Authentic Passion: An introduction to the arts in rural and small communities

I have always been amused by the perception that rural and small communities have a different kind of art than metro or suburban communities. Sometimes, images of "barnyard paintings" or "farmer theater" come to mind. And sometimes, those images are inspired by real situations like theatrical sets that are built so well someone could live in them or oil colors of black-and-white cows that bring a smile to my face, always.

In reality, the arts flourish in rural and small towns in every form because of committed artists and arts activists who live there. Many of these people don’t think of themselves as artists nor do they think of the arts as some special thing that we should all be talking about. They are motivated by a love for an artform whether it’s music, theater, visual arts or dance that, often times, defies the repressive stigma that modern-day America has put on the arts in more sophisticated institutionalized settings.

In rural communities, people come together to present art for people they know and to support artists they know. It is not uncommon for communities of 5,000 people or less to sponsor arts activities where the entire town is involved, either as performer or audience member. Activities like festivals, talents shows and community celebrations of all kinds feature artists from the community. In the rural Midwest where 4-H is still extremely active, children enter painting, design, sculpture, theater and musical competitions at county fairs and then move up to the state fair. Girl scouts and boy scouts work on those drama, music and art badges year around. What might be perceived as the bygone days of Norman Rockwell paintings are alive and well in many small towns in America today.

The arts are a part of the fiber of small towns because they are part of the tradition of the community. Many towns have community theaters, municipal bands with band shells and ballrooms that are as old as the town itself. At every basketball game and football game, live music gets a great audience. So, you might be asking yourself, what does this have to do with "art" as we know it?

I believe it has everything to do with art. The dedication of community theater enthusiasts in our smallest towns makes for better theater in New York and Chicago. It is an ecosystem that drives audience and performers. Some move to larger cities where they can hone their professions and others decide they must travel to see professional artists at the highest level of their craft. We have room in the arts for all levels of accomplishment, professionalism and expertise. It is the authentic passion for the artform that is essential, whether the performance is for the local church or the Metropolitan Opera.

When I moved to San Francisco from South Dakota in 1976 and began working for the American Conservatory Theater, I was a very intimidated and self-conscious 25-year-old. I was worried that my training in theater at the University of South Dakota and my years of summer stock at the Black Hills Playhouse had not prepared for me to work in such an honorable institution as ACT. I will never forget the comment by ACT’s general manager Charles Dillingham, who said to me, "Theater is theater no matter where you do it. The only difference is the number of zeros to the left of the decimal point." Although we all recognize the technical and artistic difference between our finest theaters and our smallest community groups, we must give the utmost respect to all artists for their passion that produces the product.

There are some serious issues facing rural and small communities in America today from both an artistic and social viewpoint. There are some artforms that don’t seem to survive in a total community sense. Towns with many young ballerinas all taking Saturday morning classes often times have no opportunities for dancers who have graduated high school. The visual arts have a tough time maintaining dedicated gallery space. Although small towns have main-street buildings that are vacant and can be used for gallery space, the ongoing cost of building utilities prohibit year-round use. Unlike theaters that can sell tickets, the visual arts suffer from lack of professional management, fundraising and income-generating potential. Public art is pretty much limited to murals and monuments.

The demographic trends of rural America are a little frightening, especially for those of us in the West where "rural" can mean driving two to three hours to a larger community. Young people are moving out, older populations are staying, becoming less active, living on pensions and Social Security. Rural communities are becoming poorer as people move, shop at discount stores in larger cities and property values drop. In communities where keeping the local hospital or school is the critical issue, raising funds for the arts festival or local arts council may not be the priority. Funds are rarely available to these communities from foundations or government. The volunteers who run these groups do not often have the time or confidence to apply to state arts agency or National Endowment for the Arts grants. But, the good news is…they are self-reliant, their budgets are small and they can sustain their activities with little fundraising effort.

I have always said the most critical issue for the arts in small and rural towns is people not money. Some of the folks who have been running arts councils, community theaters, dance studios, visual art galleries are retiring and are not being replaced in their communities as young people seek better job opportunities in larger towns. So strength of the arts in a small community in the future will depend on that town’s ability to sustain its own economic viability and to maintain its taxpaying population base. In the West, we are not seeing community arts groups decrease in numbers if the community is a viable one. In fact, we have seen a growth in renovations of historic theaters, cultural museums, outdoor amphitheaters and programs for youth. Across America, the increasing popularity of folk arts has given rural and small communities a boost as historic museums, authentic Native American and unique ethnic arts experiences and local crafts have taken on a new emphasis. So, it is people and not money that drive the arts in small and rural communities. (Please don’t get me wrong, however, money is always needed and wanted.)

A case in point might be the recent report by the Rand Corporation. Rand, a policy think tank, recently published a study of large, medium and small (under $100,000 budget) performing-arts groups funded by the Pew Charitable Trust. The results indicated that in 20 years, our large institutions will still be around and will be spending more money on advertising, looking for high-name recognition entertainment and presenting pretty conservative fare to appeal to greater numbers of people. The researchers believe that grassroots organizations like those in rural and small communities (who would love budgets of $100,000 instead of the typical $12,500) will also still be around because of their reliance on volunteers, local dollars for support and their connection with the community. Medium size groups, however, will be at the most risk.

I think it’s hard for those of us in the institutionalized arts world to take groups from rural and small communities too seriously because they don’t always function in the typical nonprofit-organizational way. Board members stay around for 20 or more years, meetings are held at someone’s home with coffee and cake, tickets are sold for $3.50, kids are running the lights, hanging the paintings. For people who work at making the arts happen in their towns, it is the art that is most important, not the organization, the board, the new marketing or audience development strategy. Of course, their single-mindedness is a reflection of the community in which they live. Things are easier, simpler and get accomplished much faster in small and rural towns.

There has always been a place in my heart for the folks who give their time and talents to assure that the arts happen in small communities. They don’t do it for fame, glory or money. (Although if they could do it for money and live in their small town, some of them probably would!) The people in small communities who are involved in the arts have a passion for their artform. They understand their product may not always be as professional or exceptional as other places, but they are dedicated to the process of making art where they live. There’s no need to travel the world to participate. You can offer arts experiences in your hometown with people you know for people you know.

This concept reminds me of the 1995 Garrison Keillor quote from his speech before the Senate Subcommittee on Education, Arts and Humanities. He said, "Today, in every city and state, when Americans talk up their home town, invariably they mention the arts, a local orchestra or theater or museum or all three. It didn’t use to be this way. Forty years ago, if an American meant to have an artistic career, you got on the train to New York. Today, you can be a violinist in North Carolina, a writer in Iowa, a painter in Kansas. Today, no American family can be secure against the danger that one of its children may decide to become an artist."

Janet Brown, Sioux Falls, S.D., is a consultant, speaker and teacher with 30 years experience in arts administration working in urban and rural communities from California to New York City. A native of South Dakota, she is passionate about the arts and public policy and professional development for staff and boards of the nonprofit arts community.

Original CAN/API publication: March 2002