{"id":1640,"date":"2026-01-06T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/?p=1640"},"modified":"2025-11-20T23:32:40","modified_gmt":"2025-11-20T23:32:40","slug":"its-2026-oy-is-the-nonprofit-arts-sector-in-america-any-healthier","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2026\/01\/06\/its-2026-oy-is-the-nonprofit-arts-sector-in-america-any-healthier\/","title":{"rendered":"It\u2019s 2026. Oy. Is the Nonprofit Arts Sector in America Any Healthier?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Or is it like \u201cclimate change?\u201d Is it too late to repair it?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Has the industry trained its arts donors to be demanding pr**ks?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n

Oy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next generation of arts leaders deserve better than what we\u2019re 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<\/a><\/em> on their curriculum list. I find that decision hilarious because I wrote them to be non-textbook, easy, breezy, funny, brick through the window of the nonprofit arts industry, not a staid, thick tome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the life of me, I can\u2019t figure out how these kids are going to make it in 2026 or any other year, as long as the rules continue not to change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This might be a case of following nationwide arts leaders who believe that everything they do is right and everything the community does (when they do not support their precious work) is wrong. Something like, \u201cIf I have been wrong about this business for all these years, then the business deserves to fail, not me. Ask my board of my organization. They\u2019ll back me up on that. Apr\u00e8s moi, le d\u00e9luge<\/a>.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Apr\u00e8s moi, le d\u00e9luge.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s look at this not from the obvious answers, which have to do with creating quantifiable, impactful worth from your nonprofit arts organization in order to justify asking for donations. That\u2019s the path many have taken already, but almost none of the larger organizations have signed on to the idea, leaving the field in several tidal waves\u2019 worth of detritus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s look past the stupidity of depending on ticket sales (a for-profit metric) to justify community value (a nonprofit metric). And let\u2019s look past the obsolete notion that \u201cart can\u2019t be measured or quantified,\u201d because no one is asking you to measure or quantify your art. They\u2019re asking you to measure or quantify your charitable impact. These are mutually exclusive items when your art is a tool and not a product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s look beyond the tattered argument that the nonprofit arts sector is exempt from having to act as charities. That\u2019s a losing proposition, as evidenced by the continual reduction in funding. People (including governments and foundations) don\u2019t give to charities that are not proving worth by charitable impact. Just because an arts organization technically doesn\u2019t have to be charitable in order to qualify for tax-exempt status doesn\u2019t mean it deserves a nickel of support. We\u2019ve been seeing the results of that kind of arrogant self-indulgence in multiple years of declining support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now that it\u2019s 2026, the public expects its charities to be charitable \u2014 including your theater, opera, ballet, museum, and symphony<\/strong>. There is too much bad faith going on in this country already. A nonprofit arts organization cannot expect to hornswoggle its community when it\u2019s giving nothing except its own self-aggrandizement and an unhealthy affinity toward fame and fortune.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Print this out and put it on your computer. Or your board chair\u2019s forehead. Whatever works.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead, let\u2019s look at \u201cclimate change,\u201d which is a euphemism for \u201ckilling life on this planet.\u201d Climate scientists unanimously believe is the single most urgent problem in the world today. That part is not in question. What is<\/em> in question is this: is it too late?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It might be.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At least one of the global tipping points of destruction has already occurred.<\/a> It may mean nothing to you, but 80% of the world\u2019s coral reefs are bleached, dead, or dying. That won\u2019t get better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Print this out and put it on your computer. Or your board chair\u2019s forehead. Whatever works.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parts of the Amazon rainforest are now the Amazon savannas with grasslands and asphalt replacing millions of trees. That tipping point will be next, according to scientists, where the rainforest can no longer recover from industrialization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Too late. Because it\u2019s all about the money, not life. And money causes people to \u201cdrill, baby, drill\u201d like a frat party of drunken capitalists giving the rank and file the roofies of gas-guzzling cars, cheap products, and the collective knowledge of the entire world in their pockets (which they use to take pictures of their lunch), all while raping their futures until everybody\u2019s dead and everything is all gone. \u201cApr\u00e8s moi, le d\u00e9luge.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s not my opinion. That\u2019s what\u2019s happening. It\u2019s not something one can poll. Four key climate change indicators \u2014 greenhouse gas concentrations, sea level rise, ocean heat, and ocean acidification \u2014 set new records in 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and are projected to have done so again in 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, is it too late?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is it too late to save the nonprofit arts sector from its own worst, vainglorious impulses?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It might be.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a system of patronage developed by this administration, money and favors come when Little Donny Dingdong gives his blessing. The absence of his blessing, however, is not neutral. Instead, like a movie version of a Mafia don \u2014 not a well-acted one like Pacino or Brando; more like Travolta in Gotti <\/em>or the real-life Vito Genovese \u2014 he punishes those who do not kneel at his feet and tell him he\u2019s pretty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a system of patronage developed by the larger members of the nonprofit arts sector, money and favors come when the biggest donors give their blessing. The absence of their blessing, however, is not neutral. Instead, like a movie version of heiresses or of royalty \u2014 not a well-acted one like Maggie Smith or Judi Dench; more like Liz Taylor as Cleopatra <\/em>or Neve Campbell in Churchill: The Hollywood Years<\/em> \u2014 they punish organizations that do not kneel and tell them they\u2019re pretty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
\u201cOh, that darned Hitler.\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here in 2026, the genuflection machine that insures that positive impact happens only to those who donate the big bucks (or worse, pay hundreds\/thousands for tickets and access) and not to those in the community who actually could use a little help has created a monster. The monster has rendered nonprofit arts organizations \u2014 even those that do <\/em>the right thing and act charitably \u2014 into a country club of elitism and cronyism. It may not even be true, but the damage has already been done. The public now believes that arts organizations are not necessary to the health of a community.<\/strong> They\u2019ve been shown that they are luxuries for the wealthiest citizens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most artistic directors don\u2019t believe that has become the case. And yet, ask them to take all of their work, free of charge, exclusively to those who need help, and they\u2019ll look at you with crossed eyes. \u201cThat\u2019s not what we do,\u201d they\u2019ll say; and they\u2019ll be right. That\u2019s not what they do. And that\u2019s the problem.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is it too late, now that the public\u2019s perception of the nonprofit arts sector has to be changed<\/em> rather than merely persuaded<\/em>? Is it too late, now that even the newest artistic directors of these large organizations continue to seek to make their organizations (and by extension, themselves) more famous, rather than choosing to do right by their communities of need?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is it too late to change a system in the nonprofit arts sector where only the wealthy White folk matter? That\u2019s completely up to you. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Happy 2026. Oy, indeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\"Scene<\/a>
If you want your nonprofit arts organization to thrive, just pick up this inexpensive trilogy. If not, I can let you know how to throw “Going Out Of Business” sales.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Now that it\u2019s 2026, the public expects its charities to be charitable \u2014 including your theater, opera, ballet, museum, and symphony.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1642,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,20,22,100,32,25,23,24,19,18,17,99],"tags":[134,85,10,50],"class_list":{"0":"post-1640","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-culture","8":"category-board-of-directors","9":"category-board-of-trustees","10":"category-book-recommendation","11":"category-charity","12":"category-development-and-fundraising","13":"category-executive-director","14":"category-freedom-of-speech","15":"category-leadership","16":"category-nonprofit","17":"category-nonprofit-arts-organizations","18":"category-scene-change","19":"tag-climate-change","20":"tag-community","21":"tag-impact","22":"tag-nonprofit-management","23":"entry"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-10.jpeg?fit=612%2C377&ssl=1","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1517,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2025\/10\/07\/a-punchy-outspoken-argument-for-how-nonprofit-arts-organizations-should-be-run\/","url_meta":{"origin":1640,"position":0},"title":"“A PUNCHY, OUTSPOKEN ARGUMENT FOR HOW NONPROFIT ARTS ORGANIZATIONS SHOULD BE RUN.”","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"October 7, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"\"An example-driven new map to success in the realm of nonprofit theater.\" \u2014 Kirkus Reviews.","rel":"","context":"In "Arts and Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Arts and Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/category\/arts-and-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Scene Change, Scene Change 2, and Scene Change 3 - 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As Such, It Should Terrify You.","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"June 20, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"For my nonprofit arts colleagues worldwide who are agonizing over whether they might be replaced, be assured. You likely will.","rel":"","context":"In "Arts and Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Arts and Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/category\/arts-and-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Enhanced-AI-typing.jpg?fit=1200%2C711&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Enhanced-AI-typing.jpg?fit=1200%2C711&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Enhanced-AI-typing.jpg?fit=1200%2C711&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Enhanced-AI-typing.jpg?fit=1200%2C711&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Enhanced-AI-typing.jpg?fit=1200%2C711&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":764,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2024\/02\/20\/nonprofit-arts-organizations-just-land-the-mf-plane\/","url_meta":{"origin":1640,"position":5},"title":"Nonprofit Arts Organizations: Just Land the M*****F***** Plane!","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"February 20, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Stop. Land. Let the current passengers deplane. 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