The struggle between commerce and art continues, not in the way you think. This isn’t about one dominating over the other, but rather the brief sub-set when the two need to join hands. The W4tB collective was very lucky to find a home at Café Ballou. The owner is very supportive of the arts and we appreciate all he’s done for us.
The simple truth of the matter is that people open cafes as a way to make money. No matter how supportive of the arts they are, bills need to be paid. That includes servers, and electric bills, and comfy climate control devices. Especially in this case, the Café Ballou stays open late for us crazy poets. Our show does not occur during its regular hours of operation.
This is the scary part. W4tB is in danger of losing its home. Not because of anything we did. We haven’t been offensive of been asked to tone down our behavior. The fact of the matter is that the owner of the place likes us and we like him. On the business side of things is where we hit a snag. Our attendance numbers have been okay, and if everybody bought a little something to eat during the night we might be okay, but lately The café has been operating at a loss during our show and the receipts show it’s due to lack of sales.
I know times are hard. W4tB has done it’s best to make the donation to the feature only what you can afford. We even state that if it’s a choice between the donation plate and the House, pick the House. That being said…The Owner suggested that maybe we want to institute a cover charge. I told him that would be a horrible idea. It would cut attendance. People don’t want to be required to pay an extra charge for a place to sit. I will fight this cover as long as I can.
In order to carry out this fight, I need the help of the Weirdo Nation. I need you to come to the show. I need you to come to the show with friends and money. I need you to be willing to spend some of that money and have your friends do the same. Our quality of entertainment hasn’t changed and can only get better with your participation. We love our home at Café Ballou, but hugs and mutual admiration ain’t gonna keep us in business.
I sponsored a poetry reading at a cafe on Michigan & 22nd, in hopes of supporting a badly needed business. There was a sizeable crowd. Only a couple of people bought something. One who bought a cup of coffee asked if there were "free refills." I was humiliated at the cheapness of the crowd. I did not sponsor another reading. A few months after that, the place closed down. Another empty storefront in this barren community.
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