Saturday, July 02, 2005

If you don't like the weather...

... wait a few minutes? Is that the adage? With a minor adjustment, it probably applies to any small arts organization.

There are two full-time and one part-time employees administering the Wolf Trap Opera Company year-round, and that means that every day brings a new challenge. The "off" season is a whirlwind of non-production related tasks from budgets to grant applications, from advertising copy to box office issues - not to mention the 3-month-long job of screening and auditioning young artists who apply for the next summer's company. Summer adds a few hundred seasonal employees (artists, staff, crew, orchestra, chorus, apprentices, interns etc) with their myriad needs and attendant problems (schedules, payroll, housing, transportation... I'm getting tired thinking about it...).

But the positive side of all of this is that for someone with a short attention span, it's a great job! Just about the time you think you couldn't possibly stand it for another minute, it's time to do something else. I wonder if they teach that in arts administration courses...

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