Robert Galinsky Discusses Performing Arts Budget Creativity
I used to cringe when thinking about budgets. Now? I love a budget because it’s a roadmap. It is one of the many roadmaps you learn to use in performing arts education. When you have to write down the line items of every single cost for everything that needs to be done, you discover that you have organized a list of the tasks you must complete in order to achieve your performance goals.
You don’t worry so much about what each item costs. Instead, you say to yourself, “Oh my gosh! I do need this. I do need that. Do I really need that?” Depending on your shifting circumstances, the list can change. You have to be fluid.
Yes, I wanted wild projections of city imagery during my show. I then realized that for many different reasons—money, cumbersome technology—it might not be practical wherever I go. What I did instead was copy and enlarge images from the graphic novel that we made of the play. We used them to make the set, which turned out beautiful and brilliant.
As you can see, a budget task that might drive you crazy because of cost considerations can also add to the creative process while saving you time and money in the long run. An online performing arts education can help you recognize unique creative opportunities in administrative tasks.
