A transcript of a Breathe Art interview…

I recently did an interview with a Wayne State university student on forming arts organizations. The following is the transcript. – Demetri

Q. Why did you form Breathe Art Theatre Project?

A. I think anytime you are bringing a group of people together you want to ask yourself ‘Why am I embarking on this?’ ‘Is there a definite purpose?’ ‘Does it have an artistic goal?’ and ‘Is it needed?’ Breathe Art Theatre Project was created in 2004 for different reasons than I think most companies are formed. I think most companies are formed for not only an artistic vision, but for a business or community vision. They primarily form to create a place where artists can be employed, make a living, and display their craft in the process, with the integrity of their artistic goal being secondary. Some may not agree with this statement, or even admit it, but it is true. This is not to stay this philosophy can’t be successful. It can. It can be very successful. It just wasn’t what we were thinking at the time. When Breathe Art was formed, we saw the value in the artistic goal, and the need for it, especially in Windsor, which at the time had very little professional theatre, and very little opportunity for trained professionals from Windsor to display their talent.

Breathe Art Theatre Project was created for three reasons:

One was to bring together an artistic partnership between Detroit artists and Windsor artists and produce shows as an international collaboration. Currently our Artistic Team is composed of 9 partners, 3 from Windsor and 6 from Detroit.

 The second reason was to have artistic control of the stories we wanted to tell. These stories are contemporary, written by contemporary playwrights, and are sometimes a little more challenging and cutting-edge in content than perhaps mainstream theatre houses. For example, a few of the plays we have produced as of late, The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh, Nocturne by Adam Rapp and the play we will be producing next, Mr. Marmalade by Noah Haidle, seem to be right up Breathe Art’s alley.

The third reason was to create an environment that brings together equity and developing talent coming primarily from the university and college theatre programs of Detroit and Windsor. For example our 2009-2010 season will present the work of thirteen artists: four are equity artists, three are Hilberry graduates, four are Wayne State graduates, two are University of Windsor graduates, and one is from Oakland University. Another is from the Michigan area but attended the Webster Conservatory in St. Louis and I attended the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

 Q. How was Breathe Art Theatre Project formed?

A. Breathe Art Theatre Project was actually created by chance. In the spring of 2004 I was producing a play called How I Learned To Drive in Windsor. I had recently returned from New York, where I had been for the last eight years, and by chance I met Courtney Burkett at a restaurant. At the time she was doing her MFA at the Hilberry in Detroit and she proposed bringing the play over as a cross-border project. We did that and then decided, along with Valerie Bonasso and David Court, to create Breathe Art Theatre Project with all plays to be performed on both sides of the border.

When forming, besides using our past experiences of working for theatres and other production companies, we tried to model the company after Steppenwolf in Chicago. Detroit and Windsor are significantly different markets, but the vision was something we tried to emulate. And I thought our first two season we made huge strides – bigger ones than I thought we would. So after our first season, we approached a few additional partners who had a similar philosophy. One of the smartest things we did was making sure we had a balance of people within the company who had technical experience, directing experience, and media experience. I think those are three very strong areas of the company and it has shown in the relationships we have built in such a short time. I’m very proud of the fact that professional actors want to work for you and want to be directed by you. I’m also very proud of the fact that our media relationships have been productive. Although we are probably considered a fringe theatre, we run it very professionally from our front of house, to casting, to rehearsals and right through the process of production and media relations. Our weakest area has always been having a consistent marketing person who will devote their time to it.

I think over time our intent of the company has changed, but we still consistently run a professional production.

Q. What brought the people in your company together? Is there a common philosophy?

A. I think the interest of theatre is Breathe Art’s philosophy. It sounds bold but it is true. We all enjoy seeing plays, reading plays, and discussing plays. You would be surprised as to how many people in the theatre industry do not see anything besides what they are producing. In fact, some have even expressed to me that they don’t really even care about what goes on outside their four walls. I think what has brought the people in Breathe Art together is the interest of theatre as a tool for expression and communication. Although all of us enjoy seeing and working on various types of theatre, we have a common theatre philosophy that the pieces we produce should have significant value in its relationship to the society we are currently living in, either for the audience, or for the artist.

Q. What hurdles and challenges have you experienced and how have you dealt with them?

A. We have three significant challenges that we face every year. They are constant. Sometimes they are manageable and sometimes they create problems. A big problem for us is that all of our Artistic Producers are all working artists. Unlike other companies who have resident directors, designers, etc., we all spend a better part of the year working for other companies to make a living. Aaron Moore, who directed our first show of the season, will then be at Tipping Point, Meadow Brook and Performance Network. Kevin Young, who will direct Mr. Marmalade and is part of our Love Bombing cast in the spring, will also be at Performance Network, Magenta Giraffe and Planet Ant. I will be directing at Planet Ant in addition to directing Love Bombing. Joel Mitchell will be at Performance Network and The Ringwald. Valerie Bonasso is the crew chief at Caesars in Windsor. Katie Galazka will be at the Matrix this month. Michael Carnow is directing a late-night show at Planet Ant, Sergio Forest is teching at Mackenzie Hall, and Courtney Burkett is over at the University of Michigan. Because we are working everywhere else, it makes it challenging to produce your own shows sometimes and have enough creative hands to help out. That’s why we only produce 3 shows a year.

Money is also always an issue. Producing professional theatre – whether it is on the fringe or not – means that you are always paying out. We pay all of our artists, rent two spaces (Detroit/Windsor), etc…The dilemma of having funds is problematic because it effects how much money will be put into marketing, which then of course effects how many patrons are filling the house. We usually do one big fundraising push from June to August. We do a summer evening of theatre and try to procure ad sales from small businesses. Fortunately we do have some patrons and businesses that have supported us consistently through the years. This allows for us to have a good estimate of how much money we will have for the year and to budget accordingly. However, because we only produce three to four shows a year, we do heavily rely on ticket sales for revenue.

The third issue we face is we perform in Detroit. When we created Breathe Art, we were pretty adamant about staying in the city and not moving out. Although philosophically it is very positive for us, we have found that patrons do not like coming into the city for various reasons. They would rather stay in Royal Oak, Ferndale, Northville, etc…We have a beautiful space at The Furniture Factory, probably one of the nicest spaces of all of the smaller theatres, and one that has free lit parking on-site, near Wayne State, and the area is pretty safe, but it has always been challenging to get new people there for the first time. Too many times I have heard, “I’m not going to Detroit to see a show.” They will come for a ball game but that’s about it. There isn’t any walk-by traffic so to find different avenues to reach out to people is constantly a struggle and we are usually having to rely on the internet, reviews, guerrilla marketing and word-of-mouth. We often consider our self an “industry company” because three quarters of our audience is consistently from the theatre industry. That says a lot about the positive quality of your work, but we would like to see more regular patrons attending.

Q. How much money did you have to raise to get things started?

A. When we first started, we raised enough money to cover our first show. We rented a space so we didn’t have to worry about a long-term lease and kept our casting very small for the first couple seasons – still do actually.

Q. What do you do about a rehearsal and performance space?

A. We have been fortunate that people in our community have often allowed us to use their space for rehearsals.

Q. What are your goals for the future as a theatre company and are there any changes you foresee in the future?

A. We have two goals in the immediate future. The first is an artistic goal. We will be producing our first original piece called Love Bombing After The Earthquake, which I wrote and will be directing. It features a wonderful cast: Andrew Huff, Kevin Young, Caroline Price and Shannon Ferrante. So that is something we are looking forward to. The second is a business goal. We had some success in marketing our last show by using various internet avenues. I think we will expand on how we are doing that for Mr. Marmalade, as it seemed to attract new patrons.

Q. What advice do you have for people who wish to form a theatre company?

A. Have something to say.

About Breathe Art Theatre Project:

Breathe Art Theatre Project (est. 2004) is located in Detroit, MI and Windsor, ON, making it one of the few cross-border arts companies in North America. Breathe Art Theatre Project produces contemporary works based on the principles of ensemble collaboration that showcases the works of actors, directors, and designers from Detroit and Windsor. The company, formed in 2004 by a collective of actors, directors and designers, is cultivating a history of producing challenging and socially related theatre with an intimate relationship between the audience and the actors.

Mission

Committed to the principle of contemporary programming through the collaboration of Windsor/Detroit actors, directors and designers, Breathe Art Theatre Project’s mission is to advance the spirit of contemporary social theatre in its community by nurturing and supporting artists, encouraging repeatable creative relationships, and offering a skilled environment for established and developing artists from the Windsor/Detroit community.

Breathe Art is dedicated to perpetuating an ethic of mutual respect within our communities and across our borders.

Current Artistic Partners: Demetri Vacratsis, Courtney Burkett, Valerie Bonasso, Jane McArthur, Kevin Young, Katie Galazka, Joel Mitchell, Aaron T. Moore, and Sergio Forest

Theatres:

The Furniture Factory, 4126 3^rd Street, Detroit

Mackenzie Hall, 3277 Sandwich St. Windsor, Ontario

Office:

1209 Winderemere Rd
Windsor, ON, CAD, N8Y 3E9
Admin. Phone: 519-254-7622
Tkt Phone: 248-982-4121
Web: www.BreatheArtTheatre.com

Email: BreatheArtTheatreProject@yahoo.com