Where the art is.

Right off the bat, let’s take a quick trip through the theatre blogs to watch an idea bloom. The beauty of this is, the idea is blooming in response to the book Outrageous Fortune.

First, visit Scott Walters’ Theatre Ideas blog to read part of the ongoing commentary on the book. In his reaction, he discovers more and more voices joining the choir, perhaps pushed by the dire situation for playwrights described in the book. At the same time, with clear eyes, he takes issue with some of the conclusions and solutions offered by the authors. Make sure you read through the comments as well, because you’re going to see these names again very soon.

So soon in fact that you should head over to this post by Gus Schulenburg about his idea for The Homing Project. This is one elegant–or insane–or insanely elegant–solution to the problem of unhappy artists, unfulfilling work and perhaps most damning, a splintering or non-existent community, whether the community of theatre artists or the bond between a living, thriving theatre and its hometown.

Once you’ve read that, click over to the New Play Blog at Arena Stage for this post by David Dower that responds to and enhances those ideas. The New Play Development Project is one part of a larger plan that incorporates many of these ideas and dreams. Fortunately, because Dower and the project are thinking ahead, it seems like it may be able to adjust and adapt as needed. Is it the answer?

Finally, come back to Theatre Ideas to see all of these conversations converge, both in this follow-up post and the comments below it.

Then tell us what you think…because home is where the art is, after all…that’s the saying, right?

Maybe it should be…