March 10, 2008 | Read Time: 1 minute
Many nonprofit theaters are embarking on the construction of new buildings, writes The New York Times. But Kelly Kleiman warns would-be builders to beware.
Writing on her blog, The Nonprofiteer,, Ms. Kleiman says she has seen many nonprofit theaters succumb to “New Building Disease.” Raising money for new buildings leaves trustees exhausted, just as audiences are expecting more and better productions. Artists and administrators become distracted from their mission of putting on good plays. And the costs of a new building means that charity managers lose the flexibility they once had to cut back if a production or two bombs, says Ms. Kleiman.
She writes: The “question worth asking about any proposed building project is NOT ‘Does a fine arts group deserve a beautiful environment?’ (who could say ‘no’?) but ‘Will that new environment help produce so much more/better art that it’s worth not just the financial but the human and institutional costs?’”
What do you think? Are there downsides to the nonprofit-theater building boom?
