With the recent presidential election of a demagogue who threatens to uproot American Democracy and put many citizens in harm's way, the story of Post5 Theater may seem unimportant. Many of us are trying to find our balance after this dramatic culture shift and the media ecosystem is no exception. Democracy starts at the ground floor and theater plays a role in the discourse. For many years the National Endowment for the Arts and public broadcasting have been under threat with budget cuts by the Republican party. On the campaign trail Donald Trump spoke of cutting of funding and there will be a direct impact on our local arts. Trump said of a Chris Ofili work at The Brooklyn Museum: “It’s not art. It’s absolutely gross, degenerate stuff.” Note the word “degenerate” and recall the 1937 German exhibit for Degenerate Art.
Post5's exit from their Sellwood home creates a vacuum in Portland's arts community. Here's my investigative report.
