Atlanta Arts Coalition Braces for Lean Performance in 2002

The head of an Atlanta charity that supports the performing arts says the

economic picture doesn’t look too troubling now, but he worries about signs of rough times ahead.

Kim Patrick Bitz, executive director of the Atlanta Coalition of Performing Arts, which represents 128 theaters throughout the Atlanta metropolitan area, says sales of theater tickets that are offered at half-price on the day of the show are up 65 percent in recent months. “People are looking for a little more of a bargain,” he says. Commissions on the ticket sales, which run from $1 to $5 per ticket depending on the ticket price, bring in about $30,000 a year for the coalition.

And money from foundations, corporations, and government agencies has held level in 2001.

But Mr. Bitz anticipates changes for the worse regarding next year’s $180,000 budget. “I see tough times as something that’s coming,” he says. Among the causes for his concern:

• The state has announced a 2.5-percent cut in the budgets of all agencies this fiscal year, including those that give to the arts, and a 5-percent cut is slated for next year. Mr. Bitz says he receives about $30,000 from state and local government grants.
• Some theaters are reporting declines in attendance, a trend that was exacerbated by the September 11 terrorist attacks. “It’s a real mixed bag,” Mr. Bitz says. “Some theaters are doing well, but others have seen an effect.” The Center for Puppetry Arts, one of the largest theaters in Atlanta, says attendance at “Aladdin” is down 40 percent from last year, due in part to cancellation of school field trips after the attacks. Mr. Bitz’s coalition will receive about $35,000 this year in dues from its member theaters, but he expects that amount to drop if theaters continue to see declines in attendance.
• A number of arts groups that have responded so far to a survey by the Georgia Center for Nonprofits reported a 20-percent decline in revenue.
• Twelve foundations have turned down the coalition’s grant proposals this year, including some that have supported the arts group in the past. The coalition received $30,000 last year from foundations.
• Visa International, the credit-card company, declined this summer to renew its commitment to cultural tourism in Atlanta, a project that contributed $25,000 to run the coalition’s half-price ticket booth. The performing-arts coalition has had to lay off a part-time staff member as a result of the decision.
• BellSouth, one of the coalition’s largest supporters, announced in October that it will lay off 3,000 people. The company contributed $25,000 to the coalition this year through a cultural-tourism program, and Mr. Bitz says he is optimistic that the company will continue its support despite the cutbacks to its operations.

Even good news can have its downside these days, Mr. Bitz says. An Internet consulting company, iXL Enterprises of Atlanta, recently donated 10 computers to the coalition, which Mr. Bitz will distribute among its member theaters. But the computers were available because iXL had shuttered some offices and laid off staff members. Its corporate headquarters are being relocated to New York as part of a merger.

Mr. Bitz says he is trying to prepare for the possibility that his budget next year will be less. But any losses, he says, will be difficult to make up. “We’re pretty lean and mean,” he says. “Budget cuts will mean we have to cut some core services that are generating income.”

For example, the coalition may reduce its hours for selling half-price tickets, from the current 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. most days. Or it may stop offering job and audition hotlines that bring in fees and help maintain ties to performers. In addition to the hotlines, the arts group also offers an emergency fund for injured or seriously ill actors, and conducts several events, including one that allows actors and set and costume designers to display their abilities before numerous theaters at once.

Period of Rapid Growth

A drop in income would be a major switch for the coalition, which has enjoyed a period of rapid growth. Membership has more than doubled since 1997.

While the growth has been positive, it has left Mr. Bitz with little time to go out and bring in new money. “This is a time when we really have to expand to move forward,” he says. “Instead, we’re so small-staffed it’s hard to get out and beef up earned income.” The coalition has a staff of five: Mr. Bitz, an assistant, and one full-time and two part-time people who handle ticket sales.

Finding income can be challenging. While the group serves as a point of contact between the public and performing-arts groups in Atlanta, “we’re in a particularly tight spot, because it’s not as sexy to support a service organization as it is to support a performing theater,” says Mr. Bitz.

Mr. Bitz has been trying to find more time to concentrate on writing proposals for foundation, corporate, and government grants. He is particularly hopeful that he will win a “stabilization” grant from the Metropolitan Atlanta Arts Fund, a program administered by the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta. The $30,000 he is seeking would allow him to fill an administrative position, thus freeing him to do more fund raising.

Mr. Bitz is also looking for new sources of earned income. A top priority for the coalition is developing an online system for selling theater tickets. The system would complement an existing service offered by the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau that allows visitors to the city to book hotels and rental cars and even make restaurant reservations online. For the many small theaters that can’t support full-time sales staffs, the online service would be a lifeline, Mr. Bitz says.