Capital Region - In email and text conversations with local arts leaders there is confusion and anger about the proposed elimination of the National Endowment for the Arts from the 2026 budget.
It is especially noteworthy that most presenting organizations such as Proctors, SPAC, Capital Rep and Park Playhouse are not immediately affected by any loss of funding. Most of the funding they receive comes from private, corporate or New York State (NYSCA) sources.
Caffe Lena in Saratoga Springs has a history of encouraging emerging American folk icons. Executive director Sarah Craig speaks to the cultural value of art saying, “Being forced to defend the arts solely as an economic engine betrays their true worth. It also betrays our drift towards a future that’s all about what’s good for big commerce and not good for the human soul.”
On a purely economic level, local arts leaders wonder as to why the NEA is being eliminated. They cite its budget, which at $208-million is a minor amount within the federal budget, especially for the economic good it provides.
The NEA figures show that the US arts and cultural sector contributed $1.1 trillion to the economy in real value in 2022, accounting for 4.3 percent of GDP. They buy local products like wood and paint for sets, fabric for costumes, etc. The presence of an entertainment venue in a community helps nearby businesses such as restaurants and taverns. Indeed, the NEA sets the economic generator at 9-1. For every dollar spent on the arts it generates $9 in local spending. Proctors contributions to the economic revitalization of Schenectady is but one example.
The CATO institute (an influential Conservative think-tank), in April 2025 published a briefing paper, written by Ryan Bourne, that encouraged the elimination of the NEA. He insists that federal funding would be replaced by private donations. He championed the Broadway and film industry profit method of producing content over the not-for-profit model that depends on donations and grants.
Bourne writes, “Hollywood the most successful film industry in the world, was built through studio financing, ticket sales and private backers…”. He adds, “Broadway operates on the same model with hit shows relying on ticket revenue and private investors.”
Philip Morris, CEO of Proctors, a venue that hosts numerous Broadway touring shows, argues that this profit model for regional theaters would eventually “prevent developmental work to happen in all sorts of places in America - not just in Hollywood, New York City and Chicago.”
Morris also claims that an argument “focusing on the single most successful and large and ‘ultimate’ institutions does not understand the infrastructure of new work, development of artists and the need for ‘safe places’ for art to develop into what might be extraordinary.”
On the topic of commercial versus intangible values, the CATO paper argues that the arts overestimate their benefit to society. “There’s no proof these supposed benefits boost public welfare or productivity—and no good reason taxpayers should be forced to fund art they don’t value.”
Sarah Craig calls that attitude “simplistic.” To illustrate, she points to Challenge America, an NEA program that has been eliminated. It funded most of the Caffe Lena on the Road program. She described the project as one that “brought main stage performers to community settings such as elder care centers, free meal sites, after school programs, addiction treatment centers, and the like.” She feels anyone who realizes that “music is more than entertainment” will understand the social cost of eliminating such programs.
Bourne complains that there is little evidence that “any great work” has been produced by projects helped by federal grants. Disagreeing is Miriam Westfield, producing-artistic director of Adirondack Theatre Festival, an organization devoted to producing new work.
She points out that of the last eight plays to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, half of them did not appear on Broadway. She also says, almost all of those works went through their developmental stage at regional not-for-profit institutions.
She points to “American Newspaper,” a play being developed at her theater. It has a public reading scheduled at the theater this summer, with the goal of a full production next season. The NEA just pulled a $25,000 grant which places a full production in jeopardy. ATF’s only hope is that private donors or foundations step up with funding.
However, Maggie Mancinelli-Cahill, the artistic-producing director of Capital Repertory Theatre, worries that such funding will become increasingly difficult for the arts. She fears hard decisions might soon fall on philanthropists who, because of severe social cuts in the 2026 budget, must decide whether to help the desperately needy or the arts.
Mancinelli-Cahill also cites “donor fatigue” as well as the increased stress on staff. Even Bourne recognizes the problem, citing in his paper that “arts organizations will have to devote more resources to fundraising, spending $0.25 in additional fundraising expenses for every $1.00 lost from government grants.”
Arguably, the passage written by Bourne about creativity was the most inflammatory. He writes, “On the supply side, modern technology has made art more accessible than ever. YouTube, Spotify, Netflix, and numerous other platforms bring music, film, and other types of performances to billions at low cost. AI and digital tools are further lowering barriers to creation, allowing independent artists to produce high-quality content on a shoestring budget.”
Craig speaks for all creatives when she writes, “The people who say that "artists" are churning out "high-quality content" using AI are not talking about real art. Candy bars are not food, screensavers showing photos of forests are not experiences with nature, and songs generated by AI are not products of the human soul that create surprise, awe or epiphany.”
Or, as poet William Wordsworth wrote, “Getting and spending we lay waste our powers…”
Bob Goepfert is theater reviewer for the Troy Record.
The views expressed by commentators are solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the views of this station or its management.
