Welcome To The

Director's Notes

This is a quarterly opinion page from the voices of A.R.T

The mission of the American Repertory Theater is two fold. First, the mandate of The American Repertory Theater is to produce both classic and contemporary theatrical works and support a new generation of playwrights. These productions are purposefully created through the innovative exploration of these selected works, thereby enhancing the cultural and intellectual experience of the theatergoer. Second, the American Repertory Theater will serve as a catalyst for community dialogue and action that will result in sustained economic growth and increase the collaboration within all sectors of our community.

This is our mission statement for A.R.T. and as Artistic Director, I will closely follow every word to it's intent. In order to understand this strong passion, it is important to know A.R.T. is a 21st Century theater dedicated to a mission statement firmly planted in both modern artistic and business philosophies. As this new century marches on, the arts have to adapt from the old ways of practice and how they serve the community to a larger force that initiates economic and cultural change.

What the cultural arts are slowly realizing is that we are in a new age of "over-information" Subsequently; the "New York Minute" has become the "New York Second". As for theater, the old ways of herding patrons in, having them sit for three hours of the same old material and then ushering them out without further interaction, is failing in it's application on modern audiences. Modern audiences want their information condensed into segments they can process quickly and move onto the next experience. As a result, the demand for a more positive theatrical experiences is for more sensory integrated productions, material that speak to a modern audience and multi-media productions. What we seek to accomplish through ART's mission is an integration of all these modern demands but with an emphasis on maintaining a complete theater experience and a commitment to the highest level of artistic craft presented on our stage.

Under the recent emergence of studies that associate positive economic growth with cultural organizations, A.R.T. will be a front-runner in operating a non-for-profit organization in a responsible, businesslike manner in order to be self-sustaining. The board of directors, comprised of individuals successful within their respective professions, will hold itself accountable for all present and future theater operations. As a result, A.R.T. will contribute back to our community by creating full and part-time technical and administrative jobs, hiring local actors, both Equity and non-Equity, and several part-time service jobs. Overall, in the wake of 9/11 and the subsequent cuts in arts funding, there is a need for modern theaters to be accountable for their actions associated with all facets of operation. We welcome that responsibility.

We are a 21st Century theater. We welcome you to be part of our vision.

Matthew LaChiusa
Artistic Director
American Repertory Theater
Of Western New York, Inc.