, has Lexington arts groups reeling.

With virtually all live performances canceled or postponed and museums and galleries shuttered until the authorities deem it safe to reconvene — and the widespread uncertainty about when that might happen — the arts as we know them in Lexington are essentially on hold until further notice.

Financially, groups are pleading for ticket refunds to become donations as the possibility of layoffs loom.

But the show(s) must go on, if only in small-scale, alternate forms. Some groups are beginning to respond to the crisis by offering ad hoc programming, mostly on social media (especially Facebook and Instagram), on YouTube, on radio and on videoconferencing platforms such as Zoom.

Financial strain

With the loss of income a major worry for Lexington arts groups, most are taking a wait-and-see approach before resorting to long- or even short-term staff reductions. A notable exception is the Living Arts & Science Center, which recently announced that it was furloughing 10 of its 13 staff members, including its executive director, Lori Halligan.

The oldest and most established arts groups may be among the most vulnerable to financial pressure during the pandemic — as evidenced by Lexington Children’s Theatre’s request for its patrons and students to consider their tickets for canceled performances and classes as donations to the company.

“We need our #LCTFamily now more than ever,” the theater pleads on its website. “We know that with your help we can make it through this stronger than ever — because that’s what families do.”

“The economic impact of the pandemic on nonprofits is quite real,” said Allison Kaiser, Lexington Philharmonic Executive Director. “Orchestras in particular always live in a fragile funding environment because we’re such an expensive art form to produce. When we lose ticket sales, that’s big, especially if we can’t reschedule our postponed concerts before our current fiscal year ends on June 30.”

Couch Concerts from Distilled Theatre Company

Distilled Theatre Company, for example, is already out of the gate with “Couch Concerts,” a series featuring several of its musical theater performers singing (and sometimes dancing and/or playing instruments) from their living rooms. Rolled out daily, the concerts are available on Distilled’s Facebook page and YouTube.

“With so many things closed or postponed, there’s so much sadness, and I think we wanted to do something positive — both for the community and for ourselves,” said Wesley Nelson, executive director of Distilled, which managed to complete its recent run of Stephen Sondheim’s “Into the Woods” just before the pandemic hit Lexington.

“We thrive through collaboration and sharing our art,” Nelson said. “Having artists just sit quietly in their homes and still share with thousands of people is very inspiring, especially for people who are feeling alone right now. The Couch Concerts show that we’re not alone, even though we’re isolated.”

Philharmonic shows

The Lexington Philharmonic, which postponed its March and April concerts at the Singletary Center for the Arts, is planning a similarly intimate series of solo and/or duo video concerts from the homes of its orchestra players.

“We’ve asked our musicians to do some impromptu solo or small- group chamber music pieces if they’re married,” said Kaiser, the orchestra’s executive director. “We’re also creating new educational content for parents and schools to use in the interim.”

The Philharmonic has also arranged for WEKU 88.9 FM to rebroadcast its February concert, “Blue Beethoven,” on April 10 and 12.

AthensWest Theatre on the radio

AthensWest Theatre Company, which canceled its scheduled production of Jordan Harrison’s “Maple and Vine” at the Downtown Arts Center because of the pandemic, instead has been considering a remount of its recent production of Oscar Wilde’s “The Importance of Being Earnest” — whose cast was and remains all local — on a radio station yet to be announced.

“We’ve been brainstorming about what theater can look like in this time of social distancing,” producing artistic director Bo List said. “As we’re hunkering down and battening down the hatches, we’re also trying to figure out how to keep providing a service and fulfilling our mission, which is to bring people together. It’s our job to figure that out.”

Art classes online

Arts classes are still being offered, mostly online and through videoconferencing, at organizations as diverse as the Carnegie Center for Literacy & Learning and Central Kentucky Improv.

“I’ve been training with the Magnet Theater in New York City on how to give improv classes on Zoom,” said Heather MacDermott Baumann, co-founder of Central Kentucky Improv, which has canceled its recent performances at Al’s Bar and the Ahava Center. “Magnet has actually doing improv shows via Zoom that have been successful. I’m hoping we can do that too, if we can get it running. I’m flying by the seat of my pants, but it’s worth it because community and laughter are so important right now.”

The Lexington Ballet was one of the first arts groups in the city to adopt social distancing measures, quickly canceling its upcoming production of “Snow White” at the Lexington Opera House. They are asking people who purchased tickets to consider donating their refund to support the artist.

But in the meantime, they are offering dance and Pilates classes, some of them for free.

“We’re losing a lot of income because the show was actually selling well, and we had already been rehearsing for four weeks,” artistic director Luis Dominguez said. “At the time, we made the decision, we also had dancers from all over the country in town auditioning for next season. Everybody was really disappointed, but they understand the gravity of the situation. With something like dance, it’s impossible to practice social distancing. But we’re keeping busy with the online classes.”

This story was originally published March 28, 2020 at 10:33 AM.