The second part in our series on the future of theatre during the death of print media:
- What is your prediction about the future of any print coverage of theatre?
Tom Cone: Dire. Papers across the states are closing every day. The LA Times let go of their arts editor to save money to keep the critics going for a short time.
J Kelly Nestruck: I’m not concerned about the death of physical print particularly – I read most newspapers and magazines online already. I am concerned about the drying up of advertising, however. It’s the best of times and the worst of times to work at a newspaper. The articles we write are being read by more people than ever before thanks to our websites, but the revenue model is, well, not what it used to be. Blogs aren’t filling the gap.
Nathan Medd: I read a review of Studies in Motion on my phone’s web browser in the bathtub the other day, and it felt almost normal. In theatre, I think that the same old important methods of finding an audience will remain: building community, producing with consistency, achieving quality, and partnering smartly. It’s less important that our critics are paid – we aren’t asking them to cover a war or even to fact-check – as long as they are loud and well-liked.