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http://www~. startribune.com/entertainment/onstage/90950204.html?elr=KArksUUUoDEy3LGDiO7aiU ~~ ~~ • ~. ` ~ :. ,, ~ ~,_ ~ ~ M#pe{/~s#artnhune,.e~m +~iwi~ ~~~' ~ ~ 1~ ~. ~S`` fin reach." Ingredients for success The mantra for arts centers should be "If you program it appealingly, they will come." The programming in Hopkins, with a 71.6- seat theater, is markedly different from. that at the Phipps, but there are some common ingredients that appear to lead to success at suburban. arts centers: • Anchor tenants. A suburban arts center needs stable magnets to build and maintain audiences. In Hopkins, it's the kids-oriented Stages Theatre, with 260 performances per year. Other centers use amulti-concert series with subscription tickets. At Bloomington, seven. resident community organizations present about 80 percent of the arts events. • The right number of seats. With 1,000 seats in its theater, Burnsville can't compete for big-name attraction with the 2,1.00-seat room at Mystic Lake Casino in nearby Prior Lake. On the other hand, Twin Cities dance and theater companies may view the hall as too big. But with creative and resourceful management, a suburban center can deliver downtown quality. For example, at the Center for Arts in Natick, Mass., 17 miles outside of Boston, executive director David Lavalley may have only 270 seats, but he's been. able to manage his budget and present Judy Collins, Paula Poundstone and George Winston, for $50 or less per ticket. • Diverse programming. "As frustrating as it is to market, we are very eclectic," said Potter of Hudson's Phipps, which features everything from "The Adventures of Peter Rabbit" to a series of Celtic, classical and. bluegrass music concerts to classes for kids about ecology and art. • Don't be just a rental facility. At the Phipps, Potter rents the space to other organizations as well as producing his own programs. Doing both, he says, is "a secret of our success." Of course, there's more risk when you're the entrepreneurial producer -- but also potential for more reward, said arts consultant Chris Shrum, who has worked on projects from Miami to Maine, where he's based. • Multi-use. It may be called an "arts center" but it also serves as a community center, hosting wedding receptions, Rotary meetings, school functions, yoga classes and little Advertisement ~1~~~~r Fl~~~~Y~ ~~~~ t~'~ ~A~t,~ 1~'~!li~' rr~r~lc~a~rrr!>et.~on~ ~~~~~~~ Print Powered By It-t~ http://www.startribune.com/templates/fdcp? 1276288336622 Page 3 of 5 6/11/2010 o~a~~o y ~erare~ rn~stielalc+E.catm- Dynao-rrics