da blogs da thang

… (completely-from start to end) over this weekend than I have ever experienced since the conception of the Rogue over 8 years ago. (10 shows, yo!) Even though I “officially” retired from running it in 2006 I was still involved in some capacity for the next year and a half. This year my fingerprint is practically non-existent. So that frees me up quite a bit… at least later in the day to float between shows.

As promised (from 2 posts down) I will provide observations/commentary of my impressions on the festival as it barrels toward the closing weekend. The view may be somewhat unique since I have both an inside-outside view of it. Some of what I state here may seem scathing but I will ask you to take it in the intended spirit of wanting better.

A couple of the original intents for starting the Rogue in the first place was to incite change and improvement. . I can safely (and proudly) say that since it’s inception, the perception and involvement with the arts in this city has improved both among audiences and the creative community on the whole. But it doesn’t end there. So, in that spirit… may the process and growth never end.

Let’s start with…VENUES:

Beginning with THIS & THIS posting from the Beehive. Both of which I am in total agreement with. The Rogue has had these venues for at least 4 years. One would think by now that those issues would have been nipped in the bud. Although they have been taken care of… my irritation this year has been hearing over and over again the quick and ready excuse of, “opening night/weekend fuck-ups”. I’m sorry but that ceases to be an excuse after 2 years… let alone year 4. I probably know more than most that every venue has it’s quirks. That being said… by now these quirks should not be a surprise to the organisers of the festival.

This is not just exclusive to heating and noise issues either. Several of the venues had “tech malfunctions” especially during their opening performances. As a potential audience member I can let things slide during a tech rehearsal… not a performance I paid to see. From a festival standpoint this reflects poorly with performers and audiences alike.

Once again, there are easy fixes to this. (I refuse to “complain” about something unless I can offer constructive solutions.) 1. Assign dedicated tech personnel to each of the shows (especially for Mainstage). 2. Provide “cue sheets” (sound and light) for companies to fill in and require annotated scripts for their shows at least 2 weeks before. This way, (assuming the tech person has done their homework) the assigned “cue to cue” rehearsal becomes more of a fine tuning exercise.  3. Bring back the “no more than 30 combined cue” rule. 4. Make sure every venue manager and tech person working “knows” the venue well beforehand (see reference to “quirks” above) and has direct involvement in setting it up. 5. To quell the issue of “lack of personnel”… stipend them. After 8 years… depending on the kindness of strangers in that (crucial) area has worn thin.

On the first day of the festival… at the very first show I attended… the show started late. In fact, they only started seating the audience 5 minutes past start time. (And it was the first performance of the day at that venue to boot.) From what I gather it threw off the schedule for the other shows performing there for the rest of the night. For the audience member any plans to attend a show at another venue (after this late starting performance) was completely thrown off especially in a festival such as this. Solution? It may be time to revise the BYO requirements and policy. For the most part the average audience member has no inkling nor cares if it is a Cafe, Mainstage or BYO… they are just there to see a show. So, that becomes a direct reflection on the festival itself.

And still on the question of venues… a couple of bloggers/artists posted THIS great discussion. To them I say… I agree that the visual art component needs to be “grown”. I also say…get involved with the organizers and help secure a venue (or venues) to facilitate your needs. Really, they will welcome the help and input. Afterall… it’s all about evolving and creating a better and more diverse product.

Anyway, enough for now. The Rogue is still a good festival… but, I’m shooting for better. Tomorrow will find another Rogue topic to explore.