Your Honor, if it pleases the Court . . . the Defense rests . . .

I wanted to follow-up with an apology for the previous post.
It really shouldn’t have been a personal attack – which is what it sounded like to me when I re-read it.
It just made me SO angry to read people make excuses and deflect from a very serious problem.

I’ve re-read you post and I don’t know why you were talking about ½ the things you were. I don’t know what children in theatre, ancient history of nonprofits in Bryan, or non-dancing slightly overweight people dressed in leotards calling themselves cats on a stage has to do with anything in the world, but I do know that it has nothing to do with why SC can’t produce a decent play. When you waste time and energy deflecting on tangents, you take away energy needed in addressing and correcting the problems SC is facing– and they are serious problems at this point.

I don’t personally know you, so I’m not 100% certain, but I’m going to believe you like kids and theatre and even TTC but would just really love to see SC do great dramatic shows and for people in the community to come participate and to come see those shows.

However, your plea for patron support confuses causality
You argue that if people came to see the shows the shows would magically get better somehow
But this is reverse causality, not true, and just isn’t how the world works

SC is broken, as a functioning unit it is seriously broken and has been for at least the two years I have been watching it. Which makes me SO mad because I love theatre also, like you, and want it to be strong and to survive and prosper in our community. SC is not that unit right now and the productions being consistently bad for so many seasons is a symptom of its malfunction and will only get better when the problem is addressed and corrected. There is no easy solution for this- like more people auditioning for the shows or more people coming to see them even though they are bad productions. There is no magic pill to fix this- it will take hard work and courage.

What is the purpose of SC?
• For people in the community to participate, learn, experience, and appreciate theatrical arts (actors). No one wants to act at SC. No one is auditioning for the shows right?
• For teaching the art form of theatre, storytelling, and educating the community on the importance and value of the arts in the world (directors). There are few trained and good directors in Brazos Valley- they are in high demand. Not many of them (few actually) will come to work at SC. They can- and do– work other places instead. Places that have actors and audiences and good reputations.
• Performance art is supposed to be watched and ‘performed’ in front of someone. No one is coming to see the performances at SC correct?

If SC fails in all these areas, what is the point of its existence? Why is it even here if it’s not fulfilling any of these purposes?

There are over 900 nonprofits in the Brazos Valley (both artistic and non-artistic) and limited funding sources for them to share. If SC continues to fail to contribute to the community- why should it continue to share that funding? Why should funding be taken away from other nonprofits which are working well and supplying much needed resources and education to the community?

This reality makes me angry. It makes me very angry because, again, I WANT theatre in College Station. But I want a strong healthy theatre that is giving to the community in College Station. SC is not doing that right now and it needs to take its failures seriously if it wants to survive and to be healthy in the future.

SC is not suffering from an occasional (and forgivable) lemon now-and-then. It’s had a long long dry spell of consistent failures. Again, these are symptoms of a broken condition. And it’s going to be a long slow process to change that or a very fast drastic step to jump start that change. But to make change– people first have to stop making excuses for failures and start looking at reasons why there are so many consistent and unnecessary failures this theatre.
Why do most shows at SC suck?
The bar in community theatre isn’t high. Non-dancers in leotards singing about cats pretty much does it for them here- it does. It’s not that people here aren’t smart or even cultured. They just set lower expectations and are basically nice people. So when the phantom or the community (through nonparticipation) constantly tell you that the shows are bad. It means the SC shows are Really Really bad!

If you really care about theatre –and it sounds like you do.
Please stop blogging like this and make distracting excuses. Instead, help them address the issues.
Help them recognize and change the problems and help them start making good (or even great) theatre again in our community.

There are volunteer community theaters all over this county that can do GOOD theatre consistently.
Those theatres make money.
Theaters that are well organized and give plays that are well executed do not have trouble getting people to audition.
Those theaters do not have problems getting people to attend.
Theaters that do solid dramatic content have strong solid annual supports and ticket holders (with or without kids on the stage)
Please stop degrading my art form.

People do not support crappy theatre—period.

Personally, I would rather see no drama than sh*** [edited by The Phantom who politely asks 'this is sad': "You kiss your mother with that mouth?"] drama thank you. Better people have to travel to the next door town and see something good and gain a positive appreciation of theatrical art.

I also long …..and long …..and long for good dramatic shows and comedies. I’m still longing…….it’s been a consistently long time for College Station.

Navasota is much better for this i’ve found.

You heartfelt words accusing other nonprofit theatres (such as TTC) for your shortcoming on the stage are pathetic. TTC is getting their job done. SC doesn’t need to be bitter and sad, they just need to get their job done and done well. Nonprofits have enough going against them without undercutting each other. SC does plays, TTC do musicals, where is the competition?????? What is your problem?

And what is your problem with little children? And are you actually saying that children on a stage is a negative thing? Because it came off that way. Are you attacking children’s participation in theatre to try to justify making people come see the crappie work SC has been doing?
What is that saying anyway? SC doesn’t have kids so we should support them….?…. I hope I’m misinterpreting your words, because otherwise that would be truly sad to say.
What’s the world coming too? Children participating in and appreciating the arts is a beautiful thing and a good thing for all of us as a county. Shame on you!

Stop being jealous

Stop making excuses

SC needs to get the job done well, otherwise cry a river somewhere else……. Because I’m busy driving somewhere else to see something worth watching myself.