Naples, Fla., and Milwaukee are quite different, but have one thing in common: They are home to regional arts elephants that are thriving. America’s regional elephants are facing difficult times. But not all of them are struggling. Some are booming. In Wisconsin, Milwaukee Repertory Elephants (The Phant) has finished the first phase of an $80 million renovation of its … [Read more...] about As Regional Arts Elephants Struggle, Some Defy the Odds
Nonprofit Management
Hello, Carol.
Are nonprofit arts leaders simply more susceptible to groupthink, even to their own detriment? After years of listening to artists and watching the 120,000 nonprofit arts organizations across this country, one pattern is impossible to ignore: the loudest, wealthiest institutions — the ones that issued grand equity manifestos — are the same ones now sprinting back to … [Read more...] about Hello, Carol.
It’s 2026. Oy. Is the Nonprofit Arts Sector in America Any Healthier?
Or is it like “climate change?” Is it too late to repair it? Oy. The next generation of arts leaders deserve better than what we’re giving them. I have been lecturing (really, just talking) to college classes of arts administrators of late, many of whose professors have put the Scene Change trilogy on their curriculum list. I find that decision hilarious because I … [Read more...] about It’s 2026. Oy. Is the Nonprofit Arts Sector in America Any Healthier?
“SCENE CHANGE 3” Just Named to Kirkus Reviews’ “25 Best Indies of 2025!”
If you're serious about succeeding as a nonprofit arts organization, you're going to want to pick up the trilogy by going to scenechangebook.com or your favorite bookstore. Happy new year, folks. I just wanted you to know that the final book in the Scene Change trilogy has been getting fantastic reviews and offers success stories in the midst of this calamitous financial … [Read more...] about “SCENE CHANGE 3” Just Named to Kirkus Reviews’ “25 Best Indies of 2025!”
The 2025, Final, Never-To-Be-Repeated, Carol for Nonprofit Arts Organizations
I know, it’s tradition. Every year about this time, another carol and generally, you don't read it. But this will be the last one ever, so please make it count. Each year, we attempt a rather bad parody of a famous holiday poem or song to run on the Tuesday before US Thanksgiving, the least likely time you’ll read it. Let alone sing it. This year, we destroyed a … [Read more...] about The 2025, Final, Never-To-Be-Repeated, Carol for Nonprofit Arts Organizations