Brian's NYC

I recently heard a statistic that there are fifteen cities in the world whose cost of living is more expensive than New York. Can this be accurate (can it, Cash Cab? Can it?!)?

Regardless of its ranking it's no doubt that NYC is an incredibly pricey city, and the economy is starting to hit the city rather hard. What appears to be taking out more Wall St. players every day is trickling down to even the lowly food industry employees and actors such as myself.

When the financial situation first started going south, no one at my restaurant was extremely worried, as we seem to have a loyal customer base, and our restaurant is surprisingly affordable given its close proximity to Times Square. But it has been proven that because we are an individually owned restaurant (as opposed to the vast corporate monster of my previous place of employment), the slightest change in business affects our numbers. Add to the economic crisis the usual slow winter business, and the results can be quite crippling, like last week when our sales were down a full 50%. Luckily we have Mardi Gras coming in the next few weeks which can be the single best selling day of the year for us, being a New Orleans themed establishment. Business supposedly picks up steadily through the summer after Fat Tuesday, so hopefully the trend will continue, despite everyone wanting to pinch their pocket books.

Then there's the theater scene. January 13 was referred to as 'Black Tuesday,' as it was the first playing date after nine Broadway/Off-Broadway shows closed on Sunday, January 11. And while I have read that despite the crunch, nearly every Broadway venue is booked for the spring, making this one of the busiest theater seasons in recent Broadway history, the general outlook remains grim. In addition, there is a rise in the number of regional theaters shutting down due to lack of funds (AMTSJ, Magic Theater) and an ever increasing number of regional houses facing dire financial crises (Paper Mill, North Shore), thereby forcing them to reduce their seasons, or cancel productions altogether. Paired with the tightening of shows on Broadway, there are now more out of work actors vying for fewer roles in fewer shows. Auditions are fewer and far between, and they are always packed. Even some Equity members wait hours and may not even be seen, let alone non-union folks. The one good thing we have going for us is the increasing desire to use non-union talent in an effort to save money (lower salaries!). I think it is safe to say we will be seeing more and more small-scale show like The Story of My Life and Hair, and fewer grandiose blockbusters like Shrek and 9 to 5, whose financial success still remains to be proven (and again, small shows, fewer roles, less work).

But as someone who plans to start his own theater company in the not-too-distant future, I have to hold my head up high and be confident that I am being given a valuable opportunity to partake in the reinvention and resurgence of the theater community. Having the industry evolve like this could mean more fruitful opportunities for me and my career aspirations. It may be a tough road to hoe now to continue in my endeavors as an artist in the NY theater community, but sticking it through and continuing to give it my all will only make me stronger and more confident that i have to knowledge, sill, and experience from my time in NY to create and maintain a successful theater company, no matter what obstacles I am faced with.