Since working at Mu, I have been fortunate to be a part of a capacity building program at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. (going on my third year of participation). This program, led by Michael Kaiser, has done a lot to change the way I think and was already changing Mu when I got there.
Michael is known as the "turn around king" for taking over a number of troubled arts organizations with millions of dollars in debt and within one year closing that gap and producing the organizations most ambitious season in its history. The Alvin Ailey American Dance, The Royal Opera House in London, and the American Ballet Theater are a few of the companies he has turned around.
His golden rule is this: Great art, marketed well.
If you do this, all else will follow: Press, audience, ticket sales, donors, board members, foundations etc.
In terms of marketing, he emphasizes that show marketing is great, but institutional marketing is essential. Create events that get people talking about your organization. Bring in the artists that create buzz. Produce shows that get people talking. He suggests going as far as 'creating' news for yourself. His biggest example is when he managed to get a major museum to curate a whole section on the history of Alvin Ailey American Dance company. He created tons of press around it and got people talking about the organization. Months later, the company also performed for Bill Clinton's inauguration on National Television (thanks to Michaels ambition and tenacity). That's institutional Marketing.
A couple of recommendations: Artsmanager.org is a site created by the Kennedy Center. It has Michael's blog (along with links to his Huffington Post blogs) and people can sign up to be a part of the online chat rooms and discussions. It hasn't taken off the way they have wanted it to, but it's still worth checking out. It also has an Arts In Crisis video series that's pretty informative.
The other recommendation here is his book "Art of the Turnaround." I found it a really inspiring read. Not academic at all, but very practical in it's applications. Click here to buy it on Amazon
That was a long one...but some basic concepts I wanted to get out. And the ideas are truly transformative.
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