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CNN Live Sunday

Interview With John Darnton

Aired March 09, 2003 - 15:23   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: A sad note is playing on Broadway because of a strike by musicians. Every musical on Broadway has been canceled, and theater woes are adding to already tough times for the arts in the Big Apple. And a possible war with Iraq could further cripple a town that depends heavily on tourism dollars. John Darnton is with the "New York Times," and he joins us live to discuss the situation. Good to see you, John.
JOHN DARNTON, NEW YORK TIMES: Good to see you.

WHITFIELD: All right, well, how devastating just might this be, especially if this kind of blackout in the musical theaters goes into yet another weekend?

DARNTON: They need this like they need a hole in the head. It's closed down 18 musicals, another three that are in rehearsal. And it comes at just the wrong time, because January and February are very bad months for the theater, and traditionally in March, it begins to pull out of the doldrums. Now they stand to lose $1 million every single night and matinee performance.

WHITFIELD: Already, I've seen some estimates that it's cost them up to $5 million this weekend alone with those 18 musicals not being able to perform?

DARNTON: That's right. And the longer it goes on, the worse it is. The last time there was a strike, 1975, it lasted three weeks, and basically it was over the same issue.

WHITFIELD: And now, with the talk of war, the possibilities of that kind of interruption, it seems as though we're really looking at long-term effects for the theater, art centers in New York City, and maybe even across the country, but let's talk about New York.

DARNTON: All right. I think it is -- it does primarily affect New York. The tourist falloff has been especially hurtful for big institutions, like the Metropolitan Museum, Museum of Natural History. But it even affects the opera, all of Broadway, the smaller galleries, and they're beginning to close down, they're beginning to close on Saturdays, when they used to be open. They've closed some galleries, they've eliminated a few opera productions. It's beginning to hurt. You can tell.

WHITFIELD: And this comes at a time when Times Square, the arts district in particular was kind of celebrating a rebound after 9-11. DARNTON: That's true. The theater, in particular, came back strong. It grossed about $15 million a week, which is pretty good. And I think, you know, the prospect of a falloff in tourist trade, combined with the kind of economic downturn, which hurts in terms of eliminating the vast numbers of theater goers, concert-goers, plus philanthropic giving, all spells bad news for the arts centers.

WHITFIELD: And I've heard also, that while the tourism industry is certainly, you know, a real cash cow for the city, it really is not as primary as some people might think?

DARNTON: Well, it does bring in a lot of money. Estimates are about $4.5 billion, if you include all the related things that it helps, like taxis, hotels, restaurants, that kind of thing.

So with that in mind, this particular weekend, the "New York Times" is trying to do our bit. We've launched something we call "The Arts and Leisure Weekend," and that's a series of events all over the country, in about 50 different cities. Most of them are kind of discounts for concerts, movies, galleries, museums, even zoos. And here in New York, there are a whole host of special events being put on Fifth Avenue at the Kuni (ph) Graduate Center.

WHITFIELD: And do you feel like it's the intention to really sort of give people some options, some outlets, especially as talk has become so serious about a possible war?

DARNTON: Oh, it is definitely, because I think arts, at this particular time are really needed as a kind of bomb (ph) for the spirit, you know, so we have everyone from Matthew Barney and avant garde artists, to Arthur Miller, the playwright, to Renee Fleming, the opera singer, Conan O'Brien, Bono the singer, a whole host of people who are being interviewed or are participating in panel discussions, and it does lift the spirit a little bit.

WHITFIELD: And you did mention that while it does help for the image problem of New York City, you are focusing -- or you are focusing some of your efforts on some of the other cities outside of New York?

DARNTON: Yes, absolutely. Mostly, these institutions, you know, ranging from the Steppenwolf Theater and even to the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown are granting very good discounts to people who come because of this special weekend.

WHITFIELD: All right, John Darnton, thanks very much from "The New York Times."

DARNTON: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Good to see you.

DARNTON: Thank you, Fredricka.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired March 9, 2003 - 15:23   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: A sad note is playing on Broadway because of a strike by musicians. Every musical on Broadway has been canceled, and theater woes are adding to already tough times for the arts in the Big Apple. And a possible war with Iraq could further cripple a town that depends heavily on tourism dollars. John Darnton is with the "New York Times," and he joins us live to discuss the situation. Good to see you, John.
JOHN DARNTON, NEW YORK TIMES: Good to see you.

WHITFIELD: All right, well, how devastating just might this be, especially if this kind of blackout in the musical theaters goes into yet another weekend?

DARNTON: They need this like they need a hole in the head. It's closed down 18 musicals, another three that are in rehearsal. And it comes at just the wrong time, because January and February are very bad months for the theater, and traditionally in March, it begins to pull out of the doldrums. Now they stand to lose $1 million every single night and matinee performance.

WHITFIELD: Already, I've seen some estimates that it's cost them up to $5 million this weekend alone with those 18 musicals not being able to perform?

DARNTON: That's right. And the longer it goes on, the worse it is. The last time there was a strike, 1975, it lasted three weeks, and basically it was over the same issue.

WHITFIELD: And now, with the talk of war, the possibilities of that kind of interruption, it seems as though we're really looking at long-term effects for the theater, art centers in New York City, and maybe even across the country, but let's talk about New York.

DARNTON: All right. I think it is -- it does primarily affect New York. The tourist falloff has been especially hurtful for big institutions, like the Metropolitan Museum, Museum of Natural History. But it even affects the opera, all of Broadway, the smaller galleries, and they're beginning to close down, they're beginning to close on Saturdays, when they used to be open. They've closed some galleries, they've eliminated a few opera productions. It's beginning to hurt. You can tell.

WHITFIELD: And this comes at a time when Times Square, the arts district in particular was kind of celebrating a rebound after 9-11. DARNTON: That's true. The theater, in particular, came back strong. It grossed about $15 million a week, which is pretty good. And I think, you know, the prospect of a falloff in tourist trade, combined with the kind of economic downturn, which hurts in terms of eliminating the vast numbers of theater goers, concert-goers, plus philanthropic giving, all spells bad news for the arts centers.

WHITFIELD: And I've heard also, that while the tourism industry is certainly, you know, a real cash cow for the city, it really is not as primary as some people might think?

DARNTON: Well, it does bring in a lot of money. Estimates are about $4.5 billion, if you include all the related things that it helps, like taxis, hotels, restaurants, that kind of thing.

So with that in mind, this particular weekend, the "New York Times" is trying to do our bit. We've launched something we call "The Arts and Leisure Weekend," and that's a series of events all over the country, in about 50 different cities. Most of them are kind of discounts for concerts, movies, galleries, museums, even zoos. And here in New York, there are a whole host of special events being put on Fifth Avenue at the Kuni (ph) Graduate Center.

WHITFIELD: And do you feel like it's the intention to really sort of give people some options, some outlets, especially as talk has become so serious about a possible war?

DARNTON: Oh, it is definitely, because I think arts, at this particular time are really needed as a kind of bomb (ph) for the spirit, you know, so we have everyone from Matthew Barney and avant garde artists, to Arthur Miller, the playwright, to Renee Fleming, the opera singer, Conan O'Brien, Bono the singer, a whole host of people who are being interviewed or are participating in panel discussions, and it does lift the spirit a little bit.

WHITFIELD: And you did mention that while it does help for the image problem of New York City, you are focusing -- or you are focusing some of your efforts on some of the other cities outside of New York?

DARNTON: Yes, absolutely. Mostly, these institutions, you know, ranging from the Steppenwolf Theater and even to the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown are granting very good discounts to people who come because of this special weekend.

WHITFIELD: All right, John Darnton, thanks very much from "The New York Times."

DARNTON: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Good to see you.

DARNTON: Thank you, Fredricka.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com