Irondale endangered: how you can help

[Denis Salter]

> Dear Colleagues: Alan Andrews has asked me to forward this.  The first
section is by Antoni Wysocki; the second section is by Stephen Cross, AD of
the Irondale Ensemble Project in Halifax.

Subject: Irondale endangered: how you can help >
>
>
> Hey,
>
> Last week I forwarded a message (appended below) from Stephen Cross,
> Artistic Director of the Irondale Ensemble Project. This distressing
> bulletin outlined the crisis which has beset Irondale, Halifax's most
> innovative, enduring and revolutionary theatre company (my words, not
> theirs). As Stephen related, Irondale's core funding by the Nova Scotia
> Arts Council has been eliminated; by the same token, the social justice
> organizations which normally provide the Ensemble with contract work are
> themselves financially straitened, so that this side of the ledger is
> little more cheering.
>
> A number of people wrote to express their concern, and to ask how they can
> help - a fair question, made all the more pertinent for my having, in my
> haste, left out contact information for the Ensemble. This note is to
> amend my error by enclosing Irondale's "digits", address, and so on; and
> also to pass along a suggestion from Stephen Cross.
>
> Naturally, donations to the Irondale Ensemble Project would be most
> welcome, and provide perhaps the most immediate relief. To this end, one
> can:
>
> - call Stephen Cross or Andrea Ritchie at 429-1370
> - write to Irondale, care of Stephen, at <src at ns.sympatico.ca>
> - write to:
>             Irondale Ensemble Project
>             PO Box 31309, RPO Robie
>             Halifax, NS
>             B3K 5Y5
>
> Another means of supporting Irondale is by voicing one's concern at the
> decision of the Nova Scotia Arts Council - an arm's-length agency of the
> crown - to support only "institutional theatre" in this province. Such a
> policy is deeply conservative and smacks of narrow economism, which
> measures the value of art only by its capacity for generating revenue. If
> this approach prevails, it will be a hard blow not only to Irondale but to
> any artistic endeavour which attempts to radically critique and/or
> challenge the status quo. As citizens and activists, surely we expect
> better use of our institutions?
>
> **************************************
> To contact the Arts Council:
>
> Timothy Leary
> Executive Director
> Nova Scotia Arts Council
> 1660 Hollis Street, Suite 302
> Halifax, Nova Scotia
> B3J 2Y3
> <nsartscouncil at ns.sympatico.ca>
> Phone: 422-1123
> Fax:422-1445
> **************************************
>
> I have attended Irondale performances for the past decade, and for roughly
> the last four years have had the privilege of working with the Ensemble. I
> am not an actor, but one of Irondale's hallmarks is deep engagement with
> the community, and especially with people who share a commitment to
> working for progressive social change. Any of the numerous individuals who
> have participated in one of Irondale's many workshops, evenings of
> "theatre games", or multimedia (music, dance, video, etc.) productions can
> attest to this; so, too, can thespians from all over Nova Scotia who have
> taken part in the yearly People's Theatre Festivals organized by Irondale;
> and so can any of the thousands of people who have had the opportunity to
> catch an Irondale skit at any of dozens of rallies and protests over the
> years.
>
> Simply put, Irondale has, to my mind, been one of the best reasons for
> being in Halifax. Even examined on the level of entertainment or
> technique, the Ensemble has shown itself outstanding. Factor in Irondale's
> passionate commitment to advancing social and economic justice, and the
> Ensemble has no peer. I think our community would be much the lesser place
> if we falied to uphold Irondale in this hour.
>
>
> ---Antoni Wysocki
> _________________________________________________________________
>
>
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> Date: Wed, 13 Feb 2002 23:53:58 -0400
> From: Stephen Cross <src at ns.sympatico.ca>
> To: antoni wysocki <au 120 at chebucto.ns.ca>
> Subject: irondale in danger
>
>
> February 12, 2002
>
>
> Dear Friends of Irondale:
>
>      I am writing you to ask for assistance with the operational needs of
> the Irondale Ensemble. As you know the arts have been hit hard with cuts
> in the last few years. Additionally, the community service organizations
> that we traditionally depend on for contract work are also struggling for
> the same reasons.
>
>      Nova Scotia is getting harder to survive in.  Irondale after eleven
> years is still continuously on the edge of that survival. Quite honestly
> it has been the commitment and tenacity of the artists that has kept the
> company going. The shared goal to contribute to a world of social justice
> through critical theatrical social analysis has fueled Irondale when all
> other resources have been depleted.
>
>      We will never give up. But we need help.
>
>      Recently in a feedback session with the Nova Scotia Arts Council,
> Executive Director Tim Leary told me that we were being phased out as
> operational clients because he was more interested in supporting more
> "institutional" theatres.
>
>      That's bad news for Irondale and any other organization of innovation
> but it is also bad news for all of Nova Scotia. We all deserve better.
>
>      Any contribution will be greatly appreciated. I hope all is well.
>
>
> Sincerely,
>
>
> Stephen Cross
> Artistic Director
>
>
>