Crain's New York - October 1, 2012 - (Page 26)

SOURCE LUNCH: by Miriam Kreinin Souccar RUSSELL GRANET Changing schools through the arts buck ennis MORE ACTIVITIES: In the future, the Public Theater will offer movie nights and forums for political discussion. R Public Theater’s next stage Continued from Page 25 ussell Granet has spent his career advocating for the importance of—and working to bring—arts education into schools. After five years running an education consulting practice, Mr. Granet, 48, is now laying down roots as the new executive director of the Lincoln Center Institute. As the center’s arts education arm, the organization helped nearly 400,000 students and educators globally last year, bringing arts into schools and training teachers. Mr. Granet, who took the reins Sept. 17, wants to do more. I know you have only been on the job for a short time. But tell me about your plans for the institute. school musical. Now some schools have no visual-arts class, no music, no musical and no partnership with an arts organization—so nothing. You still have creative teachers,so a kindergarten teacher might be doing a lot of singing, but it’s not happening with a specialist. Why is it important to teach art in the schools? aesthetics. It reflects a philosophy that celebrates inclusion and community. Mr. Eustis is confident the reconceived space will attract new theatergoers. “It’s a way of saying to people, ‘Think of this building as a place to come to, and not just to see a play and then go home,”said Mr.Eustis. “It becomes a communal center where you meet your friends and hang out. You may have a meal and then decide to go to a show.” The size of the capital campaign is unprecedented in the Public’s more than half-century history and is the theater’s first such effort in decades, partly because “for 20 years A Chorus Line [which originated at the Public] was giving so much money to the theater, it took the pressure off,” explained Mr. Eustis. While A Chorus Line continues to be produced nationwide, the large infusion of cash from the Broadway production is gone, and the pressure for funding is on. Gordon Edelstein, artistic director at the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven,Conn.,said all not-forprofit theaters are vying for a place “at the budgetary table” in a climate that’s less than forthcoming. Diane Paulus, artistic director at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Mass., agreed, noting that the biggest challenge for theaters is the willingness to be more flexible and courageous in the face of evolving models, from new, younger donors—who are more likely to contribute on Kickstarter than to be major philanthropists— to shifting ticket-buying habits. pens on stage for two hours. Instead, the theater has to include the total experience. You see a play, but then you gather in the lobby to have a drink and discuss the play.It’s very exciting, because Oskar is doing that.” While fundraising continues to be a tough slog, Mr. Eustis said he was lucky that the city—including the Department of Cultural Affairs, the City Council and the office of the Manhattan borough president—provided more than 50% of the $40 million needed for and women’s shelters, among other settings. Mr. Eustis also likes Broadway, and a fair number of the Public’s shows have made the transfer, though he insisted financial gain is not his primary motivation. “Our decision to move a play to Broadway is based on our belief that it will benefit the play and audiences will respond to it on Broadway.” The city provided more than 50% of the funding for renovation the renovations. The Spitzer Family Charitable Trust contributed $4 million, the Shen Family Foundation has been a major supporter, and Alec Baldwin made a substantial contribution. Mr. Eustis, who previously served as the artistic director at Trinity Repertory Company in Providence, R.I., where he spearheaded a $30 million capital campaign, joined the Public Theater in 2005. He has always viewed founder Joseph Papp’s vision as his own, most pointedly embodied in the theater’s range of productions—from Shakespeare to contemporary plays to musicals to, more recently, cabaret at Joe’s Pub, all produced with an annual budget that has grown to $22 million since Mr. Eustis took the helm. In an effort to reach further into the community, Mr. Eustis has launched several initiatives, not least the Mobile Unit,which brings theater to prisons, rehab centers More than the play “The number of subscribers is declining,” continued Ms. Paulus, who directed the Public’s 2011 revival of Hair. “Consumers want flexibility and multiple choices, including last-minute ticket purchases. The way theaters contextualize art is also changing.The focus can no longer be just on what hap- Ups and downs His record has been mixed. The Merchant of Venice and Hair, for example, did very well. On the flip side, the critically acclaimed Passing Strange and Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson were financial flops. Nonetheless, Mr. Eustis believes taking Passing Strange and Bloody Bloody to the Great White Way was a good move because “it was fantastic for the artists and the art form.” Mr. Eustis is currently toying with the idea of bringing Into the Woods to Broadway, despite its tepid reviews when it played at the Delacorte Theater this summer. He remains convinced there’s an audience for it on Broadway, and he is proud of its artistry. Mr. Eustis is excited about the Public’s future, which will include movie nights and public forums for political discussion. Down the pike, he’d like the Public to present plays in Spanish and stage Shakespearean productions that cast professionals and non-pros in all five boroughs. In the best of all possible worlds, the Public will have access to Central Park’s Delacorte Theater beyond the summer. “We’re beginning to figure out what appeals to different segments, and we’re more flexible,” he said. “The success of Gatz [the 6.5-hour 2010 dramatization of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby] was jaw-dropping, and we’re now bringing it back. When you do excellent work, audiences will come and there will be crossover audiences. But you have to get them into the building.” Lincoln Center Institute has laid such a strong foundation for great work. I Have you seen evidence of arts education want to expand it, and I want the turning around a school? world to see it. There are schools that I worked on a program that brought arts back into the curricuare struggling to have any lum at New York City kind of art. Lincoln Center middle schools. We has the brand and resources worked at a school in Bedto work with those schools. Stuy, and when I first went We can change schools there, I walked the halls through art programs. I’ve TELEPAN and didn’t feel safe. The seen it happen. I also want 72 W. 69th St. school had low attendance, to find a way to make all (212) 580-4300 www.telepan-ny low test scores; morale was kids feel that Lincoln Cen.com low. Within three years, it ter is a home for them. AMBIENCE: was a different place. There was a study asking graduates what they remembered most about K through 12, and more than 50% said it was an arts experience. Attendance is higher in schools with art programs. Of course kids have to learn math and science,but if that’s all there is,and it’s all just test prep,kids are going to drop out and stop learning. WHERE THEY DINED Why did you decide to take this job? I was really happy with my consulting firm and had no intention of leaving. But as much as I’d like to think a single person can change the landscape of public education, it’s not possible. With a brand like Lincoln Center behind me, people will take my calls. What is the current situation for arts education in New York City public schools? We’re in a pretty bad state, partly due to funding and partly due to this emphasis on testing.The principals are having to cut budgets, and they are spending their resources on math and language arts because that’s where [students] are tested. It was pretty bad in 1995, ’96 and ’97, but it was only just a funding problem then. When you talk about a school in a bad situation with their arts curriculum, what exactly do you mean? A subdued but upscale oasis with soft colors and mood music WHAT THEY ATE: Beet and heirloom tomato salad; zucchini and cavatelli; mixed-berry shortcake Tomato and bean soup; panroasted trout; peanut-butterand-chocolate gianduja TAB: $98.83, including tip Do you think there isn’t an emphasis on the importance of arts education because people don’t understand it? Yes. Our mission with this isn’t to create artists.The focus has to be engagement, critical thinking, collaboration—all the things that make good citizens and that come out of experiencing an art form. What effect did the arts have on you growing up? I was a theater geek. I showed up early to school with all my lines memorized. That could be science for someone else, but for some kids it’s the arts. Art is what kept me in school. Your 4-year-old daughter must be exposed to a lot of art. When I grew up, it was standard to have a music teacher and a visual-arts teacher, and you almost always did a I like to paint, so if I’m doing watercolors, she’ll do watercolors. My partner is an actor, so [my daughter] gets to go backstage and play in makeup and costumes. He just finished a long run in Mamma Mia! That show has lots of sequins, so she loved that! INSIDE TIP: Sit in the front for a quieter table. The back has piped-in music. 26 | Crain’s New York Business | October 1, 2012 http://www.telepan-ny

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crain's New York - October 1, 2012

IN THE BOROUGHS
IN THE MARKETS
THE INSIDER
BUSINESS PEOPLE
CORPORATE LADDER
FROM AROUND THE CITY
OPINION
GREG DAVID
REAL ESTATE DEALS
REPORT: SMALL BUSINESS
CLASSIFIEDS
FOR THE RECORD
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
SOURCE LUNCH
OUT AND ABOUT
SNAPS

Crain's New York - October 1, 2012