February 2010 Commentary

Thom Mariner
Co-publisher, Express Cincinnati & EXP/arts

Those who are making the decisions regarding the future of Music Hall have apparently made one key decision: to re-configure the current structure and not build a new, smaller, supplementary venue. While this decision appears to be well considered from the viewpoints of these tenant organizations, it seems that we, as a community, are overlooking an important opportunity to enhance the overall artistic life of the city.

The members of the Working Group (leaders of Cincinnati Arts Association, Cincinnati Symphony & Pops, Cincinnati Opera, May Festival, and The Society for the Preservation of Music Hall) have focused on their own requirements, as is appropriate. As a result, the agreed-upon plan may solve their needs, but it does not fill a long-standing physical void in the artistic portfolio of Cincinnati: a performance space to fill the gulf between our 900 and 2,000-plus seat venues.

What Cincinnati has needed for decades is a medium-sized concert venue. Many hoped for this when the Aronoff Center was planned. Instead we got one large (2,700 seats) and two small halls (440 and 150). There have been numerous attempts to refurbish the Emery Theatre, originally built to house the CSO in 1911, but none have ever gained enough traction to get beyond the planning stage. One might have hoped for such a solution as part of this Music Hall renovation, but it appears that no one was at the bargaining table to advocate this from a “city” perspective.

Whether a new venue or a renovation of the Emery, imagine the possibilities that a hall of 1,200-1,500 seats presents…

The CSO and Pops could divide their concerts between this venue and Music Hall, depending on the scale of the performance and projected audience.

This arrangement would open up dates in Music Hall for Cincinnati Opera to expand its offerings beyond the summer months, perhaps forming a Winter Opera Festival.

Perhaps more flexibility and convertibility could be built into this other hall to accommodate smaller ensembles, chamber opera, and allow these organizations to present new music without the risk of having to fill Music Hall’s several thousand seats. This is a critical time for the performing arts, and a time for introspection and reinvention. The status quo will not sustain things indefinitely. Having the flexibility of a smaller venue would allow organizations more latitude in this regard.

Other local organizations could use the smaller venue, as well. The Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra and Vocal Arts Ensemble, for example, are forced to patch together their seasons in a variety of locales, presenting them with significant challenges in terms of logistics and marketing. Chamber Music Cincinnati has to work around the packed schedule at CCM. Cincinnati Ballet could produce new works at lower risk than having to fill either the Aronoff or Music Hall.

The greater diversity of programming could mean increased employment opportunities for area instrumentalists, singers and dancers, and serve to attract new talent to the area, and it could entice a broader audience to the urban core, bring revenue into the city, and speed the re-development of Over-the-Rhine.

Contrary to concerns that Music Hall might fall into disuse without the CSO, such a grand space would likely be in constant demand for performances of all kinds: touring orchestras, Broadway shows, smaller scale pop and jazz concerts, world music ensembles… Currently, there is extremely limited area availability for such presentations. Tours frequently skip Cincinnati in favor of Columbus or Indianapolis where suitable venues exist or have open dates.

There is no question this is an expensive proposition, but weigh the overall value to the city’s art portfolio and its diverse musical interests vs. serving only those who attend current Music Hall events. As the plan moves forward for Music Hall renovation, the need still exists for this intermediately sized hall. The question remains: who will step forward to advocate its creation?