Tuesday, September 1, 2009
There's an interesting thing that happens when ever a new cultural centre opens, whether that be a theatre, art gallery, museum and the like. I refer to the assumption on the part of many that these institutions are "frills" and positioned only for the "elite", whoever they may be. There's a widely held assumption that the "ordinary man" would have no connection to the work of these cultural institutions. Often, this position is espoused by the leadership of labour organizations who believe, (wrongly I would contend), that the broad membership of trade unions would have little or no interest in seeing a project like the Capitol Theatre completed. There is no question that organized labour is going through a very difficult time at the moment and nothing here is intended to diminish those challenges faced by them and by the broader society. What is important to remember is the role that organized labour plays in the cultural sector. First, our Construction Manager, Intrepid General, is a unionized shop so the workers on their payroll are covered by collective agreements. Beyond that however, there are a range of unions that represent those people who will perform on the Capitol stage. Musicians are members of the American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada, (known as AFofM). Actors are members of the Canadian Actors Equity Association, (known as Equity). When we host radio and television broadcasts, (as we will), those artists are represented by the Association of Canadian Television and Radio Artists, (known as ACTRA). Many theatres have collective agreements in place with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, (IATSE). Artist representation through the collective bargaining process has been a corner stone of our industry for many years. Local union members need to know that there are many of their brothers and sisters who will rely on the Capitol Theatre for parts of their livelihood.