Thursday (7/22) on Spokane, Washington’s KXLY 4 website, Tania Dall reports, “In a tough economy the arts are often hit the hardest, and that reality is now hitting home for The Spokane Symphony, which is being forced to cancel a 25-year-old tradition. The symphony announced cuts Thursday to several performances. The cuts come in the same year the symphony has cut 20 percent of its staff. One of the biggest cuts will silence the 25-year-old tradition of hosting a free outdoor concert on Labor Day at Comstock Park—a favorite for families. … The Spokane Symphony only managed to scrape together a third of the money needed to pull off the $36,000 free concert. ‘A lot of it is the result of the downturn in the economy, at one point we had many sponsors for that concert and now it’s dwindled down to a very few, not enough sponsorship dollars,’ Executive Director Brenda Nienhouse said. A drop in sponsorship and community donations also means the symphony is canceling its Frank Sinatra Super Props Concert in October, downsizing office space and eliminating four full-time staff positions.”
Posted July 23, 2010
