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Be An Arts Hero

My knowledge of government has grown a lot over the last several years. I have a better understanding of how and why things work or don’t work. When I look at the Senate or House chambers I see, for the most part, legislators attempting to balance the needs of over 300 million people. Despite the horrific events of January 6, if I was starting my career over, I would choose to be a career federal civil servant.  I probably would have chosen Housing or Education that is until a few weeks ago.

As a playwright I am a member of the Dramatist Guild, I was asked to participate in the “Be An Arts Hero” project. My play was cancelled hours before Broadway closed last March. Broadway is still closed. The ripple effect for New York City is monumental. Think about it, dinner and a show is a common phrase. It’s bigger than that, much bigger.

I saw the revival of South Pacific, the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical with Joshua Logan around 2008 in Lincoln Center in New York City. I’m not usually drawn to revivals. I was aware of the classic songs from the show including You’ve Gotta Be Carefully Taught.  As far as the story line I knew it was a love story about an American nurse. The musical based on James Michener’s Tales of the South Pacific a Pulitzer Prize winning book in 1947 had become part of my family’s story. My parents married in 1953, in their early twenties with little money between them.  Their honeymoon was taking the bus from New Jersey to see the Broadway show, South Pacific.

The theme of racial prejudice took me by surprise, twice. My parents, particularly my mom as the better storyteller, never mentioned it and the previous summer I had visited Central High School in Little Rock Arkansas. The fictional character of the American nurse, Nellie Forbush is from Little Rock. Central High School was desegrated ten years after the Michener’s book won the Pulitzer. 

I asked my mom, what did people think of the white nurse from Arkansas marrying a man with mixed race children. She thought long and hard before telling me that she didn’t remember any particular audience reaction, except good for Nellie that she married for love.

South Pacific was on the NYC stage before the Civil Rights Movement was on the front page of most newspapers. West Side Story opened in 1957 and Raisin in the Sun in 1959.  The American Theater was teaching racial tolerance before people knew they needed the lesson.

I grew up in an ordinary 1960’s suburban neighborhood. The moms’ sat on the front porches with the babies as the older kids played in the street. When I ran back to the circle of moms’ because of a scraped knee or the need for a drink of water, the moms’ were discussing the book they were reading. I can still name those books and at a young age I wanted to be part of that type of circle.

More than 5 million people have jobs related to Arts and Culture.  It represents almost $900 billion value added to our economy. Think about this, the Arts adds more to our economy than either agriculture or transportation.

It’s time to create a Department/Secretary of Arts and Culture. Yes, President Biden, you need another seat at your Cabinet’s table. This new Department/Secretary would lead the effort for a more deliberate investment in Arts and Culture.

Mr. President and Madam Vice President there is good work being created all around our great country. So perhaps, when planning events for your own entertainment in the White House please consider inviting new artists, with unknown names. Please invite me.