The Mexican theater producers agree that the employment situation for the industry has been quite exhausting and full of uncertainty, but that is not what affects them the most, but also government authorities they have not done anything for the benefit of culture and it is something that hurts everyone families dedicated to art.
“We wanted to be optimistic until the end of last year, and we continue to be, so much so that we released two new works, but now we are disoriented without knowing what will happen because there is no end to this situation and, on the contrary, everything is It is getting worse every time ”, he explains Morris Gilbert in interview with M2.
“We are adapting to this new way of doing theater, and I think we have connected with the buzzword: resilience; We have to continue to be resilient, but I don’t know how long we will be able to continue because there have also been many government errors that are a very strong blow, as serious as the pandemic itself ”, the producer added in an interview virtual.
Gilbert, who has stood out in the world of theater for his productions such as El Lion King, The Miserables, Chicago and Lies, among many more, had to lower the curtain on the musical Ghost, the Aadaptation of the 1990 film with Demi Moore and Patrick Swayze.
Juan Torres is another of the Mexican producers, who is recognized for his work as a The Cage of the crazy, musical that has managed to position itself as one of the most successful in recent years in the Hidalgo Theater; he himself highlights that the difficult situation has led them to innovate their way of projecting their work via streaming.
“What is happening with the theater is difficult, it is not something new, we knew it since we lowered the curtains. We have survived, we have reinvented ourselves, but it is our right and duty to do what we know how to do, and we know how to do theater; It is very difficult that, suddenly, an activity that is considered non-essential by many people and by the government, leaves so many people without work for so many months.
“There are more than 10 thousand direct jobs, of course we understand the health emergency and we are not waiting for the government to rescue us, as it happens in Germany or in places like New York, where the governor is giving them financial support, it is incredible”, highlighted the producer, who will present The Cage of the Crazy January 30 via online.
And is that a few months ago Andrew Cuomo, governor of New York, said: “We are going to fight for the health of the population, and culture is as necessary as health,” and described Broadway as a fundamental part of the city.
United community
Producer Gerardo Quiroz also continues to fight to keep his work team and has partnered with various actors to advance the economy of the theater community, as a result of the low attention they have received from the government.
“We have just over 10 months since we closed the doors of the productions that were in theaters. Saturday Night Fever was barely two weeks old; we had to move, ally ourselves with technology, “he said in a virtual interview.
As a means of getting ahead, he decided to make a musical piece called Dreams on broadway, which will be presented virtually on January 31. The story is about eight lost vagabonds in search of reaching that work they long for. This is a compilation of all the musicals that he has brought and mounted in Mexico, such as Cats, Shrek, Vaseline and Rock of Ages, to name a few.
“This is the first project in which I share the economy with my staff, they will get half the box office for their economy; we have come closer and we have understood the reality of each one to be able to help each other ”, emphasized the also producer of Anita la orfanita.
This is how many producers have fought to keep the theater alive in this current world crisis, and new platforms have also been generated such as Teatrix México, created by Óscar Carnicero, in which you can see various works by paying a ticket or generating a monthly subscription.
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