Teaching the arts to children is a special mission, says the head of the local arts council.
“Our role is to provide cultural vibrancy and vitality to a community, starting with its children,” said Stephen Butler, head of the Cultural Resources Council based in Syracuse.
Take, for example, the “Adventures of Rudolph.”
For more than 30 years, the Council has presented the show during the holidays. The show is performed by the Syracuse Ballet and Dance Center. It introduces children to artistic expression at an early age. In partnership with area schools, over 5,000 students in grades 1-3 from 63 elementary schools have come to watch the performance at the Civic Center in downtown Syracuse.
The Council provides the schools with discounted — for $10 — and free tickets to see the play. The $35,000 in expected proceeds from “Rudolph” go towards covering the cost for production. Without funding from government agencies, the Council would not be able to fund programs like these and offer tickets for a discounted price, Butler said.
The Council was created in 1957 as a not-for-profit agency to give money and services to the arts in the five counties of Onondaga, Cortland, Oswego, Madison and Cayuga. In partnership with the New York State Council for the Arts, a state agency, the Cultural Resources Council gives out grants to artists for projects ranging from galleries to musical productions.
But, said Butler, head of the Council, government support for the arts has declined sharply. “In its heyday during the 1980’s and 90’s, the state had $57 million stored for the arts grants. Last year, they only gave out $35 million,” said Butler.
The agency has also lost local government support over the past few months. In October, the Onondaga County legislature voted to cut the Cultural Resources Council from the 2011 budget along with several other arts and cultural organizations around the county. In early December, the Cultural Resources Trust, a quasi-governmental agency, voted to pick up some of the tab for the arts cuts.
The Trust is restoring 90 percent of lost county funding to ten organizations, including the including the Cultural Resources Council. The Council will receive $54,000 for operating costs, thanks to the Trust.
Butler bemoans the loss of local funding for the arts. “If you don’t have local support, it is very hard to raise other dollars,” said Butler. “When you go to a state or national foundation or even government agency, if you don’t have that support, they’re less likely to fund you because you need that Good Housekeeping seal of approval.”
(Billy Holbert is a graduate student in broadcast and digital journalism.)
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