Arts + Policy

Castle Rock’s impact called significant

Groups push for repeal of film tax credit sunset date

By Bruce Mohl Film tax credit, Massachusetts Legislature 0 Comments Oct 22, 2020

A STUDY BILLED as the first of its kind indicates the initial season of Hulu’s Castle Rock television series received a projected $14.6 million in film tax credits from the state and generated $69 million of total economic output in Massachusetts – a return of $4.73 for every dollar of tax credit. The study is(...)

Museums refocus and reinvent to survive COVID

Capacity limits, declining attendance are hurting revenue

By Shira Schoenberg 0 Comments Oct 18, 2020

JANE PARKER LIVES in Harvard, and over the years, she has visited the neighboring Fruitlands Museum for big events, like February’s Winterfest. In early October, Parker returned to Fruitlands to hike for the first time on the museum’s three miles of trails. She met an old friend and they planned to briefly stop in the galleries, then take(...)

Happy Indigenous Peoples’ Day

It’s time to move beyond the falsehoods of Columbus Day

By Jack Patrick Lewis and Lindsay Sabadosa 0 Comments Oct 11, 2020

THE UNITED STATES is grappling with the legacy of slavery, systemic racism, and oppression. This requires us, as responsible citizens, to reflect on our own lives, and question our long-held assumptions. We need, furthermore, to intentionally support efforts to dismantle the stereotypes and bigotry ingrained in our country’s history and culture. Calendars mark the second(...)

The era of Christopher Columbus is over

As we de-sanitize history, let’s do it with humility

By James Aloisi race and ethnicity 0 Comments Oct 10, 2020

WHEN I WAS A KID growing up on the second floor of an East Boston triple decker, Columbus Day was a pretty big deal. Alternating with the North End, the grand parade organized by local civic groups passed by our house every other year, and we would either watch from the windows or, more often,(...)

Fitchburg pinning revival hopes on arts and culture

One-time mill city looks ahead in effort to rekindle past vitality

By Michael Jonas Fitchburg, Richard Florida, Stephen DiNatale 0 Comments Sep 23, 2020

FITCHBURG MAYOR Stephen DiNatale’s office bears all the markings of the workspace of a small-city Massachusetts leader working hard to pull up his community, a place that has struggled for years following the exodus of industries that once made mill towns like this hum with economic vigor. There are sketches of planned development projects, a(...)

Cambridge arts groups seek city COVID relief funds

Organizations say they are in danger of closing permanently

By Sarah Betancourt Arts and Culture 0 Comments Sep 7, 2020

BEFORE THE PANDEMIC, Improv Boston averaged about 2,000 patrons a week who watched its comedy shows and participated in acting classes at its Central Square location. Now, almost six months after it closed in compliance with state coronavirus rules, the nonprofit improvisational theater is asking the city of Cambridge for help. “Due to necessary public(...)

Will the shows go on in Pittsfield?

Stage productions seek exemption from outdoor gathering limits

By Bruce Mohl arts, Berkshires, Pittsfield, theater 0 Comments Aug 11, 2020

THE OLD ADAGE that the show must go on is facing a real test out in the Berkshires. The story begins in mid-March, when the coronavirus shut down the stage lights on Broadway and plunged regional theaters across the country into darkness. Actors’ Equity, which represents 51,000 actors and stage managers nationwide, barred its members(...)

This is the wrong time to cut arts education

Schools should not be focused just on tested subjects

By Brenda Cassellius and Marinell Rousmaniere Elementary and Secondary Education 0 Comments Jul 30, 2020

IN TIMES of great financial strain and uncertainty, arts education is often the first thing cut from the school curriculum. Indeed, several school districts across the Commonwealth have already laid off teachers and arts educators in the face of expected budget cuts and an unpredictable fall. Some districts may be anticipating a stricter focus on(...)

Pandemic devastating to arts and culture sector

Will take years to recover, lawmakers are told

By Katie Lannan arts, culture 0 Comments Jul 16, 2020

STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE ARTS AND culture sector, a major piece of the Massachusetts economy, will need hundreds of millions of dollars and multiple years to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis, according to testimony delivered to state senators on Wednesday. Senators have been holding a series of listening sessions to gauge(...)

Boston granting relief to businesses that pay rent to city

Thousands of dollars in payments being waived or deferred because of pandemic

By Colman M. Herman 0 Comments Jul 14, 2020

WITH THE PANDEMIC shutdown wreaking havoc on hundreds of businesses across Boston, city officials are stepping up to provide relief to one group of enterprises with a direct tie to municipal government. Between businesses housed in city-owned buildings and those that operate on property owned by the Boston Planning & Development Agency, dozens of businesses(...)