Throughout history, theaters have played a vital role in building communities.
From early periods of civilization, through Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Kabuki or Noh theatre, to the high courts of Elizabethan and Jacobean performances, including modern theater, community gathering through the vehicle of theatrical performances and stories connects all who participate and remains a constant thread.
The venues for theater were more than places of entertainment; they were also where individuals spent full days meeting people, collecting the latest town news and gossip, engaging in commerce, observing the latest fashion trends, participating in public discourse, and socializing.
Performing arts centers of today remain vital community assets and hubs of social engagement hosting social gatherings and celebrations, serving as educational extensions and economic drivers.
Theaters and performing arts venues are economic engines within a community that not only serve as a catalyst for the arts economy but also provide economic benefits to the districts in which they reside.
Additionally, they provide centralized locations for creating and sharing arts and cultural experiences. They are places for gathering, connecting, learning, creativity, expression and entertainment.
Theater is where community is built.
The Arts United Center is one such example. It is home to several treasured resident performing organizations, but it is much more than a space in which to be entertained.
These special places are incubators for social impact and individual growth. In our venue, productions are built from raw materials into completed scenery and costumes, often by volunteers. Community members of nearly every age perform on stage, provide backstage support during productions and greet visitors from all over the region in the lobby.
In the rehearsal studio spaces, children experience their first theater and dance classes, gain confidence, learn communication and collaboration skills, and make lifelong friends.
This is a venue where weddings, civil discourse and celebrations take place. Along the way, bonds are forged, relationships bloom, potentials are realized, and skills are learned and honed.
This investment in our community creates more than just cultural dividends; it also provides economic impact and opportunity.
Broadly, arts and culture is a substantial industry. In October, the Americans for the Arts released its Arts and Economic Prosperity 6 survey. It found that nonprofit arts and culture organizations and their audiences, a subset of the arts and culture industry, generated $151.7 billion in economic activity, supporting 2.6 million jobs and generating $29.1 billion in tax revenue.
While still down from pre-pandemic levels, a National Endowment for the Arts 2021 survey identifies the entire arts and culture sector as a larger percentage of the economy than transportation, tourism or construction. According to the Arts and Economic Prosperity 6, a typical attendee spends $38.45 in addition to the cost of admission.
In the Fort Wayne region alone, spending by arts and culture organizations and their audiences totaled more than $40.5 million annually. This is only a portion of the total value arts and culture — and more specifically, theaters — bring to our communities.
The full value of this sector is actualized when combining economic value with the social and cultural capital of arts and culture in communities and regions. Arts venues provide locations to gather, to create collective memories and to build community.
According to the Arts and Economic Prosperity 6 study, more than 70% of those surveyed believe the arts provide shared experiences across diverse populations. And through this, individuals gain a greater understanding of others and other cultures. This value cannot be understated and is the true definition of community.
A space many have called “a home away from home,” the Arts United Center venue encompasses memories for so many area residents.
The social connections that are built, talents that are realized, dollars that are spent and perspectives that are gained cement the importance of access to theaters, especially this theater, in the stewardship of our community.
Miriam Morgan is vice president of operations and chief operating officer of Arts United of Greater Fort Wayne.